hire a professional with a bucket truck??

are you asking us.. to give you permission to try to kill yourself.. w/o a picture for us to frame an idea of the circumstances????

i wont enable you.. hire a pro

some pros.. will simply make it fall down.. rather cheaply... as compared to full removal ... presuming you have the ability to clean up the mess yourself. ..

ken

I lost a friend doing what you propose....and he was wearing a hardhat.
Cutting a decayed tree has it's own set of problems. For one, the hinge you make when cutting is not very strong and the tree can fall anywhere. I use a rope and a friend to help direct the fall.
If you're worried about it, get a pro.

dark, this sounds like a terrible accident waiting to happen. I strongly suggest that you contract with an reputable tree company to have the tree felled....it will cost less if you tell them that you will deal with the clean-up as long as they take it down.

Yes, to be clear, I'm not proposing cutting it down myself...I'm concerned about whoever cutting it down may have the upper part fall on them, which is what you guys are describing. I'm wondering if there are any other methods, other than a chainsaw, that can be used to fell the tree from a safe distance (higher than the height of the tree).

If I could bring down the tree it would have no impact on anything, as it could fall in any direction with no damage. The only potential for damage would be if someone was parked under it when it just happened to have a piece fall, which is why I'd rather bring it down on purpose rather than at some random time.

I guess I'm looking for a creative solution that can be done from 30+ feet away. I don't really care about the "mess" made once the tree is on the ground -- I can clean that up no problem.

..I'm concerned about whoever cutting it down may have the upper part fall on them,

==>> insist on insurance documents.. in advance of coming on the property ... AND CALL THE INS COMPANY IN ADVANCE ... some guys just flash old expired documents ...

and them.. dont watch ... maybe even leave the house ...

once you hire a pro.. what can you do????

you said: I guess I'm looking for a creative solution

==>>> and what.. you are going to find local guys to do what we say ... i dont know about that..

how about you hire a 100 foot crane.. chain on the top ... cut the bottom.. and crane it out of there ... helicopter??? dynamite????

have a great day ...

ken

The safest way to do it is with heavy equipment. I have rented sixty foot bucket trailers before and love their ability to "reach in".

When in doubt hire a professional with insurance. That bucket trailer was not the cheapest thing in the world for me.

The risk/benefit thing. And uck, imagine your kids going on w/o you.

My best worst advice was just inspired by ken. Shaped explosive charges on a long fuse.

Watched an episode of mythbusters which makes me think any firearm short of the cannon on the front of an old A-10 is just wasted effort.

(end bad ideas

a couple 100 feet of thick strong rope...a pickup truck...a chainsaw...a nice v shaped notch opposite of how you want it to fall..a pair of running shoes... an awesome insurance policy...a good lawyer...a funeral director... a coffin

Don't mess around... hire someone that deals with this sort of thing.

Senior need help removing rotten trees from back yard don't have money.