Moisture in wood

I grew up in the Netherlands with coal stoves, which were replaced by NG stoves. I have had some open fireplaces and since a few years I am using wood stoves. I still consider myself a beginner and need to learn a lot. I just finished a 2 cord load of red oak that had a moisture content of 9-12%. I was pretty happy with that. I recently started to burn oak and maple with a 19-22% content. According to you experts, what is the maximum moisture content in wood you want to load in a wood stove?

Grisu said:

9% to 12% for red oak sounds low. How do you measure the moisture content? The wood temp should be above freezing. Then split some pieces in half and press the pins of the moisture meter in the center of the fresh surface. That reading should be below 20%.

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Moisture meter, at room temperature. Has been seasoned for over 2 years. I will not measure moisture if not at room temp.

Grisu said:

When you resplit the pieces and take the measurement of the new surface then you are good. 9% to 12% is about as low as wood can get in your climate and there are enough people who just measure on the outside. But with over 2 years of seasoning your wood is probably that good.

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I always measure on a fresh split after the pieces (I take more than 1 sample) are indoors for 24 hours. I measured the split side, not the bark side.