Microburst in NH?

[civilguy]

Today during a thunderstorm we had a 60-70 foot tree uproot in our yard. Odd in NH to get this kind of weather, but last year we had an actual tornado tear through part of the state as well. Luckily no one was hurt, but our 2 week old shed is toast and at least 40' of fence will need to be replaced.
The kids got a cool new place to play:

[aconsola]

Now that's a jungle gym

Sorry to hear about the damage, good luck with the cleanup

[civilguy]

The branches actually extend out over their swingset and they have chopped off small branches to build quite a fort already.

On top of it all the tree was on the stone wall shared by the neighbor (actually uprooted the property corner marker-- it's 6 feet in the air right now), so we have to wait for 2 insurance companies to assess the situation. The kids will get to play forest ranger for a while.

[Halgar]

Thankfully no major damage occurred. Being an ex-general contractor, I've seen my share of storm damage, most of it not too pretty. Don't let the insurance companies short change you with replacement value. The tree costs what it costs to remove, the fence will be subject to depreciation as will the shed. I suggest you get quotes from several tree and fence companies to remove and repair that damage, and a shed company for replacement value on that. This way you'll know if the insurance company is low balling you, which they tend to do.

Also, check with the municipality about getting the corner marker reset, there may be a fee involved with that as well, which insurance should technically help out with.

[civilguy]

Three years ago we had part of a tree fall (rotted) and crush our last shed (metal variety), swingset and fence. We got the fence fixed & a new swingset and bent the shed back and lived with it for 2.9 years. Then we tore down the old 8x10 shed last month, expanded the deck to 10x14 and put a whole new metal shed-- and just finished 2 weekends ago. This new fallen tree was completely uprooted by some major, major wind-- we just don't get that stuff up here!
Depeciation shouldn't be a factor for the 2 week old shed! However, we always do our own work to save money.... this time we will make sure the adjuster includes cost of removal of the trees, shed and fence as well as replacement value for work done by others. We're even considering asking about a temp storage unit (PODs type thing) for the stuff that is in the shed now-- I don't want to leave $1500+ in bikes and a quad out on the lawn. (No garage fyi)
On top of it all my wife has found that all our pool deck and patio furniture is covered with pitch-- the nearest pine trees are 100'+ away-- from all the wind whipping branches, pinecones, needles, etc where they never usually go. I'm going to point that out to the adjuster. Anyone have any good anti-pitch remedies?

As far as the marker, I work with surveyors and engineers for my business. We'll get it put back once the 500lb boulders (formerly stonewall) on the rootball are back safely in the 4-foot hole.
But, yes, that will be a cost that we should try to get compensated for. Thanks!

[Halgar]

Regardless of who does the work, the replacement cost is what it is. If you feel you're getting short changed, get a couple bids for what needs repair/removal and submit those to the adjuster. It is the adjusters job to pay out as little as possible, so if you can reasonably explain why the actual cost is more than what he's giving you, you're more likely to get more money.

As far as the tree sap goes, that can be a bugger. Some sap comes off with soap and water. Some stronger saps such as pine tree resin needs something along the lines of paint thinner (mineral spirits ). Obviously, you can only use paint thinner on hard surfaces such as resin chairs, tables, etc. I'd Google "pitch removal", "sap removal", etc.

[civilguy]

Thanks- I will be watching the adjuster closely. Not only will I have my insurance company trying to cheap out on me, but I'll also have the neighbor's company involved. Luckily I've sent the fence guy quite a few jobs since we had the fence done, so he'll likely do us some favors. We have several local tree services to choose from-- many that have done work on our street this year.
We'll try to search for some pitch cleaning tips online. It just is aggravating that for 11 years we never had a problem but one storm coats everything in this lousy sticky mess. Oh yeah, and there's a 70' tree on our shed!

[Halgar]

Hey, it could be worse, you could have an 80' tree on your shed ...

[civilguy]

A couple more pics. This is the neighbor's yard, so the tree starts about 55' to the right of the fence.


Here's the corner of our just-completed shed....



Oh yeah, I almost forgot that last week we also got tired of trying to trap the skunk that we thought we had living under our deck. So we did some searching and found the source of the odor.


Best we can tell he got it by a car a while ago and has been slowly rotting away under the deck. My life has been charmed lately.

[Bongo Fury]

Best wishes, I sorta know what it’s like. A few years ago we had the Big Vacation all planned out, and literally as I was driving home from the last day of work (all jacked up natch) a couple large branches fell on our house. Fortunately the shingle damage was minor, and Thanks again to several of our great neighbors, we were able to make the flight.

[Halgar]

Best we can tell he got it by a car a while ago and has been slowly rotting away under the deck. My life has been charmed lately.

Whew!! And here we were all thinking you had given up bathing ...

[civilguy]

Whew!! And here we were all thinking you had given up bathing ...

Were you next to me on the drivers' stand at last years VONats?
In my defense it was very hot and humid. I was not the only one whose deodorant had given up the ghost.

Thanks Bongo- we've got plenty of neighbors willing to pitch in. (Most of them are looking for free firewood of course. )
Unfortunately the wheels of the insurance machine turn slowly, so I don't want to touch anything until they can see what's there.

[Halgar]

Whew!! And here we were all thinking you had given up bathing ...

Were you next to me on the drivers' stand at last years VONats?
In my defense it was very hot and humid. I was not the only one whose deodorant had given up the ghost.

Don't ya just hate it when that happens?