Moisture meters.... Any builders on MOL? Have Q's on the readings.

[gb387]

I have posted this on a couple other boards but here goes......

Moisture meters.... anyone know anything about them?

I have had a leak in my garage (town house) for 2-3 years now and fighting the builder to fix the problem.... They now have a game plan to get it fixed this week. They brought a moisture meter in (Wagner MMC 220 Extended Range Meter) and said there was "normal" moisture in the wall (4.0-4.8). my question is will the meter only detect moisture in the dry wall? or will it detect it in the insulation as well, below the vapor barrier? There is 2 layers of drywall on the wall they are testing I would say its 1-1.5 inches of drywall.

One a side not we tested some drywall in a spare bedroom and it said 0.0 any help would be great.

[the other pc]

The "Extended Range" aspect of the Wagner MMC 220 Extended Range Moisture Meter is the range of different wood species it can accommodate (with a programmable compensation factor), not the depth of measurement.

Both the MMC 220 and the "standard range" MMC 210 Digital Proline Moisture Meter have the same measurement depth specification of 3/4".

With 1" to 1.5" of drywall I can't imagine the meter would register anything meaningful beyond it.

I'm not a specialist in leak detection but as I understand it moisture measurement can give a general idea of the leakage area if it's near the surface (wetness travels for a distance) but getting more specific may take acoustic tracking and/or demolition/direct inspection.


PC.

[rusty bumper]

I would talk to a building inspector and get his opinion on the matter, that is if you haven't done so already.

[gb387]

Originally posted by Rusty Bumper
I would talk to a building inspector and get his opinion on the matter, that is if you haven't done so already.

I have not... good idea! I might be able to round someone up at work.

[gb387]

Originally posted by the other pc
The "Extended Range" aspect of the Wagner MMC 220 Extended Range Moisture Meter is the range of different wood species it can accommodate (with a programmable compensation factor), not the depth of measurement.

Both the MMC 220 and the "standard range" MMC 210 Digital Proline Moisture Meter have the same measurement depth specification of 3/4".

With 1" to 1.5" of drywall I can't imagine the meter would register anything meaningful beyond it.

I'm not a specialist in leak detection but as I understand it moisture measurement can give a general idea of the leakage area if it's near the surface (wetness travels for a distance) but getting more specific may take acoustic tracking and/or demolition/direct inspection.


PC.

I am also going to call the builder back and see if they will remove the outer plywood rather than the drywall, they are going to be removing all the siding anyway and adding house new wrap/water proofing and so on... then go from there, its a finished garage inside and I don't want it messed with if they don't have to.