Thread: Moisture Content Meter

Carbatec have an economy version for $79. http://svc010.bne011i.server-web.com....html?cache=no

No doubt the other companies would probably have the same/similar pin type ones as well.

Hi Mick,the pin models get a good reading and the one Wayne has suggested(I think he's on a finder fee from Carba-tec ) is certainly cheap enough to give you an indication of the range of EMC without hurting your pocket.I have a pin model that is cumbersome to use and was made up for me by a mate for the cost of the materials(about 25bucks some time back)and is ok on the raw timber before dressing but needs the pin marks dressed out if testing rigid and deep!
I have a Wagner pinless(cost around $330 that is light and I also take to auctions with me) that sits flat and reads the MC down to around 25mm and is also handy for your finished product that you may have to move from one area to another.The MC that can change environmentally from room to room can differ markedly and be a negative.
However saying that I also have a digital hygrometer that I can read from room to room the only difference is that a non-invasive pinless type will also tell you the MC of your furniture.
10-12% is regarded as stable but will seasonally fluctuate.
NOTE that most moisture meters that are produced overseas are calibrated to the timbers locally where they are produced and measures have to be taken to account for our timber here which is a given in "Wood in Australia" by Keith R Bootle ..ISBN 0 07 451047 9
HTH
Cheers

I think he's on a finder fee from Carba-tec )

I WISH!!

Unless the timber has been subjected to serious wetting most moisture meters wont read that low

if its recycled she should be prety dry mate.


I owned quite a number of the meters pictured and they are ok for a general idea.

but most dry timber reads below 6% on the surface any way.


If you are serious buy a serious meter.


If you are talking stuff that has been growing recently. Thats an other story.

Thanks for the replies.
I have been making "Refectory" style tables - for outdoors from rough sawn Redgum, bought from a local garden supplier so the timber is still green. But in sanding the tops of the tables, then applying linseed oil, I have been amazed at some of the grain. Hence, the thought that if the timber was dried enough, it would look really good if finished properly.
Air drying 50mm thick redgum would take some time, and warping a possibility.
The supplier has some 2.1 m lengths of 200mm x 50mm at a special price of $8 a stick, cf the 2.4m at $14.
At this price, I can source enough timber to make a 2.1m table, and a pair of benches for $144 ( needs 18 sticks) , and the moisture meter would be used before dressing the timber.
mick

So is a moisture meter only for use on timber for interior use?

Are there safety issues cutting green timber on table saws, router tables etc?

I'd like to by timber in logs and have sawn into planks. Most of the discussion I've seen about this has suggested approximately 1 year per inch + a year of drying / acclimatising once cut. If used outside is the drying time less? Does the current moisture content have an impact on drying time?

If I have a log covered in bark how do I get estimated moisture content of the resulting planks or do I have to saw it first?

Oh yeah and one more question while I'm on a role do different trees have different moisture content when felled, ie is there a best tree for quick drying?

HH.

Originally Posted by Wayne Davy

Carbatec have an economy version for $79. http://svc010.bne011i.server-web.com....html?cache=no

No doubt the other companies would probably have the same/similar pin type ones as well.

I bought this one some time ago, seems to work ok.

Al

A dead tree has much drier timber than a live tree.

Originally Posted by HappyHammer

So is a moisture meter only for use on timber for interior use?

Are there safety issues cutting green timber on table saws, router tables etc?

I'd like to by timber in logs and have sawn into planks. Most of the discussion I've seen about this has suggested approximately 1 year per inch + a year of drying / acclimatising once cut. If used outside is the drying time less? Does the current moisture content have an impact on drying time?

If I have a log covered in bark how do I get estimated moisture content of the resulting planks or do I have to saw it first?

Oh yeah and one more question while I'm on a role do different trees have different moisture content when felled, ie is there a best tree for quick drying?

HH.

I have air dried pine in 6 weeks 2" thick. Sugar Gum 1" thick took 6 months and I had to put fans on it other wise it would have taken longer.
There is a program you can buy called "Drywood" from AFRDI, P O Box 2042, Launceston TAS 7250. You tell it dencity size inside outside relative humidity etc and it tells you how long to dry. Or if you measure moisture content a week or so apart it will tell you when it will be 12%. Works for kilms aswell.

The lighter the wood the faster it dries ie dence woods take a long time.

G'day All.
If you want the low down on moisture meters, talk to Mark Heath at The Moisture Meter Company. he is in Coffs harbour. The number is in the book.
He sell all types of meters. I currently have 5 different moisture meters, 2 temperature meters and 1 relative humidity meter. All of these meters read slightly different and all need correction factors to read accurately.
The rolls royce of moisture meters is the WAGNER L612. it is a pinless meter. I use it for inspections of hardwood flooring. being pinless, it doesn't harm the timber. It also needs calibrating against samples from the oven dry method to be super accurate.
If you want to read a report of how moisture meters compare, go to www.fwprdc.org.au and download the research report.

Hooroo.
Regards, Trevor

Hello Mick4412
If you want to save yrself some expense and youve got some sensitive weighing scales you could weigh a piece then dry it in an oven overnight at a low temperature then weigh it again when dried to see if there is a significant difference (in weight not flavour).

Originally Posted by capedcrusader

Hello Mick4412
If you want to save yrself some expense and youve got some sensitive weighing scales you could weigh a piece then dry it in an oven overnight at a low temperature then weigh it again when dried to see if there is a significant difference (in weight not flavour).

Remember that the pieces should be no thicker than 25mm. the oven should be set at 103 deg C. the samples need to be in the oven for a MINIMUM of 24 hours. The scales need to be accurate to within 0.1 of a gram.
Calculation is... Green weight - Oven Dry Weight / oven dry weight X 100

This will give M.C.%

Hooroo.
Regards, Trevor
Grafton

As John says, you need to calibrate the meter for the wood species.

I use a cheapie with my rough turned bowls - measure and mark when roughed out and then come back later; when she's stopped dropping, time to turn.

Garden supplies redgum is pretty green in my experience, and some way off first quality so you're going to get a fair amount of wastage drying it yourself.

Originally Posted by glock40sw

Calculation is... Green weight - Oven Dry Weight / oven dry weight X 100

This will give M.C.%

Id like to add that you wont be able to calculate the actual moisture content unless you know the initial MC of your recycled sample or if you find out the green weight for the species from tradac