What to do when your drone is in a tree…

Droniac · Oct 16, 2021

Davebacon137 said:
Well mine ended up in a pine tree. I couldn't find it but could hear the beeping.
Many tree trimming companies in my area have this bucket machine which will fit between a 4ft fence gate yet rise to 90ft. So I hired the company and within 15 minutes I had my drone back.
I also bought a very bright colored skin. The DJI drones are grey and very hard to see, the skin fixed that--- now it is very easy to see.

Once again, skins are sorta cool but I wear phantomrain.org more visible and protective neoprene wet suit. The hiring of a bucket ladder is well worth a last ditch effort for certain as I’d try to keep my costs down. But I wouldn’t hesitate. Flysafe. Thanks for the input and share. Flysafe and Godspeed, Droniac

John Locke · Oct 18, 2021

dronerdave said:
I got a 50 footerView attachment 136547

Can you share the link where you bought that 50 footer?

dronerdave · Oct 19, 2021

John Locke said:
Can you share the link where you bought that 50 footer?

As mentioned they are expensive. I got mine for free when it failed the dielectric test at work. Not sure if AB Chance even makes that model anymore not to mention that they are difficult to extend because they are round and at that length it's hard to get the section button to engage at times. On the job I used several different models and preferred the Hastings 30-40 foot models because the Hasting sticks are triangular and easier to extend/use. They are fiberglass, heavy, & get wobbly past 30 feet or so.

Hastings MV-40 Metric Scale Telescopic Fiberglass Hot Stick/ Measuring Stick 12.2 meters

Hastings MV-40 Combination Tel-O-Pole Fiberglass Hot Stick and Metric Measuring Stick. All in one heavy duty Tel-O-Pole II and Measuring Stick. Safely measure vertical heights in Metric graduations. The Hastings MV-40 is 1.75 meters retracted to 12 meters extended.

www.mitchellinstrument.com

Kywon McCain · Nov 14, 2021

How did things go from drones stuck in trees to barrage poles?
Just get a ladder and stick and whack the thing down!

dronerdave · Nov 15, 2021

DOC ASMR said:
How did things go from drones stuck in trees to barrage poles?
Just get a ladder and stick and whack the thing down!

What is a barrage pole?

If every lost drone got caught up in a tree close to the ground, a ladder and a short stick or a fishing pole like the OP suggested might work. What if it ends up at 40+ feet above the ground? Obviously if your drone ends up higher than a 40 foot pole can reach, you'll have to figure out a different method.
These guys got lucky to have someone help retrieve their stuck RC aircraft

Blacksheep Pilot · Nov 23, 2021

Barney DeCat said:
OK, your Drone is up in a tree, you are using "Find My Drone" and you can hear the beeping, but you do not see any blinking… and you video only shows leaves and a few passing clouds.

I have put my non-DJI Drone in a tree and I spent over an hour trying to find it. Finally, my wife came out and said, “What Tree?” I pointed and she said, “Don’t you see it? It’s right there!”

After she pointed to it, (as they say…) I couldn’t stop seeing it, it was in plain sight.

So, if you put your Drone up a tree and you've cannot spot it, perhaps all you need a “New Set of Eyes” to see what you are looking at but do not see…

So, whether you've found it or had to find a friend to find your Drone, what are you going to do when your Drone is so far up a tree that you cannot reach it? On the other hand, you've climbed up the tree and your Drone is so far out on a limb that the branch would not support a squirrel? Moreover, all the jumping up and down doesn't shake your Drone free, and only puts your life in danger?

In my case, my Drone wasn't up too terribly high and I went and got my 20’ Telescoping Crappie Fishing Pole and easily retrieved it. I have fabricated two interchangeable wire ends, one a hook and the other a loop, depending if I want to push, pull, or grab…

Here is a link to the Telescoping Crappie Fishing Pole that I am writing about; these poles go out to 30’…

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07HJ3BBLF?tag=csfishing-20&linkCode=ogi&th=1&psc=1 1

View attachment 136529

In addition, this Telescoping Crappie Fishing Pole just might save your life and limb, it's safer than jumping up and down on a tree limb, and a lot more non-violent than throwing rocks and sticks at your Drone in the hope of knocking it down…

Happy and Safe Droning.

Barney DeCat

I live in a forest. I've had my air 2s 3 days now and crashed it twice. Haven't hung it up in a tree yet. Key word, YET! Knowing it's only a matter of time, I bought that crappy pole now.

Now I'm ready.

Blacksheep Pilot · Nov 23, 2021

dronerdave said:
What is a barrage pole?

If every lost drone got caught up in a tree close to the ground, a ladder and a short stick or a fishing pole like the OP suggested might work. What if it ends up at 40+ feet above the ground? Obviously if your drone ends up higher than a 40 foot pole can reach, you'll have to figure out a different method.
These guys got lucky to have someone help retrieve their stuck RC aircraft

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BethanyFerrell · Dec 2, 2021

Home improvement stores such as Lowes carry two- and three-section extendable poles with a 3/4"–5 tpi Acme threaded end. This is the thread used for push brooms and paint rollers. Mine is the 23-foot, three-section "Mr. Long Arm" brand with an fiberglass outer section and two aluminum inner sections, connected with twist clutches similar to a microphone stand's height adjustment. Similar poles are available elsewhere.

I use a hook made by removing the roller cage from a cheap paint roller for pulling rotten branches down, dragging stuff off the house's roof, and so forth. A number of well-designed third-party hooks and grabs can be bought with 3/4"–5 threads. You could even use it to paint things!

Haven't had to get Gilda (our M3) out of any trees, but I did use the pole to gently drag it into grabbing range after landing on a roof too strongly sloped to take back off from.

Caffeine_Overflow · Dec 3, 2021

Diden’t you have obstacle avoidance turned on? You could have also turned on manual control. what I mean my manual control is put the controller sticks both to the diagnol down left. That could have made the props spin and MAYBE get the drone out. 4 years of flying experienc.

Caffeine_Overflow · Dec 3, 2021

I still know that my Inspire or is up the Oregon sugar factory it still won’t come out lol

Caffeine_Overflow · Dec 3, 2021

but Yea, I called the fire department and they took it out.

Caffeine_Overflow · Dec 3, 2021

jimk75 said:
Awesome story! For our crashed Air, I was told the trees were 40-60 feet tops. So we decided to stay above 75ft (bad mistake). We only had it for a couple of weeks. My wife was flying it and boom, we saw branches and that was it. I couldn't find it. We knew the general vicinity but, no luck. It started raining that night for a couple of days. 2 friends came out with my wife and me. My friend noticed it almost at the top of a tree that he said was at least 75 ft. The other friend was the person who told me the trees are not over 60ft. Humf! I now have a Mavic 2 Zoom and generally stay well over 100ft. My poor wife was traumatized and has not used the drone since!

Ouch.

BethanyFerrell · Dec 3, 2021

Mavic_pilot_21 said:
Diden’t you have obstacle avoidance turned on? You could have also turned on manual control. what I mean my manual control is put the controller sticks both to the diagnol down left. That could have made the props spin and MAYBE get the drone out. 4 years of flying experienc.

Not sure if this was in reply to my dumb move, but if so: I got an IMU error, and I think the props would've clipped the shingles if it had been an otherwise clean takeoff. I'm a beginner and didn't want to press my luck. The ladder was right there, so.

Antero52 · Dec 4, 2021

Last year I was surveying a forest patch of mine for trees which might harbor confectious diseases or harmful insects. I got a low battery warning and tried to bring my M2P from the forest patch to an open field for landing. Unfortunately, the drone had some head wind which it could not overcome. After a few minutes the battery was too far gone to support flying, and the drone dropped to a 15-meter (50ft) birch tree. As the forest is mine, I could have felled the tree if I wanted. However, I decided to try a technique that would (hopefully) save both the drone and the tree. I fetched a 7-meter (about 24ft) extension ladder and tied a rope about halfway up the tree. Then my wife pulled and released the rope at the resonant swinging frequency of the tree. I was keeping an eye on the drone and hoped to hand-catch it should it become loose. Eventually the drone fell and hit first my palm and then the ground. At first sight the only damage was to the propellers and to my hand, which was sore for a couple of days. Unfortunately, these were not the only broken things. I later found out that the drone would often return from flight with the battery about 1mm up from the bottom of the battery compartment. I suspect that the body of the drone suffered a fracture which causes the battery to become loose. Now, when I fly that drone, I wrap a length of thin metal wire around the battery compartment.

Crouching Leopard · Feb 13, 2022

LoudThunder said:
OK, your Drone is up in a tree, you are using "Find My Drone" and you can hear the beeping, but you do not see any blinking… and you video only shows leaves and a few passing clouds.

I have put my non-DJI Drone in a tree and I spent over an hour trying to find it. Finally, my wife came out and said, “What Tree?” I pointed and she said, “Don’t you see it? It’s right there!”

After she pointed to it, (as they say…) I couldn’t stop seeing it, it was in plain sight.

So, if you put your Drone up a tree and you've cannot spot it, perhaps all you need a “New Set of Eyes” to see what you are looking at but do not see…

So, whether you've found it or had to find a friend to find your Drone, what are you going to do when your Drone is so far up a tree that you cannot reach it? On the other hand, you've climbed up the tree and your Drone is so far out on a limb that the branch would not support a squirrel? Moreover, all the jumping up and down doesn't shake your Drone free, and only puts your life in danger?

In my case, my Drone wasn't up too terribly high and I went and got my 20’ Telescoping Crappie Fishing Pole and easily retrieved it. I have fabricated two interchangeable wire ends, one a hook and the other a loop, depending if I want to push, pull, or grab…

Here is a link to the Telescoping Crappie Fishing Pole that I am writing about; these poles go out to 30’…

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07HJ3BBLF?tag=csfishing-20&linkCode=ogi&th=1&psc=1 1

View attachment 136529

In addition, this Telescoping Crappie Fishing Pole just might save your life and limb, it's safer than jumping up and down on a tree limb, and a lot more non-violent than throwing rocks and sticks at your Drone in the hope of knocking it down…

Happy and Safe Droning.

Barney DeCat

Love it. Definately on my wish list.