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My old boss told me to never use a climbing line on a pine with that much pitch | Arborists - Vivisector

My old boss told me to never use a climbing line on a pine with that much pitch

He said it would gum up the rope fibers and ruin it for good. I didn't listen on a job in Bellingham last fall, and after one big white pine removal, my brand new 200 foot line was a sticky mess. Took me three hours and a whole bottle of cleaner to get it sort of usable again. Anyone have a better trick for cleaning pine sap off ropes, or is it just a lost cause once it gets that bad?

4 comments

4 Comments

avery_lee26mo ago

Honestly, that whole "ruin it for good" thing seems overblown. Jake_wells12's soap soak is fine, but a little mineral spirits on a rag wipes pitch right off without the hours of work. A rope is a tool, not a museum piece. Are we really going to avoid good trees because we're scared of a little cleanup?

jake_wells126mo ago

That "sticky mess" feeling is the worst. I had a rope get totally coated once and regular cleaners just smeared it around. What finally worked for me was soaking the worst sections in a bucket of warm water with a good amount of dish soap, the plain blue kind. I let it sit for an hour to soften the sap. Then I used a plastic scraper, like an old credit card, to gently peel the big globs off. After that, a good rinse and letting it dry fully made it usable again. It's a pain but it can save the rope.

patricia324mo ago

Honestly, the real sticky mess is having to plan a whole spa day for a rope. I'm with avery_lee2 on this, mineral spirits gets you back to work in five minutes. Rayadams is right about the old boss tricks, but sometimes the new, lazy way is just better. My gear spends more time in buckets than I do.

rayadams6mo ago

Totally get the soap soak idea. I've used a citrus-based degreaser on a rag with decent results, it cuts the sap without being too harsh. Sometimes the old boss really does know best though.