ULTRASONIC DECAY DETECTION

PICCUS tree decay detection equipment

Did you know…? Municipalities and private owners are held liable for damages caused by their trees.

Fungal infection and diseases are the most common causes of the breakdown of sound wood, leading to loss of major limbs and or uprooting. Decay detection of past has been quite restricted, as boring devices, and ocular assessments cannot provide the detail and accuracy of sonic detecting equipment.

This picture shows a typical tree with 5 sensors (visible), the other 5 are located around the tree (out of sight).

The (PICCUS) sonic equipment uses (ten) sensors, attached to (ten) roof nails that are driven approx. 1inch into the bark of the tree. Measuring is based on the fact that sound wood is a better sound wave conductor than wood damaged by decay. The data is presented as a tomograph of the cross-section of the tree, which is downloaded to laptop.

Reading the results

Horse Chestnut tree located beside a road
Result from Decay Detection Test		As the test showed decay, the tree was felled

Oak tree
Result from Decay Detection Test		The above image shows how accurate the Decay Detection Test is.