DIY guideTrees

Trim small branches back from the roof (from the ground)

From the ground, with a pole pruner, cut back the small branches that reach over the roof, never near a power line.

7 steps

Tap a step to watch it again.

Find the branches over or touching the roof, and check none of them are near the power line.
Anything within ten feet of a power line is your utility's to trim. Stay well back.
Cut only small branches, no thicker than a broom handle. Bigger limbs are an arborist's.
Keep people, pets and cars out from under, and put on safety glasses and gloves.
Stand beside the branch, never under it, with both feet on the ground.
Never use a pole pruner from a ladder or on the roof.
Cut just outside the swelling where the branch joins a bigger one, without leaving a stub.
Rake up the cuttings, and look at the gutters from the ground for any that landed in them.
Limbs thicker than a broom handle, branches resting on the roof, or any near the power line: ask Handyman for an arborist.

Handyman says: Big limbs or a line? I'll find an arborist.

Free for every home. Handyman asks a few questions, then books a pro it trusts.