Moisture tester

Gabby · July 21, 2006, 01:37:12 PM

Is there such a thing as a reliable moisture tester for under $100.? Saw one on the net new $39.95. Read the one review-"only good for testing water dripping from the ceiling" Decided to pass on that one! Help appreciated.

Fla._Deadheader · July 21, 2006, 02:56:42 PM

I like the Mini-Ligno, pin type. It has an automatic switch, so, long battery life, and if you watch Ebay, you can get one for as little as $40.00. They list for $169.00 or more. Been around for a long time. Completely portable, pocket size, and the older ones (mine) have LCD lites and read up to 30% Moisture content. Look for one with instruction sheet. There are different rates for different species.

Jason_WI · July 21, 2006, 06:35:37 PM

I have a Wagner L609. it is an older model with analog meter. I like it as I can scan the whole board to find "wet spots" and not have holes all over in my lumber. I would stay away from the Harbor Freight moisture meters. I paied $260 for mine new and it was worth every penny. Has saved my butt twice so far.

Jason

Max sawdust · July 23, 2006, 10:51:41 AM

The "timber check" out of Canada is a meter to consider.
Max

VA-Sawyer · July 24, 2006, 08:47:53 PM

I bought one of the Wood-Mizer meters because I needed a meter quick and I didn't have much cash on hand. ( I have an account with WM )
I must say that I have been fairly impressed with the unit. It is actually made by Wagner and re-labled for WM. I haven't tested it for accuracy, but I have checked it for repeatability. It does pretty good on that score. Being repeatable doesn't make it accurate, but it is a requirement of accuracy. If a measuring device doesn't have good repeatability then it can't possibly be accurate.
Overall, I would rate it an A- on performance vs. price.
VA-Sawyer

Part_Timer · July 24, 2006, 10:25:19 PM

I've got a timber check and like it a bunch. It is calibrated for red oak. There is a nice set of charts to get the species and temperature right.

flip · July 25, 2006, 08:03:13 AM

I've got a mini-Lingo...love it's guts. I got the long leads with it so I can use it to check MC in the kiln. It also adjusts for species, real nice kit.

Flip

IL Bull · July 25, 2006, 09:16:41 AM

I have a wagner pinless. My lovely wife bought for my birthday. I believe it was around $200. You adjust it by the specific gravity of the wood that is being checked. Works good. I can't check osage orange with because the scale only goes to 70 and osage has a SG of 76. Other than that there is no problems. 8)

Snag · July 25, 2006, 11:22:03 AM

What should someone look for in a meter? How do you know if you are buying a quality product or a piece of junk?

VA-Sawyer · July 26, 2006, 12:07:51 AM

IL Bull,
The WM unit will check osage orange as it can be set to a SG of 1.00. Other than that it should be a lot like yours.

Snag,
I hope that this thread will help answer that question. Perhaps everyone could take their moisture meters to the piggy roast for side by side comparisons.

Larry · July 26, 2006, 08:30:52 AM

Quote from: Snag on July 25, 2006, 11:22:03 AM
How do you know if you are buying a quality product or a piece of junk?

Delmhorst J-2000 is pretty much the industry standard for pin meters while Wagner seems to be the name in pinless.

The extra money buys things like being able to program in the species and temperature of the wood. Some have wide moisture ranges. Maybe it will record multiply readings and download to a PC. More importantly the higher priced meters come with a way to check calibration to see if your meter is lying to you. I have a high dollar Electro-Physics pin and a Wagner pinless but wouldn't hesitate using a cheaper meters.

So, cheap meters are capable of giving an accurate MC if used properly....but without all the extras. The calibration issue can be worked around by comparison or taking a reading of a block of wood with a known MC.

IL Bull · July 26, 2006, 08:42:21 AM

Quote from: VA-Sawyer on July 26, 2006, 12:07:51 AM
IL Bull,
The WM unit will check osage orange as it can be set to a SG of 1.00. Other than that it should be a lot like yours.

So your saying that woodmizers' goes to 1.0? Isn't the the Specific Gravity of water? :P ???

beenthere · July 26, 2006, 10:43:21 AM

Isn't the density of water 1.00, and specific gravity is the relationship of the density of a material (wood here) to the density of water?
When the wood density is the same as water, the wood SG is 1.00.