Moisture Dynamics in Norway Spruce and Scots Pine during Outdoor Exposure in Relation to Different Surface Treatments and Handling Conditions

Abstract

Summary Moisture dynamics in wood during weather exposure as affected by species, origin, production method and painting system were studied for nine years on 170 samples. The moisture content (MC, by dry base) was measured on 67 occasions. Principal component analysis was used for data reduction and pattern recognition. The investigation included two species; Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) and Norway spruce (Picea abies L. (Karst)), and showed that the painting method affected the moisture dynamics most. In addition, species and type of wood were important factors, and for pine sapwood also the production method used had an influence on the moisture dynamics. Heartwood of pine had a stable development with low MC throughout the experimental time, regardless of surface treatment or handling method. The pine sapwood samples, on the other hand, had higher average MC and much faster dynamics. For painted and endsealed pine sapwood samples, the drying method was not significant for the MC dynamics, but water storage led to a higher and faster moisture uptake than for samples that were not water-stored. For untreated pine sapwood samples, air-drying led to the highest and fastest moisture uptake, but on the whole this group had unacceptably high moisture uptake. The spruce samples showed very different behaviour depending on whether they were surface treated or not. Painted and endsealed spruce led to two distinct groups, one with moisture dynamics similar to pine heartwood and one with very high moisture uptake and large spread more similar to pine sapwood. Most untreated spruce samples had moisture dynamics comparable to those of pine heartwood.