Who does tree work
Several kinds of businesses take on tree jobs in and around Franklin County, and they don't all do the same work.
- Tree services take down and prune big trees with climbers, bucket trucks and sometimes cranes, and usually chip brush, grind stumps and haul wood.
- Arborist-led companies lean toward pruning, tree health and judging whether a tree is a risk.
- Landscape companies often trim small ornamental trees and shrubs as part of yard care.
- Stump grinding operators come after the tree is down; some do nothing else.
- Land clearing companies clear whole lots with excavators and mulchers, a different job from taking down a few trees around a house.
Match the business to the work. A 90-foot pine leaning toward the bedroom is a different job from lifting the lower limbs of a young maple.
What the job involves
A removal starts with someone judging the tree, whatever sits below it and the open ground around it, and choosing to fell it whole, piece it down or lift it out with a crane. Then the brush gets chipped or piled, the logs get bucked up or carried off, and the stump gets ground or stays. A trim should leave the tree sound; Franklin County's ordinance defines topping, cutting branches back to stubs, as the thing to avoid. See tree removal and tree trimming.
Local rules a job runs into
| Rule | What it says | Call |
|---|---|---|
| Burning brush | Forest Service permit for fires in or within 500 feet of woodland, midnight to 4 p.m.; state air rules bar burning yard waste where there's public pickup | N.C. Forest Service, Franklin County, (919) 496-3665 |
| Curbside pickup | Louisburg takes limbs up to 10 inches cut to 2 feet, not logs or stumps; hired-out landscape waste is on the contractor or resident | Louisburg Town Hall, (919) 496-3406 |
| Power lines | Louisburg Power, Duke Energy and Wake Electric all say not to trim near their lines yourself | Louisburg Power after hours, (919) 496-4290; Wake Electric, (919) 863-6300 |
| Digging and grinding | Notice three full working days ahead | 811 or 1-800-632-4949 |
| Creeks and ponds | The state's stream buffer rules (Tar-Pamlico, or Neuse in parts of the south of the county) cover 50 feet on each side of mapped streams and ponds | DWR buffer permitting specialist, (919) 707-3631 |
| State road edge | Trees in the right-of-way of state roads | NCDOT, 1-877-368-4968 |
The full details are on the Louisburg rules guide.
Questions to ask a contractor
- What's your full business name, address and phone number, as they'll appear on the contract?
- How will the tree come down, and where will each piece land?
- What will you do to protect the roof, the porch, the fence, the lawn and the drive?
- Do you know where my septic tank and drain lines are, and how will you keep trucks off them?
- Who places the 811 ticket before stump grinding, and how deep will you grind?
- Are any wires in or near the tree, and does the utility need to be involved first?
- What leaves my property, and what stays: brush, logs, chips?
- If you're burning anything, do you have the Forest Service permit, and are we outside town limits?
- For trimming: exactly what will you cut, and how much of the crown comes off?
- What deposit do you need, and when is the balance due?
What belongs in the written contract
The N.C. Department of Justice's disaster repair advice says to get a written contract that lists all the work to be performed, and not to pay anything without one. For a tree job, that means the contractor's name, address and phone; each tree by location and kind; the method; any pruning cuts; stump grinding and its depth; and cleanup, spelled out as what is hauled, what is left and where. It should also give the start date, the total, any deposit and when the balance is due. For storm work, add what is lying on what and how the crew plans to lift it.
On payment, the same advice says not to pay for work up front, while noting that a reasonable down payment may be required for some projects, and to pay by check or credit card rather than cash.
Cautions after a storm
After an ice storm or a hurricane, people offering to clear trees may turn up at the door. The Department of Justice advises avoiding contractors who go door to door offering services. Once a state of emergency is declared, North Carolina's price gouging law makes it unlawful for sellers to charge excessively high prices during the crisis; report suspected gouging to the Attorney General at 1-877-5-NO-SCAM (1-877-566-7226) or ncdoj.gov/pricegouging. For questions about an insurance claim, the N.C. Department of Insurance consumer line is 1-855-408-1212.
What goes wrong when hiring
- Nothing in writing. Without a written scope and price, cleanup and stump work are open to argument.
- Cash, in full, up front. State officials warn against both.
- A trim that's really a topping. Describe the result you want instead of asking for the tree to be "cut back."
- A brush pile set on fire in town. Where the town collects yard waste, the state rule doesn't allow burning it at home.
- Logs left at the road. Louisburg won't take logs over 10 inches, and the county doesn't collect at the curb.
When this isn't the right guide
Clearing acreage for a new house is land clearing, and it starts with the county or town planning office. A worry about the tree next door begins with a talk with the neighbor, and with your insurer once it has landed on your house. For legal advice on a dispute, talk to a lawyer; this site can't help there.
Questions homeowners ask
Landscaper or tree service: which do I need?
A landscaper may handle small trees you can reach from the ground. For big trees, trees over the house, or anything near wires, ask a tree service. The questions above apply either way.
Who should call 811?
Whoever is doing the digging or grinding. The state's notice exemption is written for owners digging on their own single-family lot, so a hired crew should place the ticket. Put it in the contract.
How big a deposit is reasonable?
Settle the amount in writing, and what has to happen before the balance is due. The Department of Justice warns against paying for work up front, though it notes some projects reasonably call for a down payment.
Who does the work if I use this site?
A single independent contractor who works in Franklin County. This website forwards your request and has no crews of its own.
Each request from this site goes to one independent contractor near Louisburg. The site itself does no tree work.
- N.C. Department of Justice, Disaster Repair, Price Gouging Complaint page and statewide price gouging release (January 10, 2025). N.C. Department of Insurance, storm preparedness release (August 8, 2023).
- Franklin County Unified Development Ordinance, Article 10 definitions. Town of Louisburg Solid Waste Collection Policy (2025).
- N.C. Forest Service, Open Burning Permits and Franklin County contacts. N.C. DEQ, Open Burning. N.C. General Statutes Chapter 87, Article 8A; NC811.
- Louisburg Power Tree Trimming Policy; Duke Energy and Wake Electric tree safety pages. 15A NCAC 02B .0734 and .0714; Franklin County UDO, Article 9. NCDOT directory.