Tips to Keep Your Home Safe from Tree Damage

Tree Service Experts in the Pacific Northwest offer Essential Tips to Protect Your Home from Tree Damage

Why Should You Be Concerned with Greater Seattle Tree Damage?

Trees are a beautiful way to landscape the home. However, many homeowners are unaware of how much risk a damaged tree can pose to both the home and everyone living or visiting it. Learning about these potential risks, what impacts them, and how to prevent them can keep any home as safe as possible from tree-related damages. Whether you’re opting for ongoing maintenance on your own or need to find a tree service company to help, this blog will give you an idea of how to handle it.

The Seattle Area Weather’s Impact on Trees:

Seattle Tree Damage occurs for a variety of reasons: Seattle, Washington trees are impacted by the changing of the seasons in more than just the obvious ways.

In the spring, roots are growing at their fastest speed. New twig growth is also happening. Both of these things take a significant amount of nutrition away from the main parts of the tree. Trees will also start to attract insects, especially pollinators.
As the summer begins, trees start to slow down in their growth rate. Due to the occasional lack of moisture from droughts and other factors, trees can become more susceptible to damage and breakage as they dry out. Most of their energy is dedicated to producing food with photosynthesis.
When fall starts and the colors change due to having less chlorophyll, trees start to further dry out. Most are also producing seeds at this time.
In the winter, most trees are going into their dormant period. Growth stops and the tree’s ability to heal itself is significantly reduced.

How Can a Damaged Tree Harm Your Household?

There are a variety of different ways that a damaged tree can harm a home or the people who live in it.

Root damage – Roots that are allowed to grow out of control have the potential to grow into the pipes or the home’s foundation. This can make the entire home unsafe or even potentially unsanitary.
Injury from falling trees or limbs – Without regular inspection, damaged trees or limbs may go unnoticed. This means that they can fall and hit people either outside or inside the home.
Loss of power – Damaged trees can impact power lines that are located in their general vicinity. This can happen due to the actual tree falling, but also just from falling limbs that hit the lines. In addition to the loss of power and the issues related to that, downed electrical lines are also a serious risk to members of the household. Electrocution can happen very easily.
Damage to the home – In addition to the potential for human injury, a falling tree or tree limb can hit and cause significant damage to the home itself.
Death – Although unpleasant to talk about, any of the above risks related to damaged trees has the potential to cause death to anyone unlucky enough to be around when they happened. This is why damaged trees should always be taken seriously and inspected by a professional.

Essential Tips From the Professionals

The best way that homeowners can keep their homes safe from tree damage this season is regular inspection of all of the trees around the property. The key to this prevention is knowing what to look for and what the signs of a damaged tree are. Check the tree from top to bottom for any of the following symptoms, and contact a tree professional for help if you notice anything out of the ordinary.

Dead branches, especially larger ones
Branches detached from the tree
Trunk splitting or cavities either where the branches attach or on the trunk
Trees with a new, sudden lean
Mushrooms at the base
Branches close to electrical lines

It’s always a good idea for homeowners, especially those with many trees on their property, to undergo a professional tree safety inspection at least once yearly to minimize risk.

Another essential trip from the professionals relates to when the best time to trim trees is. While it can be tempting to wait until the weather changes, pruning and trimming should take place when the tree is dormant. This promotes positive tree health and preserves growth and bloom potential.

About Devoted Tree Solutions

Devoted Tree Solutions is located in the Pacific Northwest. They specialize in safety inspection, tree and stump removal, tree trimming and thinning, emergency services, and more. Their staff offers full service, community-based tree expertise to offer clients the best and most professional tree solutions possible.