Tree removal in Golden Valley, NV

Golden Valley is small, about 1,100 people in under 4 square miles, at about 5,097 feet between Reno and Lemmon Valley. Nearly every home is owner-occupied and most stand on their own parcel with open ground around them.

At a glance

• About 65% of buildings in the direct wildfire exposure zone
• Median home built about 1980
• About 5,097 feet in elevation
• About 39 miles from our Carson City yard

What does direct exposure mean for my trees?

The Forest Service uses direct exposure for buildings close enough to wildland vegetation that flames, and not only embers, could reach them. In Golden Valley that describes about two buildings in three. A tree is part of that picture when it is dead, when its limbs reach the roof, or when lower branches would let a ground fire climb into the crown.

Removal is one answer. For a sound tree, raising the crown is another. Our guide to ladder fuels and limbing up explains the difference.

Half the homes date from before 1980

Census figures for a place this small come with wide margins, so treat them as rough: about half of Golden Valley's homes were built before 1980 and about a fifth since 2000. The older parcels have the tall trees. On those, a removal can involve a trunk thick enough to need the crane, which is available here. See crane-assisted removal in Golden Valley.

Fires mapped nearby

The 2020 Poeville Road Fire (2,973 acres), the 1999 Reservoir Fire (6,163 acres) and the 2003 Robb Fire (2,197 acres) each have a mapped centre within about 5 miles. Overall, the Forest Service ranks Golden Valley's risk to homes higher than 96.7% of US communities. That is lower than Lemmon Valley next door, but the exposure share is higher.

How does a removal run on an open parcel?

With more room than in town, the crew can often bring the chipper and loader right to the tree. That shortens the job. What slows it down is anything under the tree: a well house, a fence line, a septic field the trucks must stay off. Point those out at the estimate and the arborist will route the equipment around them.

If brush is part of the problem, lot clearing and brush mowing can be put on the same estimate.

Climate in brief

The nearest precipitation station, Reno 5.3 N, averages about 10.1 inches a year. The Stead station, about 3 miles off, averages about 16.7 inches of snow. Dry summers leave unwatered trees stressed, and stressed trees are the ones that die and need to come out.