Moisture Testing for Flooring

[Jon Scanlan]

I thought hygrometers had been updated and other types of moisture were now "approved" or are the sales people telling lies? As I have been out of the Association thing for a long time I am not up with the play. I can't remember what was recommended at those Moisture Seminars that the ITO put on. I know they had various types of meters there

[FYI FLoors]

Hi Jon,

The standards refer only to hygrometers being the best form of testing and have some reference to what the US calls Hood Testing using your humidity sticks/probes. It's this reference that some have read as endorsing the in situ testing but it reads and refers to capturing the humidity at the surface of the slab not 45mm in the slab.

The NFA and there moisture seminars only endorse Hygrometer testing as they adhere to the standards but Kevin highlights the other instruments and there bennefits to familiarise the trade with them.

Thanks heaps for all the links etc, I'll get some downtime tomorrow so I'll be able to do some browsing and read all the posts on this thread to see what the experts do in the US.

TC

[FYI FLoors]

Hi, I have uploaded some photo's of the hygrometers we use, do you have these over there? We seal them to the floor using plumbers putty and leave them for a minimum of 16hrs and maximium of 24Hrs. We also have to read them before 10.30am in the morning.

[hookknife]

Very interesting, so how does it work???? plummers putty around the edge????

[FYI FLoors]

hookknife said Very interesting, so how does it work???? plummers putty around the edge????

You roll the putty into a snake then attach it to the bottom around the perimeter so the two ends meet then firmly push it onto the clean concrete floor. It captures the vapour emmisions in the space provided underneath and after its reached equalibrium 16 - 24hrs you get a reading.

I am not highly confident in these and placement is very important (no heat source/windows etc), underfloor heating turned off for set periods, curing compounds/treatments ground off etc. Hence I use the MMS Protimeter in-situ system as well (it's the only insitu system available in NZ)

Now you see what I have to work with!!!!! Fantastic isn't it??? FYI Floors has only been running for 3 months carrying out independent moisture testing as thats as far as I can push it at the moment however I have big ambitions and would love to use your technology and branch into floor inspecting but all this independent stuff is new to market over here and is a hard sell.

I would love to hear what the flooring inspectors use in the US if there willing to share.....

[Lo Down]

FYI FLoors said You roll the putty into a snake then attach it to the bottom around the perimeter so the two ends meet then firmly push it onto the clean concrete floor. It captures the vapour emmisions in the space provided underneath and after its reached equalibrium 16 - 24hrs you get a reading. I am not highly confident in these and placement is very important (no heat source/windows etc), underfloor heating turned off for set periods, curing compounds/treatments ground off etc. Hence I use the MMS Protimeter in-situ system as well (it's the only insitu system available in NZ) Now you see what I have to work with!!!!! Fantastic isn't it??? FYI Floors has only been running for 3 months carrying out independent moisture testing as thats as far as I can push it at the moment however I have big ambitions and would love to use your technology and branch into floor inspecting but all this independent stuff is new to market over here and is a hard sell. I would love to hear what the flooring inspectors use in the US if there willing to share.....

I think that I saw one of those same test kits in 1962........... or had I simply knocked dad's barometer off the wall?

I'm bein silly of course, but i know what you are showing definitely has some use, but not sure how it compares to a CC test or an insitu test. Looks more of a basic testing procedure..............
IE: no decimal points for accuracy.

[FYI FLoors]

It is pretty much a basic hair hygrometer that someone has incased. You can buy the hygrometers for your cigar boxes and some people use them for there guitars(?)

Funny thing is they are real basic but they have stood the test and not many floors that they have tested with them have failed (used properly)

Not my favourite meter but they have a use. The thing is there is not many new slabs in NZ that aren't wet, however the GC wants us to prove it anyway.

They generally read 5% lower than in-situ tests, and as these meters have been the norm for many they dont trust the in-situ that reads higher. It may also have something to do with people selling in-situ systems also sell the membrane/barrier products.

[Peter Kodner]

It would seem a data logger under a sealed dome would provide close to the same info and look somewhat more professional. I would gather you should get results in line with the hood test FYI mentioned before. The benefit of using a logger would be to make the test dynamic instead of static, i.e. showing change over a period of time versus a single snapshot of what is happening.

[Jon Scanlan]

Hook who tested this floor before I got there? Old building below ground level and I would doubt if there is a damp proof course under the concrete. Soon as I saw it when I went to lift the vinyl I thought could be problems? Why didn't the salesman even think to do a moisture test? Even though the old vinyl was stuck to the smoothing compound when I lifted it it pulled the matrix off the floor and the concrete was pretty porous. The old vinyl looked okay though. It was a case of run Jon run