Safe attachment of tree swings

Hello,

I need some help. I am going to put up a tree swing.

I have two strong sturdy oaks which have some strong branches-some of which a fott and more across.

I have been told to use hosing to tie the swing to the tree branch otherwise it will harm the tree-something there is no way I will even contemplate.

I am considering one of those swings where it is (please forgive my dodgy description) like a shallow bowl and is tied at four equadistant points then the rope is taken up over the branch.




So how do I safely attach the hosing and is there a pad I could do with using at all.

It would only be for the children, but as I am making it it will need to carry about 130lbs,

 

Hi Claire,

When are you free? I'll pop up and attach it for you one day!! :D

I've swung off oak branches umpteen feet off the ground and totally trust them. What you need to look out for first and foremost is the branch attachment to the trunk. There should be a thick, healthy collar with no signs of decay, split bark, oozing liquid or insect activity. Ideally you want to avoid a tight or acute branch attachment as these are often quite weak. Obviously the closer you tie the swing to the trunk the safer.

Secondly is how you're going to tie the swing to the branch. As you stated, simply passing the rope over the branch will cause irrepairable damage to the bark and cambium layer. Using a rubber mat or similar will prevent this chaffing. Us arborists often use a cambium saver that prevents friction, but these can be £30 each. Let me know if you want any further info on these.

Thirdly - Stay safe. I don't know how you're going to tie the rope over the branch or what knots you've considered using, but take care when working at height. Alternatively you could get an arborist in... :wink:

 

Hi Matt,

Thanks-are those cambium savers those elastic sling type things? I will probably go for that method.

You can come round anytime you like to climb the trees-it`s great fun.

I intend to climb it to tie the rope, I should be ok-I was up there a few times already this year, don`t know about knots and stuff so will probably go for one of those mountain climbing catch thingies.

 

Matthew,

Would a duplex sling not be ok, a bit cheaper than a cambium saver.

 

Claire,

A cambium saver is a stitched material sling with two metal rings at each end which the rope goes through. As Paul mentioned any sling will do the job, just make sure it's rated for the use. Now then, by 'mountain climbing catch thingies', do you mean a karabiner? Well that's fair enough - no knots to master and easy to remove. Make sure you get steel karabiners and not aluminium.

 

Excellent advice you two,

Thankyou very much.

 

Heres a link to duplex type slings:

http://www.screwfix.com/prods/90964/Hand-Tools/Load-Handling/1-Tonne-Duplex-Sling-1m

 

£7, and it can lift a tonne-that`s just about enough for me and my cat-thanks a lot Paul,

You two are the best.