I dialed the 800 number for Wagner meters and all I got was two sales pitches for a Life alert type device. For joists where the rot infestation has been thoroughly dealt with: it is acceptable to leave the joist as it is. Ive been following your in depth blog on moisture meters for around 1 year now. Typical moisture content for furniture in a home is 6-9%. Colorado is cold and dry. I live in Charlotte, NC. We just bought a home where we discovered the plumbing was leaking over a number years with a kitchen flood occurring in the last 3-5 years due to a busted water line. Before installing plywood underlayment, ensure that the existing flooring is thoroughly vacuumed, free from debris, and stripped of wax. What You Should Know About Septic Systems, Interior Slab Foundation Settlement: Evaluations and Cost of Repair. Thanks for the question. After reading your article and following comments, my question is : How much does the finish of a wood project for indoor use affect the moisture content? Be sure to acclimate the wood to desired EMC of the interior environment before you use it. Example: 1.2mm Hickory wear layer 9mm thick plywood compose of 7 layers, 2 layers acacia, 4 layers of Eucalyptus\2 layers Acacia and one layer Poplar. Subsequently the woodgrain has reflected in the previously mirror-finish, only on the new panels and we suspect moisture content issues in the wood before it was varnished. Please provide us with regular updates. There is over three foot of block above grade around the entire house. Structural flooring for laying direct to joists or battens is a minimum of 19mm thick. Understanding the effects moisture has on timber, as well as acceptable moisture levels in wood flooring, will keep your timber floor looking pristine throughout its lifetime. If the leaks have damaged the sub floor or joists, call a licensed general contractor for repair. Do you have a suggestion? Hi Moisture Experts, My house is 25 years old located in Oregon City OR (near Portland). It was such a good read. One of his own service guys said foundation caps needed to be replaced. Each piece of lumber is unique and carries physical characteristics that may include the following: knots, warping, shrinkage, swelling and/or splitting. For example, if you were to have an EMC of 14%, then you would measure the woods moisture content and make sure its at 14%. . Have I been wrong? Phil, what are you making with the cedar, and in what type of environment will it be? The home inspector failed to report all the sewage stains on the plastic and organic growth on some of the joists have which had been exposed to moisture the whole time even though the dehumidifier has been mitigating the plumbing leaks. Hello, Paul here. Surface molds may develop. I get some water seepage through an exterior wall at basement floor level as a result of heavy rain. You can Google moisture content of wood necessary to support fungal growth and see for yourself. These home inspectors are insecure and inexperienced. I suspect the screws may be skewing the measurements. Wall Construction Flat-or no more than 3/8" in 8' (bulge) But none of the contractors abide by the framing codes, nor do the city officials. 1 4 Whats an acceptable moisture level for a brick wall in a house? Thank you for sharing such valuable information. for a mere $4900. If a wooden sample has moisture content range of 2-6% only and if it has moisture content of 9 or 10% then what does this mean?? I have seen that 13.5% is high for furniture and you should aim below 12%. If you know such International or Amercan or any other standard please let me know. While playing around with my pinless meter and checking the interior East and west walls on hot days, I notice the moisture content being very high 60% mc to off scale. Please give us a call at (800) 634-9961 or email info@wagnermeters.com, if youd prefer. 541-679-2612 www.Roseburg.com. Higher values could mean a wet or saturated material. I had a water leak under my crawl space which has 3 inches of foam insulation applied to the underside of the sub floor. This water may come from condensation, roof leaks, plumbing leaks, or contact with the soil. water leaked over the edge. Here is a good source for mold and wood: https://www.google.com/search?source=hp&ei=j6WRW76_NdmT0PEPkN29kAc&q=wood+moisture+content+and+mold&oq=moisture+content+and+mold&gs_l=psy-ab.1.0.0i22i30l3.8963.15970..206760.0..0.100.1475.25j10.1..gws-wiz..0..0j0i131.PkfEQYRef9I. In the Midwest, the EMC of wood or lumber in Des Moines, Iowa, ranges from 12.4% to 14.9%. It gains or loses water moisture as the relative humidity (RH) of the surrounding air changes. I suspect the moisture was the culprit? Hi, in MN where extreme temperatures are very hard on homes. Wood Rot in Crawl Spaces: Whats That Smell in My House. So, when looking at the relative humidity of the space, spaces left above 70% RH for extended periods will also promote mold growth. Most types of wood species will mold above 25% moisture content, including pine. Like all wood materials, I-joists are susceptible to moisture. Wood is hygroscopic. As a general guideline, an emission rate of 1.4 kg/100m (3 lbs/1000 ft) or less is considered acceptable for most floor coverings. I would not recommend re-drying finished plywood. Set the meter to the species that makes up the bulk, in this case, the plywood. On truss/joist spacing of 16" (406mm) o/c or less, the industry standard for single- panel subflooring is nominal 5/8" (19/32", 15.1 mm) CD Exposure 1 Plywood subfloor panels ( CD Exposure 1) or 23/32" OSB Exposure 1 subfloor panels, 4' x 8' sheets. Sometimes moving the air around is enough to remove moisture and dry surfaces. He added that plastic sheet ground covering that his company laid over my crawl space had been moved in spots and that I no longer had full coverage. 11 0 obj << /Linearized 1 /O 15 /H [ 1017 209 ] /L 26721 /E 14333 /N 2 /T 26383 >> endobj xref 11 18 0000000016 00000 n 0000000724 00000 n 0000000820 00000 n 0000000963 00000 n 0000001226 00000 n 0000001393 00000 n 0000001566 00000 n 0000001771 00000 n 0000002827 00000 n 0000002934 00000 n 0000004271 00000 n 0000005322 00000 n 0000005517 00000 n 0000007871 00000 n 0000007949 00000 n 0000009756 00000 n 0000001017 00000 n 0000001206 00000 n trailer << /Size 29 /Info 10 0 R /Encrypt 13 0 R /Root 12 0 R /Prev 26373 /ID[<2277e06d91c56aa37caf41071ab29f47><2277e06d91c56aa37caf41071ab29f47>] >> startxref 0 %%EOF 12 0 obj << /Type /Catalog /Pages 9 0 R /PageMode /UseThumbs /OpenAction 14 0 R >> endobj 13 0 obj << /Filter /Standard /V 1 /R 2 /O (D+K\r,s\n?$+%{Nhjp-!) Furniture grade wood is typically dried to a target of 6%-9%. (He didnt cite a figure.) I had it milled into 2.25 slabs and I stacked it on a deck area. all concrete) is framed and sheetrocked (though not mudded or sealed in any way) is then the studs are tested for humidity, what would be a reasonable level here in Seattle, living approximately 100 yards Puget Sound? Wood moisture content is always varying. What is the acceptable water/moisture content in cassia bark?- in south east asia. Is it possible to get a 99.9% moisture reading (using a Cassain GM-200 hydrometer) on a particle board floor which looks and feels completely dry? The house was not in the flood area however they did receive 20 inches of rain. And would it be normal for the MC to vary from board-to-board and one end of a board to the other? The installer should then check the moisture content of multiple boards and average the results. i cored out a small section of the bottom beam (3 inches wide) all the way down to the foundation. As a result, the normal moisture meter reading for these materials in between 0.5% and 1%. look forward to your comments. Great article! 2013-10-14 03:14:29. Thanks for the article, really appreciate the info! For example, if the expected EMC ranges from a low of 6% to a high of 9%, the baseline moisture content of the wood would be 7.5%. There is only so much moisture a piece of wood can give up, over time, before a failure occurs. The ideal moisture content will depend on the humidity indoors. Hardwood flooring needs to acclimate at least 2 weeks, in service conditions, before it is installed. Generally the entire floor is dry. Great article, thanks for the info. Thats why I think the wood is either not dried to 14%, or it has picked up too much humidity after drying. i did not waterproof the outside of the curb (kerdi), so the wood got wet. In fact, according to M. Steven Doggett, Ph.D. LEED AP, the founder of Built Environments, Inc., wood moisture content as high as 15% can cause corrosion of metal fasteners and at 16% may lead to fungal growth. I am building a farm style dining table with pecan 2 thick X 8-0 long boards. 78 0 obj <>stream At this home, cool objects include the air conditioning ductwork, the ground and the overlying wood floor system, which is exposed to very cool temperatures due to air conditioning duct leakage. The purpose of the vapor barrier is to keep moisture away from materials that expand and contract. Should I remove more foam to be sure. The moisture content overall is almost always below 20%. Can I get a away with this? During my visit, I crawled to the four main corners of the crawl space and probed the floor system with an electronic moisture meter during this traverse. Your contractor may use something called a moisture meter to see what the approach should be for joist damage, or it may be more obvious based on the appearance of the wood. We are checking moisture levels in several areas each day. If humidity levels in the crawlspace with all these measures taken place is above 60% the joist and the subfloor will have a high MC reading. Because ventilated crawl spaces throughout the Southeast United States allow high humidity and fungus spores to enter the enclosed space beneath the home. The substructure may show decayed areas, ranging from small to very large, of rotten floor joist, sills, and . Im down to ~13-19% MC near floor level, based on a cheapo moisture meters readings. our question is do we need to replace the floor to avoid fungal problems? The subfloor registered from 12% to 17% . A Brick Veneer Crack Tragedy: A True Story, Spraying for Mold on Floor Joists: Pest Control. You will however, need to become familiar with reading your local floor joist span tables for floor beams, floor joists, window and door lintels, ceiling joists, roof joists, roof rafters, and roof ridge beams, as well as the sizing and spacing of wood studs tables. If after the inspection we find that your sagging floor joists need support or your home's foundation needs repair we may recommend using IntelliJack, JES Helical Piers, or JES Push Piers. I have a black walnut slabbed up that has been air drying outside for 2 yrs. The shipping time is approximately 45 day in a 40 container to the west coast . Outdoor temp is 99*F. Is this normal? Everyone who works with wood needs to understand how wood interacts with moisture in the environment. My builder and flooring contractor asked for me to give the hardwoods a season to acclimate and they would surely move back together in june/july time frame. I requested the treated lumber be brought in a few weeks prior to build, stickered and put under cover to acclimate and dry it. 16% - 20%- Readings in this range indicate a possible elevated level of wood moisture. Brilliant article. I think that I know my own answer, but thought I might reach out for some possible better insight. It is possible, in some species, to have a moisture content higher than 100 percent. Characteristic of this wood easy to absorb of water and have large open pore. hello I been getting very sick in my home so I had my manger do a mold and moisture test which came back high level of moisture levels which a contractor wants to take the sub floor up and 2 to 4 inches of the wall but my apartment manger is not releasing to report and hes is saying the spore test didnt pick up any mold spore question is it safe for me and my family to be in the home with high level of moisture in the restroom which the floor have been really soft for over 9 months now as well as the kids bedroom where a pipe burst. Although, in this example, the moisture content of the timber rarely goes above 17%, it is not uncommon for winter moisture contents, in pitched roofs, to peak above 25%. However, the wood species and the thickness or size of the wood may also factor in. Because the moisture content of wood is equal to the weight of the water in the wood divided by the weight of the wood without the water, its possible for the moisture content to exceed 100%. Writing all the way from Australia, Steven. Too wet and you get fuzzing. Home Moisture Meters Acceptable Moisture Levels in Wood Knowing the Moisture Content. WMC of framing members in a crawl space will usually be lowest in late winter and highest in late summer. The failure in your case sounds as though the piece was exposed to a rapid loss of already low ambient moisture, causing the cracking in the piece. He, of course, said that type of product is insufficient. Were looking to replace the floor in an old (unheated) hay barn with treated tongue & Groove 26 flooring and need to know if the advertised 19% MC will be ok and not shrink too much. Thanks. It's a direct proportion: an 8-in. Thanks for the the information, very detailed and useful. Moisture contents in wood floor joists in houses with moisture problems are exceeding the 20% maximum level for air dried lumber. Is your electrical outlet that is 3 inches above the floor inside the house? Poor Drainage: A Foundation Problem Waiting to Happen, A Trade Secret: Bucks Vinyl Siding Test, Foundation Repair Salesman: Licensed to Kill, Dear God, Martha, Our House is Breaking in Two!. Good luck. The chart below will clear things up. Because pinless meters scan the woods surface and cover a larger area than pin-type meters, they provide a more thorough picture of the woods moisture content. Mold starts to grow in the mid to high 20 percent moisture contents. Thank you. Which do you recommend? can be laid with falls and set downs. Yes, our moisture meters read MDF. A dehumidifier in the crawlspace will help but can be expensive. Hope this helps. What is a Proper Structural Engineering Inspection? Most are reading are between 13-15%. Its not growing or feeding on the wood. Chris. Ideally, you want to check the EMC in the area you will be working on your slab, along with the area it will live in. Mobeen, If a wooden sample gains moisture, then the sample will increase in size. Download a free version of NZS 3602:2003. You should be able to tell where the water reached the subfloor because it will be discolored and may also be swelled up. We also have an Orion 950 moisture meter that will automatically give you EMC (Equilibrium Moisture Content) and other useful statistics. As with plywood subfloors, if there is movement or squeaks, refasten the subfloor to the joists and set protruding fasteners into the subfloor. They many times cite the need for further evaluations by what they call other so called experts. This method uses the oven-dry method and then compares the results to those obtained using a moisture meter. Ideally Ill wait until reaching final drying but sometimes I need to use wood before that point. It is also a good idea to use a moisture meter after the three weeks just to make sure. Water Level Survey: Are You Smarter Than an Egyptian? Observed water leaking along seams of several sheets of original plywood in attic. The EMC in the recommended temperature/humidity range coincides with the 6% to 9% range used by most flooring manufacturers during the manufacturing and shipping process. I just bought a live edge slab of Cherry from a local sawmill that was kiln dried. Once the summer cooling season ends, and the A/C is shut off, and the outside air cools, and the humidity drops significantly, the cool dry air now flowing beneath the home dries out the floor joists. This document describes the meaning and use of readings from a wood moisture meter. To make sure the wood is properly dried, he always uses a moisture meter before working with it. Do you agree with this? (As a percentage) Basically the chimney breast (in bedroom and downstairs room) has been measured with a digital moisture meter and states 'OL' on the display, the surrounding walls measure between 0.4% and 1.2%. They are now saying that they will replace whatever boards are bad and resand and finish the floors, however Im concerned that there is an underlying issue that will resurface here? I recommend one of our Orion models: https://www.wagnermeters.com/moisture-meters/. We dont know if we still should be having a commercial drying process? Pinless meters are non-penetrating and read the moisture content via a non-damaging electromagnetic sensor that scans the wood. About how long do you think we should allow the new wood to acclimate in the end use environment before installing it? For example, if the moisture content of the delivered wood is 12% and the optimal MC is 6%, then physical problems will occur during the acclimation process. A floor joist is a horizontal beam, usually made of wood, that is used to support and enclose the flooring above a foundation. primer, the moisture vapor transmissions rate (MVtr) from the substrate should not be in excess of 5 lbs. I may have missed this already but I have a few quick questions. Softwoods typically have higher moisture content than hardwoods. The joists can be longer or shorter as required by space and size, and are typically spaced at either 450mm or 600mm apart. The next question is almost the same as before, if we have various kinds of wood, such as March wood, mango wood, pine. Continue reading MC in the home. i am baffled. Hello Enjoyed the article. Different joinery (currently using pocket holes)? Do you think its to early to start working with it.If so how many yrs will it take to get to proper mc so i can work with it. It is a 2-3 feet wide wet area that drains to a line connected to the city system. The water wasnt properly dried and organic growth was discovered by previous owner. In your area, wood that has been in an environment to a duration of time would be between 6-11%. Lay the panels perpendicular to floor joists, allowing 1/4 inch of space between panels and the wall. Based on common guidelines or recommendations, the acceptable moisture levels for wood are as follows: Wood objects used indoors: 6-8% Wood flooring: 6-9% Construction: 9-14% Keep in mind that a wood's acceptable moisture level will depend primarily on how it will be finally used and the average RH where it will be finally used. Too dry and you get chipping out of the wood. endstream endobj 80 0 obj <>stream Hi and good day , I would like to find out what r the right temperature readings for workable wood slabs in South Africa specially Matumi wood slabs. 24 and 26 framing studs should measure 19% moisture content or less. This weight difference is then used to calculate the woods original moisture content. A wood moisture content of 47% is too high. how do I determine the mc standard for this material, is it the same as wood or has its own specifications, 2. My question: what is the complete saturation reading of wood? I had a pin meter but found I had to put the pins in the ends or try to find an area that wouldnt be seen, so Im thinking a pinless might be better. The next sheet is 21.5% adjacent to 2X4. Were in northern Indiana, humid summers long cold winters. I have removed the 1 3/4 edge and resawn to take out the splinter (1/4) re bicuited . -25% moisture content in a VENTED crawl space. could you please guide or on how much should be the Expected Humidity % in high Humid areas like UAE considering these are mostly for Indoor purpose where ACs are on 247 at say 24 Degrees. With regard to mold growing on your furniture, I would have to defer you back to the shipping company as they have more experience dealing with these types of issues. Do you think that heated floor actually help to dry or do they make things worse and more humid! Thanks in advance for your input! Ev Hello, I am renovating my kitchen and installing hardwood floors. 10? Some of the unfinished wood you see on the market has been kiln-dried to reduce its water moisture content to around 8% so that it wont suffer from moisture-related defects like warping and buckling. I had a redwood deck, and they replaced it with Douglas fir (without my approval, but thats another issue). 17 and the flooring is at 6 to 7. The acceptable moisture levels in a crawl space are between 30% and 50%, with under 55% being the ideal. This pin-type moisture meter is one of Delmhorst's most popular models. The National Wood Flooring Association (NWFA) has a chart that indicates the moisture content of wood at any given combination of temperature and humidity. Being that we live in Central Florida, 40 miles North of Tampa and using this chart page 5 ( https://research.cnr.ncsu.edu/blogs/wpe/files/2016/08/Equilibrium-Moisture-Content-of-Exterior-Wood-in-the-US.pdf) were it states EMC for wood exposed outside for our area of 12.5 to 14.0 when I put the moisture meter to the wood it should be in those ranges if going to be used outside? If that is the case you need to remove the flooring and examine the subfloor. We appreciate you writing in, best of luck! Will the reading be accurate? Stopping the moisture is much cheaper and easier than repairing the structure. Also, the glue manufacturer should ideally give you some specifications for max and min moisture content. Most floor joists are single or double, and most often made with 2x6s or 2x8s. However, a general rule of thumb is that the basement's humidity level is not over 30 - 50 percent. Hello and thanks for writing in. All Rights Reserved. https://www.wagnermeters.com/wood-moisture-meters/. I will get further testing from those not involved. Because wood shrinks and warps as it dries, woodworkers want it to be pre-shrunk before they use it. Hello! The door is NE facing and protected from direct Sun light and rain by a porch roof. All houses now use perimeter foundation so outside contact temperature stays at about 55 F all year. The acceptable moisture levels of wood and lumber are in the range of 6% to 8% for interior and 9% to 14% for exterior wood or for building envelope components within constructed assemblies. They are currently nearing equilibrium (around 12 MC) and are stored within the house. If the moisture is less than 20% and the floor joists are structurally sound, like the joists at this home, there is no need to worry about any fungal staining that might exist. Thank you for the helpful article. Subtract the width of your floor joist from your floor's length: 120" 1.5" = 118.5". The normal moisture content of wood (or EMC) varies from 7%-19% depending on the RH in the air. My plan is to make a wall-mounted headboard out of angle iron and these boards (boards will not be joined). It is best to allow the wood to equilibrate to the room environment.