Tree Removal in Naperville, IL

Tree Removal in Naperville covers a wider range of yards than most people expect. Census QuickFacts counts 54,847 households here, with three in four homes owner-occupied and a median owner-occupied value of $540,200. Around the old downtown you find tall maples and oaks standing a few feet from century-old foundations. South of 75th Street and out toward the Will County side, the trees went in with the subdivisions and are now big enough to reach a second-story roof. We plan each job around what is actually under and around the tree, not around a price per trunk.

The night of June 20, 2021

Many Naperville owners still remember the EF3 tornado that touched down in the south part of the city a little after 11 p.m. on June 20, 2021. Peak winds were estimated at 140 mph near Princeton Circle, roughly 900 structures were damaged across Naperville, Woodridge, Darien and Burr Ridge, and thousands of trees were snapped or pulled out by the roots. A storm like that also leaves quieter damage: trees that stayed up but lost half their crown, cracked unions, and roots that were rocked loose. Some of those trees have been declining ever since. If you have one that never filled back in, it is worth a look before it comes down on its own.

Old east side, newer south side

The Naperville Historic District takes in 573 buildings on the older east side and was listed on the National Register in 1977, with a local district following in 1986. Lots there are narrow, garages sit on alleys, and big trees often hang over two or three properties at once. Removals in that setting are usually done in small pieces, lowered on ropes so nothing lands on a porch, a slate roof or a neighbor's fence. Newer neighborhoods have more room, but they also have sprinkler lines, fiber and gas service laterals, and backyard patios built right up to the trunk.

What a removal visit covers

• Walking the tree with you and marking the drop zone, rigging points and haul path
• Checking for dead tops, cracks, fungal conks and lean before anyone climbs
• Noting nearby lines, especially service drops to the house
• A written estimate that spells out whether wood is hauled, left in rounds or chipped
• Stump grinding as a separate line, so you can decide on it later
• Lawn and bed cleanup expectations agreed before work starts

Power lines belong to the city here

Naperville owns and runs its own electric system and buys its power through the Illinois Municipal Electric Agency, so it is not a ComEd town. If a tree is touching or leaning into a primary line on the street, the call goes to the city's electric utility, not to us. Once the line is made safe or de-energized, we can take the tree down. Branches near the service drop to your house are a different case and are something we can talk through on site.

Wet ground and the West Branch

The city has had two serious floods, in 1996 and 2013, and the 1996 storm dropped about 14 inches of rain in under a day. Trees along the West Branch of the DuPage River and near retention ponds live with soggy roots for weeks at a time. Saturated soil is when a heavy, leaning tree is most likely to tip, and it is also when equipment can rut a lawn badly. We schedule removals on soft ground with that in mind, using mats or waiting for the yard to firm up when the tree is not an immediate danger.

Getting rid of the wood

The City of Naperville's brush programs help with small trimming jobs, less so with a full removal. Groot's regular yard waste pickup takes tied bundles of branches under 3 inches thick, no more than 4 feet long and 2 feet wide and under 60 pounds, each with a yard waste sticker. Each spring the city runs a free bulk brush collection where branches 3 to 8 feet long and up to 6 inches thick can be stacked loose on the parkway, cut ends to the street; logs, trunks, roots and stumps are excluded. For a takedown, our estimate lists chipping and hauling as a separate line, so you can decide what stays and what goes.

Ready for a quote?

Call (630) 864-5605 or send the form with a photo of the tree and its position relative to the house. We come out, measure, and give you the price in writing. Get a free estimate