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| Is NON-CONTACT VOLTAGE feature worth it? |
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| J-R:
NCV is the only option in certain situations, such as for locating inside walls or tracing between closed junction boxes. In both cases, there is no way to directly probe the wire. While I have a lot of DMMs that offer NCV, there are only two that I can highly recommend: the Amprobe AM-47 (Brymen BM27s) and the UEi DL489. The Amprobe is small and sensitive enough that you can check wall switches (but not really inside walls). The UEi is larger but simply amazing in my opinion in how it leverages a unique audio buzzing noise to indicate the strength of the signal. I can zone in on an active circuit in a wall from multiple feet away. Another option is some stud finders offer a voltage detection feature and I have a couple of those. It's more about an extra sanity check before shoving a screw into the wall, though. The voltage detection sticks are a bit less sensitive in my experience and this can be good and bad. Good that you can check individual wires when they are close to each other, but bad for other things like outlets because you frequently have to insert it directly into the socket to have it register. |
| Majorassburn:
--- Quote from: bdunham7 on March 14, 2024, 03:20:44 pm --- --- Quote from: Majorassburn on March 14, 2024, 02:24:25 pm ---1) Above 240V, DO NOT USE A DMM!!! --- End quote --- So for measuring voltage drop in a 3-PH 480VAC motor circuit you would use a....???? --- End quote --- Answer: 1) A licensed electrician with proper training and equipment and his/her life insurance paid up.... Or, 2) A Fluke 87V while properly suited and booted and gloved and accompanied by a medical trauma team. :D :D Yes, you are correct that there ARE certain circumstances where a DMM must be used around lethal voltages above the common mains. In those special cases, I would suggest that only a carefully chosen, well-proven and fully certified DMM like a Fluke be used. All Chinese DMM's that I have owned and experimented with over the years are of such flimsy construction and have such questionable certifications that I would never think of using them for mains work. And I would be nervous with one even when making a casual check in a residential setting. Now, I'm no fan boy of Fluke or any other brand. But, as some of us who have viewed the Fluke testing video where a Chinese cheapie explodes and burns when it is connected to mains while mistakenly set to the OHMS function, I have a much healthier respect for a Fluke DMM as a result. I'm not knocking a Brymen either. But, I wouldn't buy one myself because the basic accuracy specs don't meet my preferences like the Flukes do. Neither, do I know what their performance record is when placed in use in a lethal industrial environment. I do know what Fluke's is though. Another reason that I wouldn't buy a Brymen is that they have no brand distribution or support in the USA other than a couple of private labels. That's important to me as I ask why a quality DMM manufacturer would avoid the lucrative U.S. market for so many years? Is it because of the potential liability that they would be exposed to if their DMM's didn't live up to their claims and started hurting users? Maybe they, themselves, don't believe that their products could stand up to the tasks when compared to Fluke, Amprobe and a few other U.S. brands with proven track records of safety in service? Just raising questions about DMM's being used in lethal voltage applications, that's all. :popcorn: |
| bdunham7:
--- Quote from: Majorassburn on March 14, 2024, 08:53:13 pm ---Maybe they, themselves, don't believe that their products could stand up to the tasks when compared to Fluke, Amprobe and a few other U.S. brands with proven track records of safety in service? Just raising questions about DMM's being used in lethal voltage applications, that's all. :popcorn: --- End quote --- Brymen actually makes meters that are sold under the Amprobe and Fluke names, as well as Greenlee which is their biggest label. The most likely reason that they don't move in directly is simply that they have a contractual obligation to Greenlee. I use Fluke myself, but not because I think other (good) brands are likely to explode. The video with the Harbor Freight free meter isn't representative of every "Chinese" meter. That would be like crashing your Hummer into a Tata Nano or Citroen 2CV and using the video as proof that only American-made GM vehicles are safe. In any case, if you are working on higher energy systems, you are much more likely to blow something up by using the wrong probes (unshielded tips) than you are to have an actual problem with the meter itself. And the 'proving' requirements mentioned earlier are proving the test leads more than anything because the leads fail more often than the meters, at least with Fluke. I've heard Brymen actually has nice test leads although I haven't seen them myself. |
| Majorassburn:
--- Quote from: bdunham7 on March 14, 2024, 09:20:13 pm ---Brymen actually makes meters that are sold under the Amprobe and Fluke names, as well as Greenlee which is their biggest label. --- End quote --- Really? I Didn't know that Danaher/Fortive used Brymen for their Fluke & Amprobe DMM's...wasn't aware of that. Specifically, which Fluke or Amprobe DMM's are made by Brymen? |
| helius:
I prefer to use a specialized tool for non-contact voltage detection. The grand-daddy of these is the TIF TIC100 "Tracer". TIF also made (maybe still makes?) a 300HV version that is rated up to 125,000 VAC with appropriate insulated handles. A more modern tool is the Ideal 61-025 VoltAware, available around $15 at major retailers. A narrow, pen-shaped tool is more useful for detecting voltage in confined areas such as electric junction boxes. |
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