Commercial Vs. Industrial Moisture Meters: Which One?

You know you need a good moisture meter. Whether your business is woodworking, cabinetry, manufacturing, milling, or lumber production, you want to offer the highest-quality products or services and avoid moisture damage.

But as you’ve looked at Wagner’s options, you’ve noticed that we have both the Orion line of meters (commercial meters) along with our industrial meters. You may also have noticed people using different types of meters depending on their type of work.

So now, maybe you’re not quite sure which moisture meter is best for you.

The page will walk you through the key differences between the two main types offered by Wagner Meters—commercial and industrial meters—and help you make the best choice for your business. Plus, we’ll look at how one company uses these tools.

You can expect to learn about:

Let’s start with an in-depth look at Wagner’s commercial line.

Commercial Moisture Meters

Orion Moisture Meters

Orion is Wagner’s line of commercial moisture meters, best for use in woodworking, cabinetry, lutherie, and flooring.

The Orion® line is Wagner’s line of commercial moisture meters. These meters use pinless Intellisense technology, which allows you to quickly and easily scan the moisture content of wood. One model is compatible with Bluetooth®, allowing you to connect your meter to the FloorSmart™ or Woodshop MC™ apps for easy data storage and sharing.

Another feature of Orion meters is an on-demand calibrator. Rather than sending your meter back to the manufacturer for calibration, you can do it yourself in the field—in 30 seconds or less!

The Orion 950 has additional features like a temperature and humidity sensor and an EMC (equilibrium moisture content) calculator. These allow woodworkers and floor installers to know the EMC of their environment so they can compare their moisture readings to that number.

What’s more, the Orion meters all have a measurement range of 4–32%, allowing for precise measurements in the lower range—something that’s especially important in cabinetry, lutherie, other types of woodworking, and flooring.

Other specifications of Wagner’s commercial meters are:

  • A scanning plate of 2×2.5 inches
  • A flexible rubber boot
  • A protective carrying case
  • Storage capacity of 100 readings (in the Orion 940 and 950)
  • Operating temperature of 32° F to 110° F
  • ¾-inch measurements, ¼-inch measurements, or dual-depth

Because of their sleek body, quick scanning capabilities, and shallower readings, the commercial meters work well for woodworking, cabinetry, lutherie, and flooring. They’re also used in relative mode for other applications like home inspections.

Explore the Orion line now!

Industrial Moisture Meters

Use an industrial moisture meter with a stack probe to check wood moisture content of stacks of lumber in the kiln

Our industrial moisture meters (Wagners’ L620 Digital Moisture Meter and L622 Digital Recording Moisture Meter) differ from our commercial ones in that they meet industrial-grade specifications and are designed for rugged use at sawmills and in kilns.

The industrial moisture meters are larger than the commercial ones and have an ergonomic handle, making it easy to take pinless readings of large quantities of wood. They also have a bigger scanner plate (2.5×2.5 inches) and take deeper readings.

One of the industrial meters, the L622, attaches to a stack probe for measuring between stacks of stickered wood. Together, they can function in kiln environments (even up to 200° F!) for a short time as measurements are being taken.

Finally, industrial meters have much more data storage. The L620 can store 500 readings, and the L622, over 5,000 readings! Plus, the L622 works with PC-based reporting software.

So, if you’re in the forest industry and you process and dry large amounts of lumber, the industrial moisture meter is the best option for you.

The Experience of Kasters Kustom Cutting

Kasters Kustom Cutting, Inc., is a mill based out of Mulino, Oregon, run by Kevin Kaster and his two sons, Daniel and Stephen. They purchase logs, mill them, and dry them for custom lumber products, live edge slabs, and custom beams. They’ve even milled wood used in the Portland airport and a suite in the Seattle Seahawks football stadium.

Moisture measurement is a major part of the high-quality lumber the Kasters provide their clients. In fact, they use both an industrial handheld meter and a commercial meter for their work.

Here’s how.

The industrial meter, combined with the stack probe, is their main meter during the kiln drying process. The stack probe helps them get truer readings by allowing them to measure in the middle of the stack rather than only on the outside.

Daniel shares,

“Especially with slabs, we need to make sure the centers are as dry as the outside. So, that stack probe really works versus trying to use just a handheld meter.”

The industrial meter with the stack probe is durable enough to handle the kiln environment. It isn’t affected by a little moisture.

“At the mill, things get beat up… You want something that’s going to last you if you’re buying a unit like this that’s a little bit of money. You want a unit you’re going to be able to keep for a few years and not be replacing every so often,” says Kevin.

The commercial meter comes in handy later in the process when it’s time to sell the wood. The Kasters often grab the Orion meter—rather than the larger industrial meter—when a customer wants to verify the moisture content of the wood they’re purchasing.

Within seconds, the Kasters can provide readings for the customer, giving them peace of mind about the quality of wood they’re purchasing. This way, the customers “know they can take it home and work on it today, if they want to.” And that’s helped the Kasters maintain their good reputation in the industry.

With Kasters Kustom Cutting, it’s been beneficial to have both a commercial and industrial moisture meter for different purposes in their work. So, which meter will work best for your business?

 

The team at Kasters Kustom Cutting talks about the difference the Orion 930 has made in their work.

How to Know Which Moisture Meter Is Best for You

As we’ve seen, Wagner’s commercial and industrial moisture meters are both highly accurate and useful in many contexts. Your purpose will determine which one is best for you.

The commercial meter is ideal for businesses that focus on making final products out of wood—think flooring, furniture making, or cabinetry. Industrial moisture meters, because of their ruggedness, are great for use earlier in the lumber preparation process—during milling or kiln drying.

Here are some factors to consider:

Quantities you’ll be measuring

If you go through large amounts of wood in one go, or you need to measure moisture in a stack, choose the industrial meter with its ergonomic handle and stack probe option.

If you’re measuring one item or small amounts of wood at a time, such as the materials for a chair you’re building, a commercial moisture meter will do.

Depth of readings needed

Determine what depth of wood you’ll need to measure. Are you measuring thinner pieces of wood?

Then the dual-depth measurements of a commercial meter may be better than the deeper readings of the industrial meter.

Storage

Do you need to be able to store large amounts of readings in the meter? An industrial meter will better allow you to do that.

As noted, some of the Orion meters (the 940 and the 950) do store readings, but only up to 100, as opposed to 500+ in the industrial meters. A caveat to this is that the Orion 950 connects to a smartphone app, where you can save additional readings and make reports.

Aside from greater storage space, the L622 meter is also compatible with Stat Pack for Windows®, a powerful software for storing, recalling, and analyzing moisture data from the meter.

Durability

For industrial environments like sawmills, you’ll want the industrial meter and stack probe, which can handle the rugged environment and the heat in a kiln.

Budget

The industrial meters, because of their design and features for sawmills and kilns, tend to be more expensive than the commercial meters. If you run a big operation and plan to measure large quantities of wood or use the meter in a kiln, then the price is absolutely worth it.

But if you have a smaller business and don’t need the features of the larger industrial meter, then the smaller commercial meters are likely the best option for you.

Or you may choose to use a combination, as Kasters Kustom Cutting does, and get the best of both worlds.

Making the Choice

Wagner’s commercial and industrial meters both offer the highest levels of accuracy while meeting the varying needs of different wood businesses.

To summarize, if you have a sawmill or lumber drying operation, we recommend an industrial moisture meter like the L622. If you’re a wood floor installer, woodworker, luthier, or home inspector, choose a commercial moisture meter.

Still unsure of what’s best for your business? Email us at info@WagnerMeters.com or give us a call at 877-407-2280. We’d love to help you find the right tool for your purposes.

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