Concrete Moisture Meter

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Types Of Concrete Moisture Meter

Examples Of The Concrete Moisture Meter

Delmhorst Moisture Check-Dual Function (Pin & Pinless) Concrete Meter

Calcium Chloride Test For Moisture In Concrete

Any flooring can be ruined if moisture steps in. So moisture conditions need to be monitored and checked on a regular basis. But the thing with a concrete slab is that the moisture condition of it actually begins a long time before it is installed as a flooring base. If this concrete slab has not been dried properly and cured before using in a floor then you are pretty much guaranteed to have flooring problems. These problems can also lead to health issues such as mildew and mould. Any floor that is not properly secured can also be a health hazard. Repairing a floor because of moisture problems can be extremely expensive and particularly un necessary when steps can be taken to avoid this by simply taking time, using a moisture meter and laying correctly.

When you think of the concrete slab it is easy to think of concrete and cement as the same product. But they are not. Cement is added to a concrete mix to bind everything together. Cement is just one ingredient, along with sand, water and aggregate, that is mixed to form concrete. There are 2 types of cement, hydraulic cement and anhydrous cement.

When you make concrete by mixing the appropriate ingredients there is a chemical reaction that occurs that binds all the materials together to form the concrete. With a typical concrete slab this chemical process will take approximately 4 weeks to complete. Curing is the term for this. After curing, concrete will still hold a significant amount of moisture that is too much to be used as a flooring product.

Once curing has been completed, concrete continues to dry with the moisture rising to the top of the slab and evaporating away when it hit’s the surface. More moisture will replace this evaporated moisture. The drying process of concrete can take a lot of time and be affected by outside conditions such as humidity and temperature. The only way to know if a slab is ready to be used as flooring is to continually test it with a moisture meter.

In order to understand the moisture levels of concrete it is critical that you carry out accurate moisture testing. One concrete test is to test the surface but this is simply not enough when it comes to determining whether a slab is suitable to be used on flooring. A concrete slab can dry at different rates at different spots. So you also need to test within the concrete slab below the surface as well.

Moisture Meter Guide

The complete moisture meter website

The concrete moisture meter is one example out of many different models of the moisture meter. This particular instrument is highly favoured by flooring installers who need to measure moisture content in concrete flooring and slabs. The actual moisture meter has been around for decades with the wood moisture meter being the most popular and successful. The concrete moisture meter has evolved from the wood moisture meter, which was originally used by flooring contractors when this was the only option available to them.

The concrete moisture meter can be used to detect moisture content in concrete up to a depth of 1 inch. They are designed to be used as a relative test and can spot check any particular part of the surface of any concrete slab. The results that the concrete meter gives will help ascertain the best place to carry out a concrete humidity test.

There are no set ASTM standards for the use of a concrete moisture meter in determining a moisture content reading and the concrete moisture meter is affected by the concrete in different ways. The density and aggregate size of the concrete will always affect the final readings, as will the chemical content. When concrete dries as well, it dries from the top to the bottom and as the concrete moisture meter can test only the first inch of depth, which can be misleading. Another factor with concrete is that when a covering is placed over it, the moisture will equilibrate , so a relative humidity sensor has to be used to check the moisture content.

Concrete moisture content is a term you will here when you build or construct something using concrete. Concrete and concrete items are construction materials that need to be cured and dried for time before being able to be used. One tests the moisture content of moisture with a concrete moisture meter before deciding whether the concrete is a t a suitable condition for using.

Moisture content of concrete can be calculated in several ways. Any water added to concrete mix or finished concrete will provide moisture as will any moisture in the ground where concrete is poured. As the concrete goes off it will absorb moisture from the ground. Humidity will also affect the moisture content of concrete. If the humidity is low, water will need to be added to concrete and a reduction of water added is necessary in areas of high humidity. When it comes to laying the perfect concrete calculating the concrete moisture content is quite simple. You just need to calculate the ration between the concrete volume and the water weight.. You want 40 pounds of water for every cubic yard of concrete and come up with approximate levels to allow for any humidity levels in the air or ground.

Knowing the proper calculation to concrete moisture content is important if you wish to achieve a strong and sturdy concrete. By miscalculating you can end up with concrete that is weak and cracks significantly when it dries.

Moisture Meter Guide 2010 Contact details:garnett65@hotmail.com

The correct moisture level in a concrete slab will prevent any floor failure that is moisture related. To make an accurate moisture content reading of a concrete slab one requires a moisture meter, relative humidity meter and a vapour emission test kit. With all of these 3 products it is possible to make a very accurate assessment of the moisture content of any concrete slab or concrete.

First, a non intrusive moisture meter can be used to take a reading of the surface moisture of a concrete slab. This type of moisture meter will give you an instant reading and assist in your decision as to whether to begin laying a floor over the top of it. These concrete moisture meters are designed to be used on clean and dust free surfaces and are just pressed firmly against the surface and switched on.

Once you have the surface moisture content it is advisable then to test the relative humidity of the concrete slab. This can be done using a relative humidity testing kit which incorporates a moisture meter with a peg sensor kit. The majority of good brand manufacturers in the moisture meter field will manufacture these. These meters direct their attention to the inside of a concrete slab. Holes must be made in the concrete and the sensor pegs inserted.

The third and perhaps most advanced piece of equipment for testing concrete moisture is that of the moisture/thermo hygrometer. With one of these you can test the moisture content, relative humidity, temperature and dew point of the concrete slab. Each hygrometer lets you perform 4 separate tests.

Equipment For Testing Moisture Content In Concrete

When it comes to flooring the testing of the concrete slabs for moisture content and excessive moisture content is a common necessity. This is particularly so when a membrane is to be placed over the concrete slab. There are several moisture tests that can be carried out such as with the moisture meter, but it has to be remembered that no single moisture test on it’s own will fully reveal the moisture content of concrete. You cannot base a decision as to whether a floor can be laid over concrete by the results of just one test alone.

Concrete slabs are constructed with more water than is required for hydration of the cement. This means that a concrete slab will have excessive moisture in side it as it is made. Concrete slabs will take time to dry out and the excessive water will evaporate. Now the time this moisture takes to evaporate is dependent upon vapour pressure in the slab and the air.

Floor covering problems like bubbles and de-lamination are caused when an impermeable floor covering traps any excess moisture that is in a concrete slab. To avoid this is to ensure that a concrete slab reaches equilibrium level before covering it. Hence the need for the moisture meter and other moisture tests. The moisture content of a concrete slab can not be assessed by the eye or touch.. Testing a slab for moisture content is not as easy as it sounds. A slab will not have evenly distributed moisture content within it. Also any changing environment issues can result in moisture moving in or out of the concrete slab.

Any fresh concrete or concrete slabs will contain excess water even after curing and hardening. This is because preventative methods are taken to ensure that water does not evaporate during the curing method and that a proper hydration process takes place. After the curing period though the concrete needs to be dried out. Large amounts of water are given off by a new slab. When the water vapour reaches equilibrium level flooring or a sealant can be applied.

Concrete, however, remains porous after it has hardened. This means that it’s moisture content will decrease or increase depending on changing temperature and humidity conditions. A concrete slab that gives off moisture in an enclosed space is of great concern. There are 2 tests that can measure this vapour emission release. The first involves the plastic sheet method where a plastic sheet is taped to the slab. After 3 days a humidity reading can be taken under the plastic using a dew point hygrometer. The second test is the calcium chloride test which we have covered further up on this page.

Wagner C575 Concrete Moisture Meter

This moisture meter for testing concrete is a non damaging pin less version. It can be used to test concrete up to ¾ of an inch in depth. Ideally it should be used for qualitative quick scans. Features include an analog display, measuring scale of 0 - 20 and it provides relative readings.

Pin less Moisture Meter

Relative readings for concrete

Analog Display

Measurement Scale - 0 - 20

Depth of measurement- 3/4"

Non-Damaging

Here we have a moisture meter that is dual action. It can operate in a pin mode or on scan mode. So if you want a concrete moisture meter this is a very good instrument to own. You also have the capability to test wood with it as well. Versatility is the name of the game!

LCD display

Corrects for 69 wood species

Stated wood moisture range: 5% - 60% (pin mode)

Pin Mode (Invasive) measuring depth: 5/16"

RF Mode (Non Invasive) measuring depth: 3/4"

Datalogging Feature stores up to 1400 stored readings

Connector for optional external electrodes

A concrete moisture meter can be used to measure the moisture content in freshly laid or existing concrete slabs. They prove their worth especially when you are going to use sensitive finished flooring products like sheet vinyl. A product such as sheet vinyl will encapsulate the concrete surface and if the moisture content is too high then problems will emerge such as the flooring failing or adhesive issues. When looking for a concrete moisture meter you need to be aware that not all instruments are suitable for the monitoring and documentation of concrete moisture. So choose wisely.

There are a couple of types of the concrete moisture meter. They are the pin and pin less moisture meters. The pin less version will scan a concrete slab within a certain depth of the surface. They employ electromagnetic wave technology to do this. The pin less moisture meter is suitable for giving relative readings to find the best place to carry out a relative humidity test. They are not suitable to give a relative humidity test though. The pin meter for concrete works in the same way as a wood moisture meter in that it probes in to the concrete slab in order to take a reading.

To test for relative humidity requires a sensor or sensor sleeve placed in to a concrete slab in order to determine the moisture conditions within a slab.

This calcium chloride test can be used to discover the moisture vapour emission rate from concrete. How to do this test involves sealing a small dish of calcium chloride on a clean section of the concrete and sealing it under a plastic dome. What happens is that the salt will absorb any moisture and you can work out the weight gain after a 3 day period. This weight gain can be calculated in to the actual moisture emission amount. This test is demanded by many architects and adhesive manufacturers. However it must be noted that this calcium chloride test really only tests the surface conditions of the concrete.

Relative Humidity Testing Of Concrete

The only real way and the best indicator of moisture content within concrete is a relative humidity test. This involves probes. You need to drill holes in the concrete and insert probes in to them. These probes have to be allowed to equilibrate with the concrete before any readings can be trusted. The best depth to go down in to a concrete slab with these probes is about 40% of the depth of the slab. For successful drilling in to concrete we recommend the use of a sds drill. The reason for this being that it provides the best indicator of the moisture content that any flooring surface and adhesive will encounter.

Knowing about concrete and the concrete moisture content as it dries can significantly reduce the risk of having moisture related problems in the long run.

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