From tree trimming to tree removal, forestry, utility and landscaping work bring unique challenges to working at height that other industries simply don’t have. The tree could have hidden weak points that break and send workers tumbling. A soft breeze could blow branches into nearby power lines, energizing the tree and anyone touching it. Branches could be completely inaccessible to climbers because they’re blocked by other trees, buildings or brittle branches.
If you want to make your tree project safer and more efficient, you need an alternative to climbing and ladders. Enter the aerial lift, specifically the bucket truck. In this article, you’ll learn why bucket trucks are ideal for tree work.
How Do Bucket Trucks Help with Tree Work?
Bucket trucks help provide a safer, more efficient way of reaching high branches than climbing or using ladders.
The powered boom and bucket make it easier for workers to lift tools, move from tree to tree, and access branches that are unsafe to climb on. They can also help provide more protection from accidental falls and electrocution from nearby power lines.
Why Are Bucket Trucks Are Ideal for Tree Work?
As you’re about to see, bucket trucks can be used alone or in combination with other tactics and equipment, such as atrium lifts and cranes, to help you maximize productivity and safety. Use the information below to help you determine when a bucket truck is the right choice for your project.
Versatility: Get More Done on More Trees
Bucket trucks are highly versatile machines, allowing you to tackle a variety of tree-care tasks in many environments, including:
- Maintain Trees Near Power Lines: An insulated bucket truck uses non-conductive materials to protect operators and those nearby from electrocution. They can also enable workers to tend many trees along a route faster than climbing up and down each tree.
- Work Year Round: Cold, wet weather can make climbing impractical and make the ground too soft for other lifts. With a bucket truck, you can park on the paved road and reach the tree without damaging the ground.
- Trim the Highest or Weakest Branches: Climbing is risky on trees that are dead or riddled with weak spots. Bucket trucks eliminate this risk because workers never need to go out onto the tree’s limbs. These truck can also reach up to 76 feet high, allowing you to tend to most trees.
- Cutting and Removing Debris: Specialty bucket trucks, called forestry trucks or chipper trucks, have extra reinforcements to protect against falling branches. They also have chipper boxes to make cleanup and disposal more efficient.
- Tree Trimming and Tree Removal in Swampy Areas: Track-mounted bucket trucks can be driven on soft, uneven terrain, giving you access to more environments.
Stability: Avoid the Dangers of Swaying Trees
Slight breezes and the vibrations of tree work can make trees sway, putting climbers at risk of falling or getting cut by a chainsaw that slipped. Bucket trucks provide workers a more stable platform than climbing or ladders because they aren’t connected to the tree at all.
The base of the truck is further stabilized with outriggers that help prevent tip-overs. Plus, track-mounted bucket trucks use tracks instead of wheels, allowing you to position the truck on softer or uneven ground.
Maneuverability: Access Hard-to-Reach Branches Easily
Sometimes the tree you need to work on is nestled between houses, behind a fence or next to power lines and other trees. This makes access difficult or impossible without damaging nearby structures or risking injury.
Bucket trucks can make it easier to reach branches while avoiding obstacles because of their extendable boom. Depending on the type of bucket truck, the boom may be jointed, allowing workers to move up, over and around obstacles.
Efficiency: Streamline Operations
Because bucket trucks are so versatile, they are appropriate for a wide range of jobs, arboreal and otherwise. This helps you combine tasks and minimize how much equipment you need and the number of times you need to rent equipment. When you rent equipment, the per-day rate is less with a longer-term rental than a short-term one.
Meanwhile, bucket trucks also help save crews time and effort compared to climbing because they:
- Allow teams to access many branches or trees before having to move the truck.
- Make it easier to lift tools and equipment to the elevated work area.
- Are faster to ascend, descend and reposition than climbing up and down each tree.
Safety: Minimize the Risk of Injury and Damage
Tree care is dangerous. Between 2020 and 2023 there were 243 fatal injuries, according to the Tree Care Industry Association (TCIA). The majority of these deaths were caused by falls or struck-by accidents.
When used correctly by trained and certified aerial lift operators, bucket trucks help you maintain a safe project site in several ways:
- Their stability helps decrease the chances for slips, falls, tip-overs or collapse.
- Their maneuverability means it is easier to position workers out of the way of falling branches and other debris or power lines.
- Their design and safety features help workers to keep both hands free and focus on the job, rather than their climbing skills.
- When insulated, they help protect workers from electrocution if the truck or tree touches a power line.
Now that you understand how bucket trucks can make your tree care project safer and more efficient, let’s review some key safety tips.
7 Bucket Truck Safety Tips for the Tree Care Industry
Safety is priority number one on any project site. OSHA requires supervisors to ensure a safe work environment. Once bucket truck operators are fully trained, make sure to reinforce the following safety tips regularly.
- Use the proper personal protective and fall protection equipment. PPE includes helmets, gloves, safety glasses, hi-visibility clothing, and harnesses or fall protection systems.
- Ensure only trained operators use the bucket truck. OSHA requires that all bucket truck operators be trained and certified before anyone steps into the bucket. Proper safety training will help them use the truck safely and know what to do in the event of an emergency or malfunction.
- Position the outriggers before operation. Proper positioning of the wheel chocks and outriggers are critical to maintaining stability. If the ground is soft, you may need to use outrigger pads and/or a track-mounted bucket truck.
- Read the user’s manual before operation. Every bucket truck is different. Read the user manual for your current model to make sure it’s in safe working condition.
- Stay 10 feet away from obstacles and power lines. Consider all power lines energized, use an insulated bucket truck, and keep the bucket and boom at least 10 feet away. This distance gives you enough room to safely navigate around other obstacles even if the bucket sways or rocks.
- Do not overload the bucket beyond the truck’s maximum weight capacity. This includes the estimated total weight of all tools, materials and people in the bucket. If the bucket is overloaded, the truck could tip or malfunction.
- Never use the bucket as a crane. If you need to move tree sections, use a crane or crane truck. Using a bucket truck could cause it to tip over or collapse under the tree’s weight.
If you need more detailed safety training resources, check out the article How to Safely Operate a Bucket Truck or sign up for Equipment Safe Operator Training.
Enhance Your Tree Work Services with a Bucket Truck from Herc Rentals
For your next bucket truck tree trimming project, trim more trees in more places with a high-quality bucket truck rental from Herc Rentals. Our bucket trucks help arborists, forestry crews and tree trimmers get their jobs done efficiently and safely.
With a Herc Rental bucket truck, you can handle challenging projects with ease using our advanced safety features like insulated buckets, excellent maneuverability and reach. Plus, our equipment experts can help you save even more time and labor with prompt field maintenance and equipment delivery services.
Explore our crane and bucket truck selection today or give us a call at 888-777-2700 to discuss options with an expert.
