Moisture Meters?

[mizzou]

I bought a cheap one at harbor freight about a month ago. It's a neat toy, but I know how long my wood has been seasoning and the species so I could live without it. Played with it the first day and not sure where it is now.

 

[Jack Fate]

this is what i was told

I'm hoping you can tell me how dumb I am.

I bought this meter, put the battery in, fired it up and get a zero reading on almost everything I put it on.

I touch it to my arm and get a reading of about 30%. Freshly cut firwood ranges from 9% to 14%. 1 year seasoned wood reads 0%. New 2x4s read 0%. wood siding 0%. Privacy fence 0%...you get the picture.

I made sure it was set on the log setting. What am I missing?

Readings are to be taken on a fresh split & A cold piece of wood will read lower than a warmer (room temp ) piece by about 3-5%

readings should be taken as mentioned with the grain with prongs firmly embedded .Also look to see if you meter has more than one scale

found this info on hearth .com

hope this helps

Cheers





















youtube downloader

 

[woodchuck357]

I have the black and yellow one from lowes

I use it mainly for lumber, where knowing the exact moisture content may be crucial, but occasionally check firewood. I just like to measure stuff.

The red oak and pignut hickory I checked yesterday read 14% to 16%. It was split (adv split 5" X 18") and stacked last spring with top and south side loosely covered with black plastic.:cool2:

 

[TPA]

I use it mainly for lumber, where knowing the exact moisture content may be crucial

Do you have problems with it? Is it necessary to embed the points a certain depth? how much? If you are too shallow does it give you a zero or very low reading?

 

[zogger]

I have found that the old , experienced guy, burns wetter wood in a non epa stove. Swears up and down how to burn wood, with out regard to the smoke out his chimney, or the creosote in it. This is just my experience in my neck of the woods.

Same guy will also say one single solitary split of pine in the stove is enough to burn the whole county down

Also, hoops snakes grab their tails, and form a hoop and roll and chase you down the street..happened to him when he was a boy..also whipsnakes, jump straight up and whip yas!

 

[stihly dan]

I have found that the old, experienced guy, started out with his dad and granddad, cutting firewood with ax and bucksaw… dragging it from the woodlot using real “horse” power. That experience has also given him patience and a sense of humor so he can just smile and nod when someone tells him, in order to burn wood properly without burning his house down, he needs a chainsaw with electronic carb, 4x4, ATV, splitter the size of a small car, roof and walls to store his firewood, moisture meter, manometer, $2000.oo EPA stove, automatic draft control, no flue damper, thermometer on his pipe, stainless steel chimney, wind directional chimney cap with spark arresting screen, ................................
Then, after smiling and nodding, he can meet the other old, experienced guys at the coffee shop… and they have something to laugh about.

But the guy with all that stuff is having fun working, getting more done, burning less. Watching the old guy work like a dog, as he is having a beer playing on his quad cause his wood is done already.:hmm3grin2orange:

 

[CTYank]

I bought a cheap one at harbor freight about a month ago. It's a neat toy, but I know how long my wood has been seasoning and the species so I could live without it. Played with it the first day and not sure where it is now.

Got maybe the same one at HF a couple years ago. Use to "calibrate" my internal moisture meter. Readings seem very consistent until the batteries are toast. Got a mess of them for a few bucks from a company in Shanghai. Pop a set in and it's good to go.

Just got to remember to put the cap back on. Over those two pointy bits. Before putting in pocket.