Anyone Going To Florida / What Gear???

[murphy4trees]

When the dust settles it would be good to get some info on the hard hits areas in Florida for tree work.. anyone there now or have contacts. I'll be bringing two grinders and a skid loader if I go. Would be good to hear from Brian... Mr Rocky J Squirrel of olden days

thanks,
Daniel

 

[MasterBlaster]

Something tells me he doesn't have internet connectivity at the moment...

 

[murphy4trees]

How about Kenny? Anyone hear from him lately???

 

[MasterBlaster]

Not since his last post.

 

[SeriousTreesAZ]

When the dust settles it would be good to get some info on the hard hits areas in Florida for tree work.. anyone there now or have contacts. I'll be bringing two grinders and a skid loader if I go. Would be good to hear from Brian... Mr Rocky J Squirrel of olden days

thanks,
Daniel

There's going to be a gold rush out there... been thinking of it myself... not many places to stay with electricity though and high humidity right now. Same thing in Southern Tex.

 

[MasterBlaster]

If you head down there you'd best be prepared to be totally self-sufficient. Your own place to stay, food, water, fuel, everything.

Storm chasing can be a gold mine, but if you go off half cocked you WILL regret it.

 

[Altissimus]

Correct , heading into emergency zones ... Saws , Bars , Chains , Gas , Files , and repairs plus Food , and Water are unavailable (as well as rooms). We learned this after going down self contained for Hurricane Bob on Cape Cod in '85 ... also local theft of saws was a big one , main problem was getting hired for first job w out local contacts. Though once we got one and they saw we could cut circles around the local landscapers , we had a hundred more.

 

[Raj]

In my old army days the guideline for small unit aid of civil power was 75% of what you bring to disaster zones was for the unit itself.

 

[pantheraba]

This was our packing list for a team for Katrina in 2005:

 

[MasterBlaster]

I altered the thread title.

 

[Altissimus]

We hit a point when only two of five saws ran , took time off and went up cape to a shop. He had at least fifty old saws on repairs pile. For a small bribe he put our three first and some supplies we were back at it.

 

[Limbrat]

That's a pretty thorough list Gary. Tire repair is usually forgotten but often needed with all the lumber and roofing laying everywhere.

 

[cory]

Sounds to me that if you were going down there with no contacts etc, you could leave a week from now when there's more fuel and electricity available, and still have mountains and mountains of work in front of you. It's arguable the worst 'caine to hit the state in forever due to how widespread the damage is.

What say you, Ray?

 

[MasterBlaster]

Good suggestion.

 

[SeriousTreesAZ]

This was our packing list for a team for Katrina in 2005:

All of that would be quite necessary and in a generous amount of most...

Maybe even buy or rent a couple motor homes or trailers to house the crew... could be cheaper in the end... maybe advertise on the side to get your name out?

Might be cheaper than trying to house them all at a hotel... plus there probably aren't many hotels that are even open in Houston or Florida... in the hard hit spots anyway it would be hard to find housing I imagine...

 

[ClimbMIT]

Bump: I was thinking about renting a U-Haul, loading it up and heading out that way. I have a Toyota Tacoma and no room to lock up all my saws, ropes, rigging, climbing gear, etc.., Not to mention all the other supplies needed for however long I plan to stay. If my ex can keep the kids I would like to go for 3-4 weeks maybe come home for a week or two then go back for another 3-4 weeks. I might just rent a big U-Haul trailer first trip then come back and buy a bigger 3/4 ton crew cab truck with a locking bed cover.


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[Buddy]

I had a guy that works for the Idaho transportation department ask me if I was interested in going down with him to work. Do you guys think it would be worth it?

 

[cory]

Need a lot more info to answer you re the monetary reward end of it. But with all existing info, my opinion is that it would be worth it to experience it. Its a huge natural disaster of historical significance, to be part of the relief effort would be an epic life experience. Would almost certainly be not "all good" but definitely unique, memorable and maybe life changing.

 

[SkwerI]

Yes, there's work. No, you're not going to get much work unless you are connected with a local outfit. Tree guys are scum and most people know it, so most jobs will go to a referral and not the guy knocking at the door.

Power is quickly being restored around here. Yesterday was 88% of households had power and today will be a lot more. So food will be easily found but lodging will be difficult and/or expensive.

In the last week I've seen almost no out-of-town tree guys, all locals. I think the damage is so widespread that there's more work than even the out of town guys can cover. I think the worst of the uprooted trees will be dealt with in another week but there will be months of work. The crazy money is mostly gone already as people aren't so panicked if the tree has been laying on the house for 5 days.

Very little chipping or hauling. Almost everything is going to the curb in anticipation of FEMA dollars paying for cleanup. But that will take time. Buckets, cranes and grapple loaders are your best tools. Too early to grind stumps yet but there will be lots of stump work in a few weeks.

IMO the coasts will have more damage than the center of the State. Probably why no carpetbaggers here.

 

[Buddy]

Thanks guys, I really don't have much to add and I doubt I would go. It was just something I was asked about and he was going to talk to his boss and get some more information.

 

[pantheraba]

Bump: I was thinking about renting a U-Haul, loading it up and heading out that way. I have a Toyota Tacoma and no room to lock up all my saws, ropes, rigging, climbing gear, etc.., Not to mention all the other supplies needed for however long I plan to stay. If my ex can keep the kids I would like to go for 3-4 weeks maybe come home for a week or two then go back for another 3-4 weeks. I might just rent a big U-Haul trailer first trip then come back and buy a bigger 3/4 ton crew cab truck with a locking bed cover.

I recently upgraded from a 5x8 trailer to this 7x14 trailer. I think a U-Haul might be a hassle if it is too high...in and out with gear will wear you out.

My 5x8 was a step up (had a side hinge door)...could not stand up completely in it and the step up got old. The ramp on this trailer is great. Some stuff is stacked in the nose...we plan to make some cabinets/shelves there (maybe with a bench vise) to control that mess. Here is how I am organizing my trailer:

 

[pantheraba]

Not sure how well a Tacoma would do with a 7x14....a 6x12 might work. Be sure it has trailer brakes that work. Our Haulmark 6x12 with a ramp is what we took to Katrina...worked awesome.

 

[SkwerI]

Anybody with the financial resources might consider buying a big grapple truck or three. There will be big FEMA dollars to pick up all the storm debris and the only way to do it is with a grapple truck.

 

[pantheraba]

I believe that..I saw a lot of debris hauling from roadside at Katrina...endless stream of roll-offs or dumptrucks headed to a FEMA dump site. Lots of grapple trucks working then.

 

[cory]

Anybody with the financial resources might consider buying a big grapple truck or three. There will be big FEMA dollars to pick up all the storm debris and the only way to do it is with a grapple truck.

+100.

Carl must feel blessed these days. Severely overworked, but blessed