14 Years In Business. 100+ Years of Combined Team Experience. Two Cranes and NCCCO-Certified Operators On Call.
BTS Tree Services provides professional tree removal across Lancaster County, based in Columbia and serving Lancaster, Columbia, Landisville, Mount Joy, Mountville, Wrightsville, York, Elizabethtown, and Manheim Township. Whether a tree is dead, damaged, or creating a hazard, we provide safe tree removal to keep your property protected.
CALL (717) 875-0874 | FREE ESTIMATE | 24/7 EMERGENCY SERVICE
OSHA Certified | Licensed and Insured | 2nd Place, Reader’s Choice Award | Crane-Assisted Removal
Why Removing a Tree in Lancaster County Takes the Right Crew
This county is farmland, older residential streets, and a lot of mature tree cover in between, and each of those settings creates a different removal problem. In the older neighborhoods around Columbia and central Lancaster, narrow streets and tight lots mean equipment has to be threaded in carefully, often right next to a house that was built long before anyone pictured a crane parked in the yard. Out on the open farmland near Mount Joy and Elizabethtown, wind exposure across the fields puts real stress on trees that grew up with little shelter, and branch failure after a summer storm is common.
The clay-heavy soil found throughout Landisville and East Petersburg adds its own complication. It holds water long enough to stress root systems and packs hard enough to make removal and stump work slower than it would be in looser ground. It’s one more reason a price quoted over the phone rarely holds up once the crew actually sees the property.
Signs You Need Tree Removal
Not every declining tree needs to be removed, but some signs mean the conversation should happen now rather than after the next storm. A sudden lean, especially with the soil cracked or heaving on the opposite side, means the root system is failing in real time. Large dead limbs high in the canopy fall without warning and from real height. Fungal growth at the base or on the trunk usually points to internal decay that’s been developing for years. Deep cracks, a hollow sound when the trunk is tapped, and construction or grading damage near the roots round out the list.
Two trees come up again and again on our removal calls. Silver maple is all over Lancaster’s older streets, grows fast, and carries weak wood that fails in storms well before the tree looks unhealthy. And ash trees killed by emerald ash borer turn dangerously brittle, dropping limbs in a light breeze or even on a calm day, which makes dead ash a hazardous removal rather than a routine one.
How We Approach a Tree Removal
Every removal starts with an on-site look, not a phone guess. We check the tree’s condition, its lean, the access to the property, and what’s around it, whether that’s structures, fencing, power lines, or a neighbor’s yard, and we plan the method around the actual site instead of forcing every tree through the same process.
On open lots with a clear drop zone, a standard directional fell or sectional dismantle handles the job efficiently. On tighter properties, close to homes, or on trees too large or hazardous to rig down safely by hand, we bring in the crane. Having two certified operators on staff rather than one means a crane job is never held up waiting on a single person’s schedule.
Crane-Assisted and Hazardous Tree Removal
Our 70-ton crane handles the largest and most hazardous removals: trees leaning over a roofline, oversized trunks with no safe drop zone, and jobs where traditional rigging would put too much uncontrolled weight over a structure. Instead of dropping a section through the canopy and trusting the rigging, the crane lifts each cut piece straight up and sets it down clear of the house, the driveway, and the landscaping.
For jobs that need a lift but not the full capacity of the 70-ton unit, particularly tighter residential properties, our 4-ton crane covers the gap. Both machines are run by NCCCO-certified crane operators, which is the same national standard the largest commercial outfits require, and it matters directly to you when a two-ton section of trunk is swinging over your roof.
Protecting Your Property During Tree Removal
We pay close attention to the property before, during, and after the work, specifically to avoid damage to driveways, lawns, septic fields, and landscaping. Equipment routes are planned before anything moves, ground protection goes down where heavy equipment has to cross soft or paved surfaces, and rigging is set up to control exactly where each section lands. Cleanup is part of the job, not a separate line item: brush chipped, wood hauled or stacked if you want it, and the site left the way we found it, minus the tree.
Storm Damage and Emergency Tree Removal
Lancaster County gets hit from both ends of the weather: summer thunderstorms that snap weakened limbs across the open farmland near Bird In Hand and Smoketown, and winter ice that loads branches until they fail. We provide 24/7 emergency tree removal for trees on structures, blocked driveways, and hazardous limbs left hanging after a storm, and our two cranes let us respond to jobs a standard crew would have to turn away. We also bill insurance directly, documenting the damage and working with your carrier so you’re not managing that process alone while there’s a tree on your house.
The Tree Removal Process: What Homeowners Can Expect
- A free, on-site estimate with a written, flat-rate price
- A removal plan built around your property, not a one-size approach
- Crane support for large, hazardous, or no-drop-zone trees
- Careful protection of your driveway, lawn, and landscaping
- Complete cleanup, with wood and brush chipped, hauled, or stacked
- Direct insurance billing on storm and hazard removals
- A workmanship guarantee on every job
Why Lancaster County Chooses BTS Tree Services for Tree Removal
A Father-Son Team, Not a Franchise
Fourteen years in business and still run by the same family that started it. When you call, you get the people who show up and do the work, not a call center reading a script.
Two Cranes and NCCCO-Certified Operators
Most tree services in this county don’t have a single certified crane operator. We have two, plus a 70-ton and a 4-ton crane, so we bring the machine that fits the job.
OSHA Certified, Safety-First Crews
Our crews follow OSHA guidelines on every job, and every removal is planned with the same discipline whether it’s routine or a crane lift over a house.
No-Surprise, Flat-Rate Pricing
What we quote is what you pay. Every estimate is free, written, and flat-rate, with no hourly surprises once the crew arrives.
Recognized Locally
Second place in the Reader’s Choice awards, and hundreds of satisfied clients across Lancaster County.
