Dump The Damp: How To Check Your Window Moisture Content Before Repair
It is time to do an annual inspection of the timber window frames of your home. Not only do cracked frames let heat out of the home, but they can also bring moisture inside. This moisture can interact with the heat in your home to create a damp atmosphere that leads to mould and mildew growth. Since you have not attended to window repairs before, it is important you know how to find out the amount of moisture that has penetrated the cracks in your window frames. This information helps you to make a decision about whether to repair or to replace a damaged window frame.
Why Do You Need To Know Wood Moisture Content?
For a repair job to be successful, you need to remove all of the damaged wood from the window frame. When wood decays too much, it crumbles into pieces. Not only will this crumbling wood not stick to the compounds being used to repair the frame, but the decay will continue to spread through the frame if it is not completely removed.
By testing the moisture content of a window frame that is damaged, you can make the determination whether it can be repaired. Wood that has less than 20% moisture does not have any fungal growth in it, and that means it can be repaired without fear that unseen rot could do future damage.
How Do You Test Wood Moisture Content?
Measuring wood moisture involves using a timber moisture meter that you can purchase either online or at your local hardware store.
Moisture meters have prongs that can be poked into the surface level of the wood. An electrical current runs between the two prongs. The more water in the wood, the more easily the electricity will flow. Wood that is dry has a high electrical resistance reading, and this ohm is converted to a percentage which displays on the meter screen. If the percentage reading is less than 20%, you can be confident in your decision to have the timber frame repaired.
Make sure you test your wood frame in more than once place. In particular, try to get the prongs pushed deep into the cracks in the timber. This will give you a good indication of whether moisture has seeped deep into the frame to cause damage you can't see.
Once you get your timber window frame repaired or replaced, you can be confident that the heat inside your home is going to stay where it is supposed to be during the cold winter days ahead. Talk to a professional for more information about timber window repairs.