Can we leave it in the garage until we install it?

Q: We retrieved maple flooring, tongue and groove, from a neighbor’s dumpster (with permission) and want to reinstall it our home. It rained a bit but the wood does not appear to have warped. Until we can install it, we are keeping it in our garage which is not attached to the house and has no heat. we live in Seattle, temps about 36 to 50 degrees.

The flooring, I suspect, was installed about 30 or more years ago. Can we leave it in the garage until we install it? Is storing hardwood flooring in garage okay?

We have heard that when we do want to install it that we need to put it in the house for about three weeks for it to acclimate to the temp in the house. Is this correct? If not, how long should we have it in the house until we install it?

There is some more flooring that we could retrieve, but it has rained. Is it possible we can use this wood despite it getting wet and even soaked? If it does not appear warped, would it still stay that way once it dried out?

A: The flooring should be inside certainly for a week at least. The best way to know if it is dry enough to install is to check it with a moisture meter. If this flooring is only about 3/8 thick, old strip, it would not be worth saving. 3/4 yes. 3/8, no.