Picture two bottles of wine.
Though the dark green bottles have fancy labels and foil capsules covering the top, there’s a big difference between the two wines: the cost.
One is a vintage champagne from France’s Champagne region that goes for $50 a glass. The other? A mass-produced cheap sparkling wine that sells for less than $10 a bottle.
The reason for the price gap makes sense when you go beyond appearances. The more expensive bottle is made using fine ingredients and age-old vinification techniques to produce a top-shelf product. The other is a cheap wine that was carbonated to emulate effervescence and sophistication.
This example is one of many you’ll encounter in everyday life – there are plenty of expensive products with a … more cost-effective counterpart. However, perceived savings in choosing the more wallet-friendly option doesn’t mean you’re getting a great deal. Often, cheaper products require sacrificing quality, performance, or longevity.
The story is much the same with professional-grade restoration moisture meters (which cost several hundred dollars) and meters that are easy on the wallet.
Despite its higher up-front costs, buying a professional moisture meter shouldn’t be seen as a major expense. Though it is, adding a professional moisture meter is an investment in a device that’s made to last for a long time and deliver consistent results.
What Drives a Professional Moisture Meter’s Cost?
To put it plainly, professional moisture meters are an expensive piece of equipment. However, for the flood damage restoration professional, they’re a necessary tool. Professional-grade moisture meters simply outperform and outlast their bargain basket competition on several important fronts – all of which contribute to their higher price tag:
- Longevity
- Accuracy
- Repeatability
- Functionality
- Reliability
1. Longevity
A durable measuring device, professional moisture meters are designed to last. They can withstand being dropped on a hard surface, say a concrete floor, or most other hard impacts without breaking.
A professional moisture meter lasts for decades when properly maintained and kept in a protective case when not in use. It’s not uncommon for flood damage restoration professionals to use one commercial-grade moisture meter for the majority of their careers.
2. Accuracy
Made with highly reactive sensor technology, professional meters – be it a pin-type moisture meter or pinless moisture meter – are designed to detect even the slightest amount of moisture. Additionally, their readings are truly representative of moisture content and moisture presence across a wide variety of materials, whether you’re using the device as a:
- Moisture meter for drywall
- Moisture meter for concrete
- Moisture meter for wood
In addition, the best professional moisture meters are made to take accurate readings without needing frequent calibration.
3. Repeatability
Next to accurate readings, there’s nothing more important in a flood or water damage inspection than being able to verify your results. Often, verification starts and stops with taking a second measurement of the same material and comparing results.
Because of their high level of accuracy, professional moisture meters take readings that you can use with confidence to double- or triple-check survey results. When multiple measurements of the same material don’t sync up, further investigation is required to determine the cause – be it a meter malfunction or another external factor
4. Functionality
The professional moisture meters of today are not simple devices. Rather, they are complex measurement instruments that boast a host of functions all meant to work with the user and take definitive readings.
More often than not, professional moisture meters like an all-in-one- digital moisture meter used in restoration:
- Take multiple types of readings (e.g. wood moisture equivalent, equilibrium moisture content, humidity & temperature measurements)
- Store data
- Have intuitive interfaces
- Are customizable
- Integrate with accessories
- Have Bluetooth capability
This additional functionality makes the meter a much more versatile device, allowing a flood damage restoration professional to consolidate their toolkit.
5. Reliability
Their longevity, accuracy, repeatability, and functionality make professional moisture meters dependable tools. Cheaper moisture meters often have limited functionality and are prone to short useful lives. Having a professional moisture meter on your toolbelt allows you to walk onto a job site with confidence the device will do what it’s supposed to when it’s supposed to.
The High Cost of Not Investing in a Professional Moisture Meter
As tempting as it may be to forego spending money on a professional moisture meter, investing in a cheap meter comes at a price. That approach ultimately ends up costing more money in the long run.
Economically priced moisture meters aren’t manufactured to the same quality – one significant impact usually means buying a replacement or spending time troubleshooting inaccurate measurements. Nor do they offer the same level of functionality and adaptability – meeting the demand of an inspection with a cheap meter usually involves investing in other tools to take the same readings as a professional meter. What’s more, time spent addressing the meter’s issues is time wasted.
While you might spend $20-$50 initially on a low-cost meter, you may end up spending that amount many times over through the duration of a career on replacements or other tools and wasting time during an inspection.
In the end, a cheap moisture meter’s total cost of ownership likely surpasses what it costs to purchase a professional moisture meter.
Professional Moisture Meters: Money Well Spent
Despite a higher price tag, a professional moisture meter proves its ROI time and time again. With a long lifespan, high accuracy, versatility, and reliability investing in a professional moisture meter
Even using the best cheap moisture meter is a poor investment and no different than purchasing the second-least expensive bottle of wine – it’s just not the same as a professional moisture meter.
Find Your Professional Moisture Meter
Browse our catalog of moisture meters by application or function:
