Shoutout to the guy who told me to check lumber moisture content

Sorry about the double body, here's the corrected one: I was building a deck last month and assumed the pressure-treated wood from the big box store was dry enough. Turns out the moisture meter read 24% on the first board, which explains why every screw hole cracked after two days. Who else has had store lumber ruin their build timeline?

2 comments

2 Comments

elliotjenkins1mo ago

You mentioned the moisture meter reading 24% and that explains a lot, but here's something most folks skip - check the moisture of the boards in the middle of the pile, not just the top ones. The outer boards dry faster, so you might be grabbing stuff that's still wet in the core and getting cracks later. Your mileage may vary, but I always pull from the middle and let them sit a few days before cutting.

wendygrant1mo ago

Is it really that big of a deal though? I mean, yeah, moisture is important, but I've been using wood from the outside of the pile for years and maybe had one or two boards crack on me. Most of the time it's fine as long as you let it acclimate in your shop for a bit before you cut into it. And honestly, if you're working with bigger pieces, by the time you've sized them down the core moisture evens out anyway. I just think people get too caught up in perfect numbers and forget that wood moves no matter what you do. Plus, who has the time to pull boards from the middle of a stack and wait a few extra days? I want to get to the project, not babysit lumber.