Simple and accurate temperature correction for moisture pin calibrations in oriented strand board

Oriented strand board (OSB) is commonly used in the residential construction market in North America and its moisture-related durability is a critical consideration for building envelope design. Measurement of OSB moisture content (MC), a key determinant of durability, is often done using moisture pins and relies on a correlation between MC and the electrical resistance (R) of the OSB between the pins. Early work on these correlations focused on solid lumber and recent correlations for engineered wood products lack data regarding the temperature effects on R. We provide data on 1001 resistance measurements in OSB, sourced from three different locations, over a wide temperature (−17 °C-70 °C) and relative humidity (35%-95%) range. This data, in conjunction with gravimetric MC readings, is used to test existing correlations and support a new simple, accurate formula for calculating MC from resistance and temperature measurements in OSB.