Mega Tree Help!

[cyberbilly1]

Hi All,

I'm coming off my first year with a modest 16 channel display which was met with resounding success. Needless to say, this has only whet my appetite and I'm already thinking about this year's display. I figure that this year, the next step I'd like to take is making a mega-tree somewhere in the neighbourhood of 12' high with a base 6 - 8' in diameter. My question is regarding the base of the tree. I'd like to avoid having to dig up my front yard so I'd be interested in knowing if anyone else has some experience with this. Would a water base give the necessary stability required? As much as I'd like to have it in my yard, I think it would lose it's effect if I have to chase it down the street!

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

[brownjm74]

I made a JUMP Jack-Up-Mega-Pole that goes 22' high and has a portable concrete base. Being that you only want to go 12' you could still use the same concept for your base as I did but it will be overkill. I have attached a photo of my base, and below is a link to Jackie and Walter's website on how to build the base.

Hope this helps,

Jeremy

Portable Hole Instructions:

http://www.magicchristmasnews.org/building%20a%20portable%20hole.pdf


Attached files

[dschultz56]

Jeremy - how much does the base weigh? How do you move it around?

Thanks
Doug

[shfr26]

It says about 200 lbs. I would have my kids move it for me, I'm too old.

[huskernut]

I have this mega tree question to add to the discussion. My first year version had the light strings on the ground as this picture looks like. Within 2 days I had one set of lights chewed through by Rabbits, by the end of the season about 3 sets were chewed through. I have had this problem with low voltage yard light sensor wires in the past ( photo-eye wire ).

I plan to solve it by building a base to keep the wires off the ground but does anyone else have a solution that does not involve fire-arms?

Rick

[brownjm74]

Here's a few ideas:

1. Keep the lights on = cooked rabbit for dinner!

2. Use a short (2' high) plastic green fince that you would use to keep rabbits out of a garden.

or

3 . One of my projects for this year is to get some of the wires off of the lawn. Here is something I plan on building with a few modifications:

"Build a 20' Mega-Tree Base Page 1, 2 & 3"

http://christmaslightshow.com/xcart/xcms.php?xcmscategoryid=5

Jeremy B.

[brownjm74]

dschultz56 wrote:

Jeremy - how much does the base weigh? How do you move it around?

Thanks
Doug

as the post after states, it does weigh about 200lbs. I use a hand truck to move it around. I get the hand truck(cart) under one edge and use a ratchet-strap to one of the end eye bolts and hook the strap up to the handle of the hand cart.

Attached files

[dschultz56]

Jeremy - thanks for the visual. I've been wanting to do a JUMP tree with this base, but just couldn't figure out how I was going to move it around. Someone else said kids....all I have is dogs (and not the kind that pull sleds).

Walter and Jackie are going to be at the Lone Star Holidays Academy in Houston this summer and I look forward to learning more from them about constructing this tree.

Thanks
Doug

[brownjm74]

I also have done some videos on how to build the JUMP on my web site.

http://jbhobby.weebly.com/mega-tree.html

[Mike Manzara]

Cyberbilly' I built a 12 foot Mega Tree this year using the extension pole from a pole pruner, 3 guy wires and a piece of rebar 6 feet long. I drove the rebar in the ground about 3 feet then slid the pole over the rebar. I used hose clamps to create an area to tie my kights at the top of the pole and installed all my lights on the top before I raised the pole. I secured the lights and guy wires on the ground with tent pegs. Worked wll up here above the 49th parallel (Canada). I just remved the tree otherwise I could send a picture. At the end of the season you just remove the rebar from the ground.

[Surfing4Dough]

I too was planning on using a portable hole for my base but didn't. Here is a good video I used a lot last year when designing my tree and decided to change my mind on the hole (vid courtesy of midnight302). I went with his idea for anchoring the pole (T-shaped 6' fence post) and it worked great. I was worried about storing the portable hole, and figured it would kill the grass during the winter. In NE Ohio, it is sometimes soggy and sometimes frozen. We got nailed with 60mph gust this past season and my 15' tree didn't budge a bit using the fence post method. I was guyed in the middle and from the top. Used dog ground anchors to secure my guys. Anchors unscrewed easily once the ground softened a tad and the fencepost just required a few pushes back and forth in the soggy ground and it pulled out fairly easily too. Much easier storage, and cheap, and didn't require additional construction.

The post is T shaped, so the mega-tree pole rests nicely in one of the sides of the T. I used 3 hose clamps to attach the tree pole to the fence post. That way you could tighten them nicely. Since the T-Post has studs on the one edge, there was no way that the clamps were going to slide (not that they could since you can screw them pretty tight). The fence post is very rigid, so you can hit it in with a sledge, and it would go through small roots easily. I don't think you could bend it if you tried, since it is T shaped. I think the 6' T-post was about $7 at Lowes.



Some other nice pics from a thread I used in the planning of my tree design too: http://forums.planetchristmas.com/sh...ad.php?t=23693

[cyberbilly1]

Thanks everyone for your helpful tips and links. I'm still mulling over which route I'm going to go and since construction won't start for a few months, if anyone else has anything to add I'm be more than grateful to hear it!

Thanks again!

[mmais68569]

What I did was get a 2' piece of PVC 1-2 sizes larger then the mega tree center pole & beried it in the ground & just slide the pole in & out. That way you can leave it all year & wife will not complain.


Mike