Just Got a Moisture Meter. Some initial numbers

[PAHuntAndEat]

Since i will be harvesting my own wood for my #1 i bought a moisture meter.

I measured the hickory wood that came with my #1. It measured 3%. The wood itself has a good smell to it.

I then measured hickory wood chunks from a big box store. 0% moisture and in some places it would bounce for 0% to 1%.  The wood is completely odor less.

i measured mesquite wood chips from same store and same brand. 0% moisture and no odor.

Last measurement was from a "green" white oak tree that was cut down to in the spring but never split. two weeks ago i cut a few logs and used a table saw to cut to smoking size. Moisture meter reads 20% on those pieces. Strong smell from these pieces.

I found this all interesting and thought others might too. Not sure if this is always true but if the wood has zero odor to it, it may be completely moisture free and probably not the best wood for smoking. I should have listen to u guys and avoided the big box store wood chips and chunks. Lesson learned.

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[old sarge]

Real late getting to this section. Good info Dee.

[LarryD]

Is there any reason to not just soak the wood chunks to raise their moisture?

[SuperDave]

Is there any reason to not just soak the wood chunks to raise their moisture?

Better question is whether it is important to raise the moisture at all.  To me, smoke is smoke as long as you can control combustion.  I have 0 complaints with 0 moisture wood. 

[Meatball]

What kind of meter did you purchase? I am looking to purchase one and looking for input . Thank you!

[wehill]

Is there any reason to not just soak the wood chunks to raise their moisture?

There are several factors that impact the moisture content of wood.  Relative Humidity where the wood is stored/located is the most important  factor.  Temperature also has an impact, but not nearly as great as humidity.

Essentially, like most water absorbing materials, the moisture content of wood is directly related to the relative humidity.  The following illustrates the relationship between wood moisture content and the relative humidity of the environment where the wood is located.  The "EMC" is the equilibrium moisture content of wood. 

0% RH = 0% MC = 0% EMC
30% RH = 6% MC = 6% EMC
50% RH = 9% MC = 9% EMC
65% RH = 12% MC = 12% EMC
80% RH = 16% MC = 16% EMC
99% RH = 28% MC

I've soaked wood chunks, wood chips and saw dust on a few occasions.  You have to soak wood chunks for a long time to do much good.  Sawdust absorbs water fairly fast.  The thicker the piece of wood the longer it takes to absorb sufficient water to impact the moisture content of the whole chunk of wood.

I don't think soaking bigger wood chunks is worth the effort.  Moisture content is really only important when it comes to burning it. 

[JustChillin]

Forget the smoking. I checked out your photos and they are spectacular. We have a trip planned to Sedona, Grand Canyon, Bryce, Zion, and end up in Yosemite. Hopefully we can come home with some special shots.

[wehill]

Forget the smoking. I checked out your photos and they are spectacular. We have a trip planned to Sedona, Grand Canyon, Bryce, Zion, and end up in Yosemite. Hopefully we can come home with some special shots.

When are you going to Bryce and Zion? 

We have spent quite a bit of time there as well as many other spots in that general area.  If you looked at the gallery I linked above, the photos are from Canyonlands and Arches National Parks, also Dead Horse Canyon State Park that is right next to Canyonlands.  Monument Valley is also in the general area, not all that far from Moab.  For photography, I much prefer Canyonlands and Arches over Bryce and Zion.  There is lots to see in all of these National Parks.  Some of those photos were taken at the North Rim of the Grand Canyon.  I'm not a fan of the Grand Canyon.  We also love the Page, Arizona area.  We have spent lots of money on guides in the Antelope Canyons. 

The Mesa Arch photos took the better part of four trips.  You have to be there by 4:00 am to get close the right spot.  Then you have a long waiting time for the sun to come up and hope you get the right kind of cloud cover to get the best shots.  I don't like to brag, but I haven't seen other photos of Mesa Arches with a better sunburst. 

If you looked at some of the other galleries, you will see that we have spent lots of time in Yellowstone NP and Alaska.  We are in the process of planning another trip to Yellowstone in early May.  We will also spend 10 days or so up in Glacier National Park.