It will be there for a few months before I begin working on it. Cut out a portion (approx 1/2" I think) from the top of the floor joists. We have a free App called WoodH2O that will tell you the moisture content given certain temperature and humidity conditions. The house was not in the flood area however they did receive 20 inches of rain. I have a black walnut slabbed up that has been air drying outside for 2 yrs. This author has found decay fungi in floor joists at moisture levels of 20% to 25%. Truss Uplift: Who Would Have Ever Thunk It? We are checking moisture levels in several areas each day. Elaine. Using South Carolina Residential Construction Standards to Solve Problems, Website by Integritive Web Design :: Asheville, NC. I was thinking 10% MC would be ok but after reading your article Im not sure. The engineered wood floor appears ok. 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. Each piece of lumber is unique and carries physical characteristics that may include the following: knots, warping, shrinkage, swelling and/or splitting. Specifically in the first 3-4 on one side of the door is 11%, then drops to ~8%. -XF% Hi Larry, We are a joinery company and we have a project here in UAE which is located in another part of the emirates and the humidity in that area is very high especially during summer because it is near the coastal area. 10? Replaced the subfloor, which is . 25-30 - Actual, and often extensive, damage is evident when readings reach this level. You should be able to specify a lower moisture content. Perhaps there is something different about the East and West walls. What are Acceptable Moisture Levels in Wood? Lower differential means slower heat loss. We dont know if we still have leaks? 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. Meanwhile, the reference scale can be used to provide qualitative moisture assessments in other building materials. They need to carry a moisture meter with them under houses and probe the floor joists to measure wood moisture content. A termite repair company (also licensed contractors) told me that I needed to replace the planks on my second story deck. Many thanks for your advice, really appreciate it! I manufacture ice cream sticks and disposable wooden cutlery from European Baltic birch wood in India. If there are quite small amounts of moisture in a wall of dense plaster or brick, then a meter will probably indicate over 20% or so and this will be in the 'red zone' or beeps and squeeks may happen. Floor joists support most of your home's weight and play a crucial role in structural integrity. The containers that we have received so far have arrived wet and mouldy. What are acceptable ranges of moisture for composite materials like MDF and Plywood, for indoor furniture use? The moisture content of freshly cut wood is typically somewhere between 40-200%. You should be able to tell where the water reached the subfloor because it will be discolored and may also be swelled up. I live on the fl coast so what should the moisture level be? I purchased my newly built home that has to meet all the new energy efficient standards and will be 2 years old this coming month. One of the beauties of spar is that it allows the wood to move quite a bit, while still retaining good adhesion. Longer pins with insulated shafts are designed for the purpose. Based on common guidelines or recommendations, the acceptable moisture levels for wood are as follows: Keep in mind that a woods acceptable moisture level will depend primarily on how it will be finally used and the average RH where it will be finally used. Both slab-on-ground and suspended concrete floors for wet areas: are deemed impervious when steel trowel finished or polished. i used my dremel with a shaping bit about 1/8 in to cut vertical slits or vents about an inch deep and a couple of inches tall into the bottom 24 and have kept a commercial floor blower on the wood several hours a day for more than a week yet, the number is not going down. 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?? Wood Rot in Crawl Spaces: Whats That Smell in My House. Also, the glue manufacturer should ideally give you some specifications for max and min moisture content. Writing all the way from Australia, Steven. So, is it really this wet or is our meter over-reading? The size of the lumber used for floor joists is the single greatest determining factor in terms of how far a joist can span. The definitions section of the IICRC S500 current edition describes dry-standard: "a reasonable approximation of the moisture content or level of a material prior to a water intrusion," drying goal: the target moisture content or moisture level in a material to be achieved at the end of the drying process established by the restorer. This is a perfectly normal moisture content and one that will not support fungal growth. Thanks for the question. In an air conditioned house the wood floor. Here is a link to our website for more information: https://www.wagnermeters.com/shop/orion-950-smart/. A floor joist is a horizontal beam, usually made of wood, that is used to support and enclose the flooring above a foundation. My last Wagner was appropriated by the individual who appropriated other tools out of my old sho. Wood freshly cut or kiln-dried is always interacting with environmental moisture. So what do you think is the ideal moisture% I should dry them to before rotary polishing them? of water/day/1000 sq. We have a free app called WoodH2O for Android or iPhone. We also have an Orion 950 moisture meter that will automatically give you EMC (Equilibrium Moisture Content) and other useful statistics. WagnerMeters 1.93K subscribers 3.2K views 1 year ago Hardwood Flooring - Tips & Problems Do you work with wood? You are correct, furniture grade hardwood is typically dried between 6 to 9%. Now the fungus goes dormant. But when you touch the pins to the embedded screws, you get between 14 and 24 % in various areas of the board. Im down to ~13-19% MC near floor level, based on a cheapo moisture meters readings. Good luck. if not, can you tell me why? Hello Folks, I am new to wood turning and do not have a ready supply of dry/seasoned (my wood is green) wood. Is this dry enough that Id be able to reinstall the trim over the particleboard? When I purchase it its soaking wet and Ive always given it a few weeks, stickered and covered for at least 2 weeks, sometimes up to a month, to get it down to around 17-19%. Thanks. Live in Tn. Thank you. I have built two table tops (douglas fir) that have both suffered major cracking in their final location. I had a water leak under my crawl space which has 3 inches of foam insulation applied to the underside of the sub floor. (Itd effectively seal the cavity under the vanity, so once the trim is back on, i dont think itll dry out much more.) We are very arid where the tops were built so I figured the tables would be just fine knowing that it is arid where they were goingbut that doesnt seem to be the case. We found out that RH at the final location was under 20%. Most of it will dissipate. I had a quick looked around the crawl space and didnt notice any structure damage. Kiln-dried wood usually shows a moisture reading of 10% on the outside and then 25% on the inside. The National Wood Flooring Association (NWFA) has a chart that indicates the moisture content of wood at any given combination of temperature and humidity. 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. There are two main ways of measuring wood moisture content: oven-dry testing and moisture meter testing. Other signs of high moisture readings include surface mold, evidence of water flows in the crawl space, evidence of water stains or evaporation from foundation walls and columns, evidence of condensation on ducts and evidence of water drops impacting the soil under ducts. All that needs to be done at this home is to close-up the foundation vents during every air conditioning season and make sure the ground cover vapor barrier is spread completely over the underlying ground surface. of the average flooring moisture content that is being laid). He asked if I could double-check the findings of another home inspection company that requested expert advice on some mold/fungus they found in the crawl space of the home. ie SW=Starting weight, TW=Target weight, using T%=Target percentage My calculation ( T% X SW = TW). My question for you is: after a smallish unheated underground space (similar to a basement, i.e. You will also see that the healthy wood moisture levels of 10% - 16% occur when the relative humidity is between 55% and 80% at 70 degrees. 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. The SG setting is on the card that comes with the meter. Thanks for the question. summary Acceptable wood moisture readings on a meter normally range from 6% to 8% for woodworking. Ideally, it should be between 7% and 9%. moisture meter testing a floor joist In this image we measure a reading of 37% in this floor joist. Also, there is a risk of mold. Wood used indoors will eventually stabilize at 8-14% moisture content; outdoors at 12-18%. The manufacturer of the oil-based poly should have a specification on the maximum allowable moisture content of the wood. Great info! You can Google moisture content of wood necessary to support fungal growth and see for yourself. Thank you for the helpful article. We have industrial fans going 24/7 to try and dry out the room and also have a dehumidifier running, Ive had the heated floor running in hopes that it could help dry any of the wet wood directly below. Thanks Mark, The EMC outside and the wood should be the same. 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. This can be a problem once installed in furniture or a floor. They were installed over existing plywood subfloor. I live in Atascadero CA and had a coastal red oak tree cut down this past summer. The wood has been kiln dried and packed in corrugate. Below 12% Readings in this range are common to kiln or oven dried woods and furniture grades of wood, and represent dry conditions. Its mc is 11- 12% . Which Orion moisture meter model would you suggest for my application? One sheet of plywood is 25% next to a 2X4 truss reading 17-27%. This is expensive and its ridiculous. Too wet and you get fuzzing. Because of the different materials involved, they will react differently to high heat, thus giving you an un-even plywood surface. Treatment levels for timber and timber-based materials used under tiles in wet areas where the waterproofing membrane cannot easily be inspected or maintained should be: H1.2 for timber floor joists and wall framing around showers; H3 (CCA treated) for plywood. It gains or loses water moisture as the relative humidity (RH) of the surrounding air changes. 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. Im not sure I can really answer this question. Thank you for the information, I use a lot of trimmed for for children toys, menu times I use rings of 1-3 inch in diameter, For these purposes I dont care for wood shrinkage or wraping, Two things are important for me that wood will not crack, and that mold wont develop. These WMC readings are usually provided by pest control operators, and are included in the termite letter (form CL-100 Official South Carolina Wood Infestation Report). Yes, hardwoods such as cherry and walnut should be between 6 and 8% moisture content. 18 years ago the moist content (MC) of the beams and joist was 24% in an area of the crawl space that floods in spring. Structural Repairs Dont Have to Be a Nightmare! Two questions I need a reliable, easy to use meter that can cover all species as I now have a portable mill and that can be used for treated. I checked it with my new moisture meter and had a reading of between 8-13.5%. Whats an acceptable moisture level for a brick wall in a house? Why and how can I say this? The EMC of wood or lumber exposed to an outdoor atmosphere varies across the U.S. For instance, in the coastal city of Seattle, the EMC of wood or lumber is higher than the EMC of cities inland or in the Southwest. Finally the question I have is I-used your Wood H2O app and the humidity here (outside) is 55% and the temperature is near 70 (inside)am I correct that 10% is what Is the acceptable moisture of the wood should be for furniture building? For example, from 25% to 45% or from 45% to 65%. Structural flooring for laying direct to joists or battens is a minimum of 19mm thick. I dont know what to believe except the company who installed the vapor and dehumidifier said the vapor barrier needs to be changed out because of all the sewage and drainage stains after the plumbing is fixed. Sorry that this is so long-winded and I thank you in advance if you are willing to address this question for me. Most floor joists are single or double, and most often made with 2x6s or 2x8s. Mold starts to grow in the mid to high 20 percent moisture contents. ft., and averaging the results. What would be the recommended MC for doors of my new building(under construction)? Why and how can I say this? The levels were between 20 and 23%. As with any wood product, the environment where the finished product will Live will determine the correct moisture content. The ceiling in the bedroom above the chimney breast shows signs of damp however doesn't feel damp/moist. In your blog I read that furniture for outdoor is dried to a MC between 9 and 14%. Thank you. These home inspectors are insecure and inexperienced. You may be picking up something behind the sheetrock. Since wood is hygroscopic, it loses or gains moisture depending on the relative humidity of the surrounding air. As it dries, you should expect slight changes in width and length. Waterproof membrane . Therefore, in order to avoid post-construction problems, a woodworker building a cabinet for this particular interior environment would need to dry his wood to a moisture content of 8- 9% beforehand and then keep it that dry during the construction process. This is for furniture-grade hardwoods. It is also possible high moisture has entered the container during the trip to Europe. I would also consider the environment where the table will live. If the subfloor is not acceptable, it can often be overlaid with 1/2 -inch plywood. Mold starts growing if the moisture contents reaches about 25% moisture content. Obviously, the ambient conditions within which the wood or paper is present can alter the MC% of the wood or paper. Hope this helps. Notice that the EMC of the in-use location is the same as the MC: So, using this chart, we know that in an area of the country where the RH inside a home or office is anywhere from 26-32%, both the EMC of the in-use location and the wood moisture content kept in that location will be 6%. Thank you for the well described article. Congratulations on your new furniture. 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-!) Thanks Phil. Spruce isnt a hardwood so Im assuming I could get away with a shorter dry time. I live in Charlotte, NC. Any moisture content measured higher than that might result in movement, such as warping and twisting, once it dries. Do you have a suggestion? Does it have another common name? This type of floor-leveling is DIY-friendly and costs approximately $1.50 per square foot when applied 1/8-inch thick. As long as the moisture content does not exceed those readings you should be ok. The home inspectors working for fees today seem to have one primary motive in mind: to cover their liabilities. This will stop the wet/dry cycle that exists every year, in every ventilated crawl space containing A/C ductwork in the SE United States, over their lifetime. I-joists are strong, lightweight, "I" shaped engineered wood structural members that meet demanding performance standards. with the spring thaw, i was one of the lucky ones that got water in my basement. 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. With the WoodH2O-app I could deduct the EMC for The Netherlands would be between 15 and 16. In this case, what Built in # that I can use to measure flooring.
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