Even a cheap wood moisture meter should be useful for sorting out the drier pieces to start gassing with and setting aside the not-so-dry to put on top of the burn. Just think of it as a device to compare moisture contents rather than to measure them. If you have to burn what you have it doesn't matter what the moisture content is. You just need to know which pieces are drier than others.
Howsoever, consistency is important. Moisture meters will read differently according to temperature, species and orientation of the pins to the grain direction of the wood(if you're using the pin type and not the magic wand type). That is my understanding of the 4-pin meters, that they will average the reading parallel to the grain and across the grain. Just try pushing 4 pins into fairly dry white oak! End grain is the fastest drying part of the stick so readings there are the least representative of what's inside but it might still give accurate comparison readings.
Any data heads out there done any comparison sampling of end grain vs. inside measurements? Is there a usefully consistent ratio? I have one of those fancy Delmhorsts but I have to confess I've never used it on firewood.
Howsoever, consistency is important. Moisture meters will read differently according to temperature, species and orientation of the pins to the grain direction of the wood(if you're using the pin type and not the magic wand type). That is my understanding of the 4-pin meters, that they will average the reading parallel to the grain and across the grain. Just try pushing 4 pins into fairly dry white oak! End grain is the fastest drying part of the stick so readings there are the least representative of what's inside but it might still give accurate comparison readings.
Any data heads out there done any comparison sampling of end grain vs. inside measurements? Is there a usefully consistent ratio? I have one of those fancy Delmhorsts but I have to confess I've never used it on firewood.
