The document discusses concrete moisture testing and the importance of testing concrete moisture levels before installing flooring. It notes that fast track construction and adaptive reuse of old buildings often leads to flooring failures later due to excess moisture in the concrete. Proactively testing the concrete moisture level can help prevent costly repairs from moisture-related flooring failures, estimated at $1-2 million per week. The company Reliant Testing Engineers provides calcium chloride testing services to test concrete moisture levels according to industry standards.

1. Concrete Moisture Testing
(aka Vapor Emission Testing)
Because Quality Is Key To Success…….
Reliant Testing Engineers, Inc.
Is it bad concrete or bad adhesive?...
Although both concrete and adhesives have changed over
the years, the most probable answer to concrete adhesive
failures today are Fast Track Construction and Adaptive
Re-use.
Let's face it, buildings are constructed a lot faster than they used to be. Flooring is often installed over
concrete that is not yet dry or before the HVAC System is operational, which can lead to problems later
when the excess water vapor in the concrete is drawn upward by the dry conditioned air. Too often a
decision to install floor coverings or coatings is based upon the simple demand to meet a schedule. If a
concrete substrate has a moisture vapor emission level in excess of that which can be tolerated by the
flooring material, the losses are rarely limited to the flooring itself. To com-
pound an already costly situation, the need to vacate a floor after move-in,
while repairs are made, can be extremely inconvenient and drive the cost of
repairs even higher.
More often designers are changing older spaces that were once intended to
be used for warehouses into shops, lofts and offices. This design is known
as “adaptive re-use”. These older buildings are frequently designed without
a moisture vapor barrier due to no intended floor covering. Calcium Chloride Dome Test
$1 Million to $2 Million a Proactively testing the concrete prior to the installation of flooring may
week cost…... prevent the considerable losses attributed to moisture related floor cover-
ing failure.
Failure of moisture-sensitive
floor coverings placed on concrete The staff at Reliant Testing Engineers is trained in the
floors continues to be a major proper use of Calcium Chloride Moisture Testing methods
issue in the concrete, flooring, and can assist you in your concrete floors and decks mois-
and construction industries with ture testing needs.
an estimated cost of remediation
on the order of $1 Million - $2 All testing and reporting is conducted in conformance with the project
Million per week. plans, specifications and ASTM E-1907-04 and ASTM F 1869.
Reliant Testing Engineers, Inc.
3035 South Harbor Boulevard Phone: 714-556-5867
Santa Ana, CA 92704 Fax: 714-556-5868