Concrete Moisture Content For Wood Floors

Wood moisture meters for flooring applications come in two varieties.

Concrete moisture content for wood floors.

Therefore it s advisable to have a floor tested for moisture content prior to installing flooring or moisture barriers. The fastest way to measure moisture in floors is to use a moisture meter for wood. To avoid these failures from occurring a variety of test methods are used to determine the amount of moisture in concrete before installing flooring. However in some coastal areas the average rh is in the 58 to 63 range.

If the temperature of the building is between 75 and 85 degrees fahrenheit the equilibrium moisture content of your wood should be between 7 and 8. Ideally you should aim to have a reading of somewhere between 35 and 40 humidity air or 2 3 moisture content before laying your new floor. From the 1940s to today many contractors have relied on surface based methods for monitoring or evaluating relative humidity levels and moisture content. In fact mc in both materials fluctuates with changes in ambient relative humidity rh.

Determining moisture content is an essential part of quality control within the flooring installation process. Flooring installers must know the moisture content of the wood flooring as well as the subfloor. When installing hardwood floors over concrete subflooring appropriate mc levels must be achieved. The normal moisture content of wood or emc varies from 7 19 depending on the rh in the air.

Moisture testing for wood flooring and wood subfloors. Concrete slabs and floors can be excellent subfloor surfaces for tile and other floor coverings but too much moisture in the concrete can cause problems with flooring installations. The most accurate measurement for moisture content in wood is the oven bake out. Ideally you re looking for the moisture content of your subfloor to be 2 or less.

These devices can be used to test the moisture content mc of wood flooring in mere seconds. Wood and concrete both have independent changeable moisture levels.