Chris Hackett Tree Services

Bandit chippers, Husqvarna and STIHL saws and Hino trucks are what you will see pull up, and after four decades on the tools we have settled on gear that holds up to the work. It matters more than it sounds: kit that starts every morning and cuts cleanly is what gets a job finished in a day instead of stretching into two. We run Chris Hackett Tree Services as a family business, and the name on the truck belongs to the bloke who comes out and looks at your tree.

Chris started the business in 1985 and is born and bred in the region, with more than 40 years of hands on experience behind him. Alongside it he served 34 years with NSW Fire and Rescue, which is a useful grounding for a trade where the whole job is judging what could go wrong before it does. He holds a Certificate III in Arboriculture, is OH&S accredited and chainsaw qualified, and we are fully insured.

The run takes in Ballina, Lennox Head, Alstonville, Bangalow, Byron Bay, Evans Head and Lismore, on residential blocks and commercial sites alike. It is the same stretch of the Northern Rivers we have worked since 1985, and we have not needed to look for work outside it.

Where there is no room to put a tree on the ground in one piece, and on a Ballina block hard up against a neighbour there rarely is, we dismantle it in sections with equipment made for the job so nothing lands where it should not. Pruning and maintenance covers the trees that are staying, deadwood included, before it comes down on its own. The mulching and chipping is done on site, so branches either leave as mulch you keep or go with us entirely, and where a tree has gone we bring the grinder back for the stump grinding so you can mow straight over the spot.

Getting a price is straightforward. Ring 0419 442 920 or email Chris and he will come to the property, look at the tree and give you a free quote with no obligation attached to it. Normal hours are Monday to Friday, 7am to 5pm, with weekends by appointment, and there is a 24 hour emergency service for the nights when something comes down across the driveway and will not wait until seven.