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I'm finding I would like to be able to check some wood for moisture content, and thought I might invest in a moisture meter. There is a lot to learn! I am finding, though, that the price range I was considering ($60-100) has models recommended in some places, and completely trashed elsewhere (mostly for inaccuracy). It seems that you don't really get good performance until you spend at least twice that much, probably more. And some reviews say some models apparently do not work on "exotic" woods. (I see the Lignomat line has some models with lists of woods covered.) Does anyone have any recommendations, or models to avoid? On my budget, I may be forced to look for one to borrow . . . Bruce W.

I don't use one
you know your wood is ready when you lay it flat and it doesn't cup.
There are good moisture meters out there.
Know that you won't get air dried much lower than 10% kiln dried much lower.

I got a Lignomat on sale at Rockler a few years ago. Works good but the wood species list doesn't have some of the woods I cut up. I have dried some Manzanita burl slices down to 9% but its been a real dry winter here on the left coast.

I have had the mini-Lignomat for many years. Tested it against bigger units with longer probes. Reads very similar results. Yes, it does not have all the species on it's info list, but I don't think that matters. The no probe meters have always looked interesting, but never tried one. Like John said, if you have your wood stored in a dry environment, and it stays flat without weight on top, you're probably good to go. Big mistake that many beginning builders do is to order their wood at the last minute. No matter what source you get your wood from, you want to get it way before you plan to use it to make sure it is dry and acclimatizes to your environment.-Bob

Thanks for the helpful comments, especially about the Lignomat. It seems to have good reviews (and fewer strongly negative reviews). I am probably fine with the pin type. I think the limited list of species can be adapted somewhat with a little research. And I like that it is made in North America. One interesting thing I read when looking into this is that the pinless type sometimes will not read accurately if the wood surface is not very smooth. I just had a small log milled of Sweet Cherry (Prunus avium) that had volunteered in our yard. It was cut down over three years ago, ends painted, and kept in a dry shed, but the sawyer said it still measured over 50%, which amazed me. It's now 1" boards and I want to see how long it takes to dry (in my garage).

I have wood for up to 15 years
I seldom use wood that is less than 2 years on my shelf.

tippie53 wrote: ↑Sat Apr 23, 2022 5:06 pm I have wood for up to 15 years
I seldom use wood that is less than 2 years on my shelf.

I'm finally to the point that I can say the same thing (2+ years in-shop) It takes a long time to get enough wood to stay in-shop for 2+ years. I stick a piece of tape on wood when it comes in, and I label type, month, and year.

Since I sell wood sometimes, a lot of builders ask me how long the wood I have has been dried. Without measuring the moisture content, length of time you've had the wood is fairly irrelevant. Wood cut into sets and stickered in dehumidification dries fast. I still have cants of Western Red Cedar that I split out of trees in the North Cascades in the 1970's. Those cant's moisture is still at 30+ %. I guess that if you live in Arizona, you can just figure your wood is dry after a certain amount of time, everywhere else you'll never know unless you actually measure it with a meter.-Bob

Well, it seems that location has a lot of bearing. I did buy a Lignomat which came on sale at one place, a pin type. I checked the cherry boards I had just had cut, and was told were at 50% moisture content, and the new meter read 12%. I checked this with other pieces of wood that have been in the garage for years and the results were comparable. As I said earlier, I read that the pinless meters are not accurate on rough lumber, and I found a significant difference between results from the two types. In any event, here on Vancouver Island, as winter transitioned to a cool wet spring, my wood was at 12% (now more like 11%) in a scarcely-heated garage. I do feel that I have a better idea what's going on inside these boards . . . Bruce W.