Brennenstuhl Moisture Detector MD (Moisture Meter/Moisture Meter for Wood or Building Materials, with LCD Display)

This is a straightforward tool to use. As a keen DIY-er, I've found it ideal because it confirms whether my wall is damp or not. I don't need to rely on some possibly dodgy tradesman who wants to damp-proof my walls whether they need it or not. There is a lot of conflicting information on the internet about damp in walls, and how to measure it. In practice, it's easy to see if your wall is damp, or to feel for damp with the back of your hand. This little device just confirms what you've seen and felt. Don't get obsessed about the exact number on the readout. I've attached some photos showing the device in use on a damp patch of wall and a dry section.Takes a 9v oblong battery, which is not included.Good Points:Cheap to buy;Easy to read the digital screen;It tells you whether the wall is damp or not. I think that the reading is probably accurate if you stick it into your wall firmly enough, but you don't really need detailed accuracy. You just want to know is it damp? Yes or no?Not so good points:Doesn't come with a case. These days, a lot of the Chinese produced electrical items come with some sort of carry case so rightly or wrongly, I'm starting to expect one. I just keep mine in the cardboard box it came in.;The plastic feels a bit flimsy. It'll last for the DIY customer, but I think it would fall apart if it was in daily use by a builder.Conclusion:A great buy if you're just curious about the damp patch on your wall or a keen DIY-er.

As a budding property developer I wanted a moisture detector to be able to identify areas of damp. So far it's proved to be very able and has accurately identified damp areas in several properties even when no visible signs of damp were present. It's easy to use, the soft grips at the side help when inserting the probes into stubborn or hard plaster, and it seems to give consistant readings. I like the lock reading button and the audible output. The display is sometimes hard to read but the lock button overcomes it. The only niggle I have is that the audible tone on/off is on the same button as the lock hold & in true germanic fashion you have to be quite precise about the time you hold the button or you tend to get the wrong option. Not always easy when measuring hard to reach areas. It looks the part though & seems to be reasonably robust. I'd give it 4.5 if I could & if I dropped it off a high building, I'd buy the same again as a replacement.

Recently bought this to test for damp against some walls in a house we recently moved into where the paint appeared to have bubbled/flaked a some point. No damp reported fortunately. I even tested the device by wetting a surface (porous wood) , leaving it to dry slightly, then using the tester - worked great.Pros1. It works really fast, you only need to touch the surface for a brief amount of time to get a reading2. It's really well made, far better than I thought it would be. It feels much more expensive than the price tag.3. It self-tests when you turn it on to make sure it's reading OK before you use it.4. Can be used to test plaster, wood, masonry, soil - quite a lot of things. It has distinct settings for specific types of surfaces to test.Cons1. Packaging could be easier to open as it's in a plastic blister pack. Time for scissors.2. The plastic lid that protects the probes is really hard to get off, initially I even wondered if I was 'doing it right'. You just have to pull, really really hard. That said, there's no real risk of the lid popping off when in storage or chucked in a tool box.In honesty, I've been tempted to buy one of these in the past but they're usually much much more expensive, this is a fantastic tool and it helps keep your mind at rest about any potential damp spots in your property (or a property you might be looking to buy).

Just got mine and haven't tried it yet but as others have said, a drawback is that the instructions are in German only. To assist other users here, I've located the maker's site where the multi language instructions can be found:http://www.brennenstuhl.com/index.php?module=products_downloads&index[products_downloads][type]=7,9&index[products_downloads][category]=135On this page you'll see various manuals. The one you want is this:Moisture Detector MD1298680instruction_manual_1298680_0451781_ba.pdf (5.25 MB)It is in a large number of languages but to read or print just the English section, select pages 6-9 inclusive.You'd think they would include the multi page instruction booklet with the item.Update August 1st, 2014I've now had a chance to use it.Mine did not come in a bubble pack as shown in the pictures but in a cardboard box. Upon opening it, I found that contrary to the description it did include a battery, thus making the price even more attractive.The battery cover was a bit stiff to remove, bearing in mind that you need to do this very carefully so as not to break off the retaining tab. Once off, the connector is not fixed in the unit as on many devices, but is "floating" on the end of two wires. This connector is plugged into the battery terminals and then the battery is dropped into the compartment. I then found that when the cover was replaced, it bulged out a little which was a bit worrying in case it broke.Now it was ready to try out. I wanted this to test firewood dampness, having just had a wood burner stove installed. I found that the probes cover was stiff to remove, similar to the battery cover and again, was concerned lest it broke. But I got it off and there's a handy holder at the bottom of the unit to store it whilst in use.The previous owner of my house into which I moved recently had left a load of logs for us as they had an open fire which I have converted to the wood burner. These logs do not look like the sort of thick split logs you would get from a pro supplier of firewood. They are much thinner, too thin to split and have all the bark on so I'd guess they were probably cut by the chap himself. Anyway, I stuck the meter on a few of them and all showed under 20% moisture which I understand is the stove requirement to avoid excessive smoke and chimney deposits. I guess the wood had probably been in the storage bin for some time.It's got nice rubber grips either side making it easy to hold. Once turned on, it has two settings, brick etc. or wood. You simply stick the two probes in the wood or whatever and read the percentage moisture. The reading has an optional hold button, good for poor lighting conditions. It also bleeps with increasing rapidity as the readings increase. You can turn off the bleeper.So the unit seems to work fine, though I have no way of knowing how accurate it is. Having only just got it, I can't know how long it will last either.Finally, since I won't be using this until the winter, I thought it better to remove the battery until then. Removing the battery connector which was tight, needs to be done carefully so as not to break it by excessive force.