tree fall go boom

[KC]

....

What's your opinion on replacing the deck resale wise?  We never used the thing.  The only time I went out there was to blow the leaves off. I'm inclined to replace the exterior sheathing to close up the holes and then put up a railing for fall protection. ...

I wouldn't necessarily want a deck off a 2nd floor bedroom... but if I was a buyer and it was obvious that a deck was supposed to be there (doors), I think I'd expect there to be one.   And would probably keep looking based on that alone.

[doobes]

I wouldn't necessarily want a deck off a 2nd floor bedroom... but if I was a buyer and it was obvious that a deck was supposed to be there (doors), I think I'd expect there to be one.   And would probably keep looking based on that alone.

It's not uncommon up here to have a slider with a guard rail. I have a feeling this is going to be a $5k deck.  Deck construction in Fairfax County is permitted and there are at least two inspections involved, framing and shoring. Luckily I'm fully insured.

The tree hit the other deck as well:

   

The contractor indicated that the spacing of the uprights is not to code and an inspector may or may not want the remainder brought up to code in the repair.... In talking with the adjuster yesterday, we are covered for that.

[Snipe Hunter]

Its a balcony. Decks have supporting posts.

I'm assuming that there's some work needing to be done under the floor of the room to repair the joists. If it were up to me, I'd let the insurance company fix everything correctly. If you don't replace the balcony, they'll might withhold it's cost.

I inspected a home recently with a similar balcony. There was an interior door about 6ft in from it which was rubbing on a high spot on the floor. You could see where the owner trimmed the door so it wouldn't rub on the floor. But it was rubbing again. The owner had all sorts of big clay pots full of dirt and plants on the balcony. The weight on the balcony was forcing the joists to bow and push up the floor.

[wing nut]

I would see what I could get for wood out of that, looks good size.

[Stwood_]

Looks like maybe root rot got in there and damaged the roots. Wet ground and the wind, there wasn't much there to hold it  upright anymore

[doobes]

I would see what I could get for wood out of that, looks good size.

I'm going to ask the arborist if he can cut me a couple of 8' pieces out of the trunk and then haul them out to the front where I'll get someone to come and slice the stuff up. He may not be able to move stuff that big.

I've sent out a couple of inquiries to sawyers.

[crokett™]

Technically, what she said was true. 

She merely neglected to mention that it was still attached to the tree.

That's what I was gonna say.

I'm glad the house wasn't hurt worse.

[JosephP]

Looks like maybe root rot got in there and damaged the roots. Wet ground and the wind, there wasn't much there to hold it  upright anymore

Yeah...  In that second picture of the butt the 2 roots on the top were pretty big.  That biggest one wouldn't break that clean without a lot of rot.  Hard to say from the pics if that would have been predictable or not from a simple exam or if further probing would have revealed it.

[bennybmn]

Could be worse. It could have been about 15 degrees to the North. Then we wouldn't be sleeping in that room 

Could be worse, you could have been sleepING in that room when it hit! 

The night my sister went into labor, we were all at the hospital very late (coincidentally, the night they caught the Bosxton Bomber...). So when my dad went over to her house to let the dog out at 1am, he found this... imagine if a 9 month pregnant lady was sleeping in that bed when the tree came down? Instant baby.

[Robert Adams]

Looks like maybe root rot got in there and damaged the roots. Wet ground and the wind, there wasn't much there to hold it  upright anymore

Yeah  in the picture it looks like the center of the tree is rotten but it just looks like a black hole and may not be if you see it in person. 

   Didn't look like the roots were in very good shape as they look to have sheared off pretty easy right at the root ball.

     Reminds me I have a couple trees that still need to be cut down. One is an oak that was a double trunk. Had to cut one half off a few years ago and should have taken the whole thing down at the time as it should have never been allowed to grow as it did.