Moisture performance testing of wood – Practical experiences

IRG/WP 14-20546

L Meyer, C Brischke, M Kasselmann, C Rösmann

Different methods are used to characterize the moisture performance of wood and to quantify the effect of moisture loads on the resulting service life. These methods can be divided into direct and indirect methods. Furthermore they can be distinguished by characteristics like continuous or periodical measurements and measuring local or global moisture content (MC). Furthermore each measuring method has certain peculiarities that need consideration when designing a test set up and conducting MC measurements in the field. Therefore this paper gives reports on practical experience with measuring and monitoring wood MC to determine the moisture performance of wood under lab and field conditions. It is composed of results from different studies that have been conducted during the last 4 years. The aim was to enhance the understanding of factors influencing gravimetric and resistance based MC measurements. The results of the different studies pointed on the potential of moisture monitoring to serve for an improved interpretation of field test data. However, they also highlighted the need for considering several significant factors.


Keywords: Field tests, moisture performance, moisture uptake, durability testing, resistance based measurements

Conference: 14-05-11/15 St George, Utah, USA


Download document (1.4 Mb)
free for the members of IRG. Available if purchased.

Purchase this document