Moisture content
Also called MC
The proportion of water in wood or in a subfloor, measured before installation and used to decide whether the two are compatible.
Both the subfloor and the flooring material have a moisture content, and both must be measured. Testing only the subfloor measures half the system: every board arrives with its own moisture history.
Testing happens twice — at the free estimate, and again immediately before installation. Conditions change between quoting and installing, and a single reading months earlier describes a building that no longer exists.
Related
Terms this one depends on
- Moisture differentialThe difference between the moisture content of the flooring material and that of the subfloor, which must sit inside an acceptable range before installation.
- AcclimationThe period during which flooring material equalises to the conditions of the room it will be installed in — a minimum of 72 hours, in the actual conditioned space.
- SubfloorWhat the finished floor is installed onto — plywood over joists, a concrete slab, or a radiant assembly — and the thing that determines the installation method.
- CuppingA board whose edges sit higher than its centre — the visible record of moisture entering the floor from below.
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