Norway Maple tree damage, need opinions

[Cheetah]

Hello everyone.  Behind my garage I have a good sized Norway Maple which seems healthy in the canopy but has a large section of damage on the trunk from when a section broke off years ago before I purchased the home.   I paid to have an arborist out to the house two years back and she commented that the tree would likely get worse, but I am tempted to just take it down now.  In the canopy one of the larger diameter branches (5-6" diameter) is clearly dead, and a handful of smaller 1-2" branches are dead.   Besides that the canopy is thick in the summer and produces a lot of leaves so the tree seems to be coping with the damage.   The center of the wound appears to be getting worse this spring than I recall last year. 

 

My thought is to take the tree down now before it comes down on its own due to the weakness, also easier to clean up without all the leaf canopy.   I am curious what other folks here think. 

 

Thanks.

[delcecchi]

I agree with the aborist.  Not looking good.   The tree is coping fine as there is plenty of healthy bark and roots.   The problem is that the center looks like it is slowly rotting away and the trunk not getting stronger as the canopy grows.    

 

If you are not particularly attached to having the tree there, then it would certainly reduce the risk to your garage to take it down.  Or you could just  have it pruned aggressively to reduce the stress on the trunk.  But it sure looks like its days are numbered.  And the more I look at the pictures the smaller the number is looking.  

 

The problem, sort of like a tree I have, is that it can take a pretty long time to grow a replacement.  

It is possible you can get the insurance company to help with the cost, just ask them if they would rather wait for it to fall on the garage. 

[leech~~]

If there is a line coming up and down the tree above and below that area it may have been a lightening strike. We have a Maple lake that in our front yard.  If you are going to cut it down now may be the best time to get at it. 

Edited April 13, 2018 by leech~~

[Hoey]

Cheetah - does that tree have a v of limbs above the scar?  If so, that makes the tree even more suspect to end-of-life, as that would make this area of the trunk super weak.

[Cheetah]

Dark and rainy today, but here are a couple more quick photos.  

 

 

[Hoey]

You can almost anticipate where it is going to split down the trunk....  It is a whopper of a maple.  Sad to see its condition.  

The limb on the right.  Probably going to be costly to bring it down.

[Getanet]

I don't know anything about your tree, but I had to take a big Elm in our backyard last fall. The trunk was splitting and it was so close to the house and deck to risk major damage if it came down. I haven't been a homeowner for too long, and I'm not an insurance expert, but I found it frustrating that our insurance company wouldn't cover any of the cost to remove the tree. It seemed like a pretty small investment rather than paying out  significantly more if it fell and damaged the house.

 

I'm sure they have their reasons, and it's probably because they figured if they refused, I would eventually pay for it myself

[nofishfisherman]

I would be surprised if insurance pays a dime to have the tree removed.  Maintaining your property and removing hazards is on the homeowner.  If they started paying for things like this then would they also pay for you to install a sump pump to prevent water damage in your basement?  Would they pay to have the brakes on your car repaired when they go bad?  If they did that then they might decide they should start mandating what other hazards need to be remedied around the house, you may find you don't agree with all of them as you probably won't have any trees at all on your property.

 

Not sure what that tree would cost to take down but from my past estimates on other trees a lot of the cost depends on how easy it is to access.  If they can get their big trucks right up to the tree and have easy places for the limbs and tree to fall then the costs are lower.  

 

Its easy from the last set of photos to see where the break is going to happen and it looks like its just a matter of time.  I'd get it take out before it causes issues.  You may have a little time so maybe see if you can work a bit of a deal with a tree service to wait to do the tree until they have another job in the area or they have a slow day. Its a long shot but maybe being flexible on your schedule can save you a few bucks. 

[Getanet]

Yeahbut, insurance does give you safe driver discounts for doing things that should cost them less in the long run. Health insurance covers much of the cost of annual physicals and/or joining a health club, knowing it can save them significant money in the long-run. I'm not saying you should willy-nilly be able to have trees removed and expect them to cover the cost, but when an tree expert says there is a problem, it would seem to be in their best interest to help reduce their potential payouts.

But you're right, insurance doesn't pay a dime for it and I'm sure Cheetah isn't looking for me to keep complaining that they don't.  For what it's worth, I wound up paying $2,700 to have my tree taken down last fall. Mine was a little bigger than Cheetah's appears in the photo, but is in the ballpark. Both trees also are near the house. I got bids in the spring and in the fall, and found the cost to be better in the fall. 

[fishingstar]

looks like you need to put it down before it falls on your house or garage.

hopefully it doesn't go down in this dump we are getting this weekend.

[delcecchi]

6 hours ago, Getanet said:

Yeahbut, insurance does give you safe driver discounts for doing things that should cost them less in the long run. Health insurance covers much of the cost of annual physicals and/or joining a health club, knowing it can save them significant money in the long-run. I'm not saying you should willy-nilly be able to have trees removed and expect them to cover the cost, but when an tree expert says there is a problem, it would seem to be in their best interest to help reduce their potential payouts.

But you're right, insurance doesn't pay a dime for it and I'm sure Cheetah isn't looking for me to keep complaining that they don't.  For what it's worth, I wound up paying $2,700 to have my tree taken down last fall. Mine was a little bigger than Cheetah's appears in the photo, but is in the ballpark. Both trees also are near the house. I got bids in the spring and in the fall, and found the cost to be better in the fall. 

2700 for one tree seems high.  I had 3 mature dying box elders taken down like a year ago for 3k.   

But maybe things are cheaper in Rochester.   You don't live in Edina or something do you?

[bobberineyes]

2700 isn't to bad really, I've had quotes anywhere from 3-10 grand on a really ugly maple that spreads over a house, garage and a shed. You have a fireplace cheetah? The cheapest route would be to have it dropped and you take care of the rest.

[Big Dave2]

If it doesn't blow down today, it's probably all good. 

[Getanet]

On 4/13/2018 at 9:46 PM, delcecchi said:

2700 for one tree seems high.  I had 3 mature dying box elders taken down like a year ago for 3k.   

But maybe things are cheaper in Rochester.   You don't live in Edina or something do you?

 

Nope, not Edina, but in the metro area. I got multiple bids, read reviews, etc - all the bids were in the same relative ballpark - unlike when I got bids to re-roof our house a few years ago, which were all over the map.

 

It was a big tree that hung over our house, garage and deck. If Cheetah has to get his taken down, hopefully he can find a better deal.

[delcecchi]

1 hour ago, Getanet said:

 

Nope, not Edina, but in the metro area. I got multiple bids, read reviews, etc - all the bids were in the same relative ballpark - unlike when I got bids to re-roof our house a few years ago, which were all over the map.

 

It was a big tree that hung over our house, garage and deck. If Cheetah has to get his taken down, hopefully he can find a better deal.

 

I wonder why the difference between there and here.   Perhaps disposal costs are higher, or it was some peculiarity of the location of the tree relative to the house.   There does also seem to be some difference by neighborhood, with more affluent areas paying more, or so I have been told.