GardenFork – Eclectic DIY

Tag: chainsaw safety

  • Chainsaw Chaps and PPE Gear I Use

    Chainsaw Chaps and PPE Gear I Use

    Chainsaw chaps have saved my leg twice. Lots of people don’t wear them when using a chainsaw, and I think those people are not being smart. I am not the ultimate expert on chainsaw safety and PPE (personal protection equipment) but I do cut down trees and cut firewood on a regular basis.

    Chainsaw Chaps
    My chaps saved me from tearing open my leg

    Basically, chainsaw chaps keep your chainsaw from cutting into your thigh or leg. The chaps are filled with a threadlike material. If you get a running saw too close to your leg, the chain cuts into the chaps instead of your leg, and the inner material blooms out and stalls the chainsaw. And you are not bleeding all over the ground in the woods.

    This has happened to me twice when I was not paying attention. The first time I was kneeling and cutting up a felled tree, and my leg slipped right up against the running saw. The saw stopped almost immediately after hitting the chaps.

    Chainsaw Chaps and Tree Felling PPE Gear I Use

    These are links to Amazon:

    Chainsaw Chaps

    Buy chaps a bit shorter than your regular pant leg size, or you will trip over then in the woods. You can get brand name chaps or generic ones. I have both and they both work fine.

    Chainsaw Chaps

    I didn’t have a hard hat for a while, then I whacked my head on a limb as it was coming down. Then I bought a hard hat. Its super easy to take on and off. Plus, with the eye screen, you don’t have to keep pulling off safety goggles. If you don’t get an all in one, buy ear and eye protection separately. Its worth it!

    Chainsaw Chaps

    Steel toed boots are a must. Logs will roll onto your feet, and anything you damage now will become arthritic later in life, learn from my experience.

    chainsaw-chaps-5

    Carry several pairs of gloves, you will lose them, and in all that leaf debris, you wont find them. Plastic wedges make tree felling much more controllable, you wont get your saw pinched in a tree anymore once you buy them.And I am a convert to pre-mixed fuel. Yes it costs more, but it saves on repairs. Its cheaper to buy the fuel than to have your chainsaw in the repair shop for a carb rebuild before it needs it.
    watch chainsaw

  • How ( or how not to ) cut down a tree with a chainsaw

    How ( or how not to ) cut down a tree with a chainsaw

    Safety First when using a chainsaw, it is the most dangerous tool one can own without having to be licensed or have a permit to carry.

    A few quick tips: wear ear and eye protection, steel toed boots, work gloves, and if possible, a hard hat. Read the instructions that came with your saw, the booklet that came with my Stihl is quite good.

    Full disclosure: I am not a professional lumberjack, just a DIY guy who wants to get people to pay attention to the proper way to use a chainsaw. One thing that is not in the video, but you should wear a helmet with a face shield and ear protection built in. I bought one for about $45, so go do it, one piece of equipment takes care of your head, eyes, and ears.

    There are more than a few opinions on how to cut down a tree, I’ve changed the method seen in this video, in this how to cut down a tree video, i use a slant cut on the back side of the tree, and i now use a straight cut just above the front wedge cut. Slant cuts can cause the tree to twist when it falls, which is a very bad thing.

    We have more tree felling, cutting down a tree, chainsaw use videos here on the site, watch them all.