Emergency tree service in Kingsbury, NV

Weather does more to trees on Kingsbury Grade than anywhere else we work. The pass above the neighborhood gets more than twice Carson City's precipitation, winter storms here mean snow, and the conifers carry it over roofs, decks and switchback driveways.

At a glance

• Daggett Pass station, at the top of the grade: 21.8 inches of precipitation a year
• About 7,126 feet, the highest community in our service area
• A climber takes the tree apart where no truck can set up
• Emergency line open 24 hours: 775.232.8243

What brings trees down on the grade?

The NOAA station at Daggett Pass, less than a mile from the middle of Kingsbury, averages 21.8 inches of precipitation a year against 9.34 inches at Carson City, and its average winter low is 22.9 degrees (1991-2020 normals). At this height winter storms arrive as snow. It loads the crowns of the conifers, wind off the pass works on them while they are loaded, and thawing ground loosens the roots on the downhill side.

Common storm failures on steep lots include broken tops, whole trees tipped downslope onto the next house, and limbs through decks and railings. Storm and snow-load breakage shows what each looks like.

What does the office need to know about your driveway?

On the grade, access decides how the job is done, and in the dark or in a storm nobody can judge it from the road. When you call, be ready with:

• Whether the street and driveway are plowed, and how steep the driveway is
• Whether the tree is uphill or downhill of the house
• What it is resting on: roof, deck, vehicle, another tree
• Any wires nearby, even if you think they are phone or cable
• Whether anyone is still inside the house

Our crane and 75-foot boom truck handle most trees on structures. Where the slope or the road rules them out, a climber rigs the tree down in pieces. Clearing the road or driveway with our snow equipment can be part of the same visit.

Does the 14-inch rule stop emergency work?

A dead tree that could fall on a house needs no Tahoe Regional Planning Agency permit. The question comes with a live tree that is damaged but standing: if it is over 14 inches in diameter at breast height, photograph the damage and ask TRPA or the Tahoe Douglas Fire Protection District before it is removed, unless it is an immediate danger. The agency decides. The rule is laid out on our Kingsbury tree removal page.

How long does it take to reach Kingsbury?

The drive from our yard at 6301 US Highway 50 East is about 33 miles, about 48 minutes without traffic. Storm nights are the nights the passes are slow, so we do not quote arrival times. What we can say is that the phone is staffed seven days a week, that after-hours calls forward to the owner, and that emergency service is offered at any hour. After severe storms existing clients are first in line, and we serve anyone in need.

When the snow melts

Spring shows what winter broke. If limbs came down but the tree stayed up, have an arborist look at the attachment points and the top before the next season. Dead wooding and, for a split tree worth keeping, cabling and bracing are the usual follow-up.