Tree Removal in Mettawa
On most properties here, there's room. That's the good news. A dead tree out in a pasture or along a field edge can often be brought down in one piece, which is quicker than taking it apart from the top. Removal work gets slower and more careful the closer the tree stands to a house, a barn, a paddock fence or the drive.
The trouble on acreage is how many there can be. A property with a wooded back half might have a whole row of dead ash on it. Emerald ash borer killed most of the untreated ash in northern Illinois, and big properties got hit as hard as anybody. Dead ash goes brittle, so the ones near buildings, fences and riding paths should come down first. Clearing out dead ash can be done all at once or a few trees at a time.
Old open-grown oaks are the other big job. They're wide, heavy and usually standing right where somebody built a house to be near them. Those always get a visit before a price.
What Mettawa Properties and Trees Are Like
Mettawa is a small village spread over a lot of ground, on either side of the tollway around Townline Road. Lots are large. Many have horses. Riding trails cross the village, and forest preserves take up a good share of what's around it: Captain Daniel Wright Woods and MacArthur Woods along the Des Plaines River, and Old School up toward Libertyville, where we're based.
The trees match. You'll find oak and hickory woods, wet low spots full of cottonwood and willow, windbreaks of spruce and pine, and fence lines grown up with mulberry, box elder and buckthorn. A lot of driveways run through a tunnel of mature trees.
Storm Cleanup and Fallen Trees in Mettawa
A storm on a big wooded property leaves a different kind of mess. It's a tree across the driveway so you can't get out. It's a limb through a board fence with horses on the other side. It's three trees down in the back that you don't find until the weekend.
For anything on a building, on a vehicle or blocking your drive, call (224) 944-8652 so we can talk it through. We get to storm calls as fast as the crew can, with no promised hour. Cutting up and hauling fallen trees that aren't hurting anything can be quoted by text like any other job.
Wires down with the tree? Leave it. ComEd has to deal with the line before any tree crew touches it.
How Tree Pricing Works on a Mettawa Property
Text photos to (224) 944-8652 with your town. For one tree or one limb, that's usually enough for a written price. For a big removal, or a list of trees spread across the property, we'll come walk it with you. No charge for that.
You get one flat price for the job before any cutting starts. If there are several trees, tell us which ones matter most, and the quote will spell out exactly what's covered. The things that set the price don't change: size, what's under and around the tree, whether it's dead and brittle, how equipment gets to it, and whether stumps are included.
Access is the one people here forget. A tree at the far end of a wet pasture is a different job than the same tree beside the driveway.
Tree Trimming and Pruning in Mettawa
Trimming on acreage is mostly about clearance and deadwood. Limbs get lifted off the driveway so a delivery truck or a horse trailer can get through. Deadwood comes out of the big trees over the house and the yard. Branches get pulled back from the barn roof and the fence.
Taking off a single heavy limb is a common request, usually one that's cracked or hanging over something.
Mind the calendar with oaks. They shouldn't be pruned between spring and early fall, since open cuts bring in the beetles that spread oak wilt. With as many oaks as there are around here, that's worth taking seriously. Elms are similar. We do that work in winter, which is also the best season for trimming most other trees. And we never top a tree.
Stump Grinding in Mettawa
Nobody grinds every stump on a property this size. Out in the woods or along a fence row, a stump cut low can just be left to rot. Near the house, in a lawn you mow, or in a paddock where a horse could catch a leg, it's worth grinding it down.
Utilities get located first. That's a free call to JULIE at 811. On rural-style lots there's often more buried than people remember, like lines out to a barn, a well line or a septic field. JULIE marks the public utilities. The private stuff is yours to point out.
Check Village Rules Before Removing Trees
Villages with this much open land usually care what happens to the trees on it. Many Lake County villages have rules about cutting them, and some require a permit even on private property. You may need a permit, so ring village hall first. That goes double if you're planning to take out more than a tree or two.
Also check your survey if you back up to forest preserve land. The preserve's trees aren't yours to cut, even the dead one leaning your way. The forest preserve district is who to call about those.
Brush, Logs and Cleanup After the Job
We clean up what we cut. Brush is chipped and wood is hauled off and recycled, since Illinois keeps yard waste out of landfills. The work area gets raked.
If you've got a fireplace or a wood stove, tell us what you want kept. We'll leave the logs cut where you want them. Regular hours are Monday through Saturday, 7am to 7pm, and Sunday by appointment.
What You Get With Tree Work in Mettawa
- Keep the firewood if you want it, cut and left where you say
- Open Monday through Saturday, 7am to 7pm, and Sunday by appointment
- The crew is insured for tree work
- One flat price in writing, agreed before any cutting
- Free quotes from a photo, and a free visit for big removals
