Water has the power to be extremely destructive. Rain storms and floods bring devastation, but a little bit of water where you don’t want it in your home can also be extremely damaging. If your subfloor has too much moisture when you lay new flooring, the end result will be a mess. Flooring manufacturers understand this very well. If you’re a flooring installer or you want to guarantee the warranty on your flooring will be honored by the manufacturer, moisture testing your subfloor is a must.
The Moisture Problem
Different flooring materials react differently if the subfloor is too wet, but what can go wrong? As it turns out, a lot.
With tile floors, moisture can break down the adhesive that secures the tiles to the floor. This results in loose tiles and, too often, mildew or mold growth beneath. Laminate and vinyl flooring often “float” above the subfloor, which means moisture cannot damage the adhesive, but it can damage the composition of the flooring or its finish.
Water is the enemy of hardwood floors. Wood warps, cups, or buckles when exposed to moisture which creates bumpy and often discolored surfaces that have to be replaced.
Perform Moisture Testing to Protect Your Floors
If you don’t want water damaged flooring, there is a solution. Test for moisture before you install the flooring to make sure the moisture levels are at the level the manufacturer requires. If the subfloor is too wet, it can be dried out using fans or dehumidifiers.
If the floor is not tested and its moisture level documented, the warranty on the flooring will very likely be nullified. Manufacturers require this because they have had to replace hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of flooring over the years since the EPA restricted the content of organic solvents in flooring adhesives. If you install flooring professionally or want to install your own flooring, you will want to do the job correctly to make sure the warranty will not be voided. Every flooring manufacturer has its own warranty terms with specific conditions that must be met and documented with written verification.
If you want to successfully install flooring or become an inspector of warranty work, Bond Products now offers two moisture testing products, the Tramex Moisture Meters kits.
The first kit is the Ultimate Concrete Moisture Test Kit. It measures the moisture content, relative humidity, and dew point of concrete floors and slabs. It contains the following:
- Concrete Moisture Encounter X5 -CMEX5
- Moisture Encounter 5 – ME5
- Free app available for android and iOS (phone not included)
- Feedback Datalogger – DL-RHTX
- 3 x Hygro-i2 Relative Humidity Probe
- Heavy-duty Pin-type electrode
- Hammer-action pin-type electrode
- Infrared Thermometer
- Calibration Check Salt
- Hole liners
- Extension handle
The second kit is a smaller collection of tools, the Compact Concrete Moisture Test Kit. This kit is capable of measuring the relative humidity and moisture content of concrete and wood flooring. It contains:
- Concrete Moisture Encounter X5 – CMEX5
- Free app available for Android and iOS (phone not included)
- 1 x Hygro-i2 Relative Humidity probe
- Heavy-duty Pin-type Wood probe
- Hole liner
If you have questions about which moisture testing kit would work best for your flooring installation needs and budget, call us at 1-888-800-BOND. We will be happy to talk to you and make a recommendation. Don’t wait until you have a flooring failure, get your moisture testing kit, and start using it on your next job!
