Detecting moisture in wood flooring?

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Whats the best tool for detecting moisture in wood flooring installed over concrete. I have a Tramex pinless but it always pegs the meter out and gives me the same readings in unaffected area as it does in affected area. Tramex works great on drywall.
 

Desk Jockey

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You need both a non-intrusive and aa pin meter. Wood floor people use analog meters around here. We had digital and they didn't trust it, they wanted to use their meter. We have both Delmhorst and MMS2 with pins and hammer probe.

90% of the time we use the Tramex.
 
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Okay so would there be something wrong with mine? Like I said anytime I test wood flooring the meter pegs out at 30% regardless if the floor is affected by water damage or not? So how can detect moisture properly. Does the same thing on concrete
 

Cleanworks

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Okay so would there be something wrong with mine? Like I said anytime I test wood flooring the meter pegs out at 30% regardless if the floor is affected by water damage or not? So how can detect moisture properly. Does the same thing on concrete
You have to adjust the sensitivity. It's like reading drywall and you pass over a metal stud. It will peg the meter and give you a false reading. Take a known dry hardwood over concrete and dial down the sensitivity and then pass it over a known wet hardwood over concrete and see what the difference is.
 

Cleanworks

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upload_2017-1-15_11-25-24.png
Sorry, my tramex doesn't have any adjustment. I was thinking of my electrophysics meter. It has a zeroing knob on top. You can adjust it to compensate for other materials that may be present. When you do that, it is not giving you exact moisture content but is indicating the difference between wet and dry. The only way to be precise is to use a pin type.
 

kmdineen

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Gann Moisture Meter G2020

Gann Moisture Meter G2020 ‐ COMPACT A
Order# 2020

Use to measure finished hardwood flooring materials Digital readout Measures materials 1.5” thick Readings are in % of moisture content Separate seƫngs for different species of wood No cables, no electrodes.

upload_2017-1-16_22-7-10.png
 

Rick J

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wow ,
I do not do restoration, BUT
just the last couple of days had a really bad flood. Clean water . 3 Br. Ranch 95% affected , on concrete slab. Occupied apt. with TONS of stuff. A real mess. piles of clothes, furniture etc. you all know the scenario.
Unknown how long the break was active, as the tennent was rarely there. Still no heat in the unit, but had been warm out.
Initial extraction was on a Tuesday.
Minor amount of visible growth starting in just a couple of small areas near the floor.
I did the initial extraction. removed pad. Put 4 Dehus in to get things started. and deferred the rest.
They were contacting firms that had the capability for this.
Mind you I am deferring the whole time.
One company came in, On thursday, removed drywall , usual way, . cut out a couple of feet up.
PM was POed at cost for that.
So still claiming no accountability I placed 10 fans , The Phoenix ones. On friday. Still 4 dehus going(realy 3 as one was an old drieze 110!) an Evolution ; a1200 , and the next size up.

Got a non penetrating meter from my dist. It was(as I have returned it) Tramex . And yes, I made sure it was set to correct scale. Checking around it all seemed pretty much dry already.

But the 2x4 plates on the concrete never did show dry. The studs though, even right on the plate, are bone dry. I sort of get this , as the concrete is going to hold moisture and the plates are fastented to the slab.
Also, one piece of wood. in one wall. a cross member. between two studs reading 0%. It was shielding the plumbing manifold where all the plumbing branched off. This one piece of wood , eye level was in the red, and beeping? That one piece of wood looked like treated lumber. Does the fact that it is treated cause a false reading? (the salts used to treat)?
Sorry for the book.!!
 

dealtimeman

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Growth???

Microban,benefect,sporiciden?

There are many people here that could help you through the process next time just post questions, but I would definitely take a water class.
 

kmdineen

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Just because water starts off as clean water does not necessarily mean it stays clean water. Time and environment can cause a category 1 flood to degrade into a category 2 or 3.

If you believe that a job has degraded to the point were removal of carpet, pad and sheetrock is warranted, I would clean the exposed areas after removal and apply a disinfectant as Deal time man has suggested.

It is not a good practice to mix low grain refrigerant dehumidifiers with standard refrigerant dehumidifiers because the standard refrigerant dehumidifiers will lose their benefit as the job dries.

The sill plates that are sitting on the concrete are likely still wet because the slab may have soaked up a substantial amount of water, either during the flood or during the drying process. If the slab is not properly dried it may affect the new flooring that will be installed.

It is always a good idea to check and record the surface temperature of the material that you are drying to insure that is stays above the dew point temperature of the air. This way you know if the material you are trying to dry is releasing moisture or taking on moisture.
 

Rick J

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sorry guys, . Maybe toooo much information in my query.
I am not doing the remediation. I was just first responder, did the initial extraction & pad removal. The heat was not on, and all of their stuff was still in place. Heat got turned on the next day, so dew point was not an issue at that point. they had their stuff removed the next day , and the place is empty.
Restoration company took out the lower drywall. There was slight visible growth in a couple of spots.
]None now anywhere. /environment was controlled quickly. Heat on , equipment in place.
I was just curious about the readings I was getting from the instrument. I get the sill plate , being on the concrete slab.

But what about that one 15" piece of 2x4, up at eye level. That is a cross member between 2 VERY dry % , studs. does pressure treated give false readings due to the treatment.?
 

kmdineen

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I suppose pressure treated lumber could give you a false reading depending on what it was treated with. Or your non penetrating meter is picking up a nail or screw. If you have access to a penetrating meter, recheck for a more accurate reading. It may be easier to remove and replace 15" of 2 x 4.

Dew point is always an issue during the drying process. Cement slabs in cold climates can read between 55 and 65 degrees. If your air temperature is 85 and your RH is 43, you may think your set up to dry. However if the cement slab falls below 60 degrees (dew point under these conditions) the slab is taking on moisture from the air.
 

Desk Jockey

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But what about that one 15" piece of 2x4, up at eye level. That is a cross member between 2 VERY dry % , studs. does pressure treated give false readings due to the treatment.?
Several typical waterborne preservatives used in building applications include: Chromated Copper Arsenate (CCA-C), Alkaline Copper Quat (ACQ-C, ACQ-D, ACQ-D Carbonate), Micronized Copper Quat (MCQ), Copper Azole (CA-B & CA-C, μCA-C) and Sodium Borates (SBX/DOT). These treatments are often referred to by trade names such as: Wolmanized Natural Select™ (Copper Azole), Preserve and NatureWood® (ACQ), MicroPro™, Smart Sense™ (MCQ), and Advance Guard® (Borate). Each preservative usually has a number of variations available so care should be exercised when specifying treated wood.
Its possible. Go to Home depot or Lowes and test some pieces. Could it be a flashing?
Is it consistent and straight?

Doubtful its moisture but possible.
 

Rick J

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Thanks guys.

More of curiosity thing with me, the small piece of timber , high up. I made sure while messing with it , no nails metal etc.
I get the part about the concrete.

Again , remediation is not mine.
 

Rick J

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Several typical waterborne preservatives used in building applications include: Chromated Copper Arsenate (CCA-C), Alkaline Copper Quat (ACQ-C, ACQ-D, ACQ-D Carbonate), Micronized Copper Quat (MCQ), Copper Azole (CA-B & CA-C, μCA-C) and Sodium Borates (SBX/DOT). These treatments are often referred to by trade names such as: Wolmanized Natural Select™ (Copper Azole), Preserve and NatureWood® (ACQ), MicroPro™, Smart Sense™ (MCQ), and Advance Guard® (Borate). Each preservative usually has a number of variations available so care should be exercised when specifying treated wood.
Its possible. Go to Home depot or Lowes and test some pieces. Could it be a flashing?
Is it consistent and straight?

Doubtful its moisture but possible.


Wish I had though to get a couple of pieces at HD while I had the meter.
Again, just stupid curious me.!!!!!
 
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Desk Jockey

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Gann Moisture Meter G2020

Gann Moisture Meter G2020 ‐ COMPACT A
Order# 2020

Use to measure finished hardwood flooring materials Digital readout Measures materials 1.5” thick Readings are in % of moisture content Separate seƫngs for different species of wood No cables, no electrodes.

View attachment 69085
We have the Gann with the electrodes. It also measures deeper than a Tramex.

DSCN5133.JPG
 
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Cleanworks

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The problem with measuring installed flooring is that the meter used may be also reading any installed moisture barrier and the floor beneath be it wood or concrete.
 

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