Advice for a budget multimeter

[elsmandino]

Could anyone possibly recommend a budget Multimeter please?

I need it purely in a non-professional capacity (bit of home wiring, testing car and torch batteries and computer circuitry etc).

I have found various ones both in the shops and online and they all seem to offer the same sort of bits:

http://www.halfords.com/workshop-tools/tools/hand-tools/rolson-digital-multimeter

http://www.toolstation.com/shop/p11867

http://www.screwfix.com/p/lap-mas83...and Lighting&gclid=COaTqsfdwssCFawy0wod3WcGXw

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2?url=search-alias=diy&field-keywords=multimetre

Which (if any of these) would you recommend?

Thanks in advance.

 

[chivers67]

I've a DiLog one myself http://www.tester.co.uk/dilog-pl280n-digital-multimeter

Make sure whatever one you have has a back light and can take croc clips too either as an attachment or separate lead.

 

[elsmandino]

Thanks very much for that - looks like a great bit of equipment but potentially a little more than I can spend.

If you were pushed to choose between the Halfords, the Screwfix and the Toolstation above, which would you go for?

The reason being that I go past all three on my way home and I have a laptop lead that urgently needs testing (my Mrs has some important work stored on it and I need to check whether it is the power lead or the computer itself).

 

[Gerrydelasel]

The Halfords one, because it is the cheapest when they're all basically the same. It's similar to a Maplins one I bought years ago which, although it cost me about £4, proved itself a remarkably useful and hardly little instrument.
Eventually I replaced it with a Vichy VC99, which is probably the best value-for-money meter on the market. Autoranging, capacitance, frequency, temperature... I love it.
At work I use a Tenma which is OK, although I replaced the leads with more pointy ones.
I also have a big digital Fluke at work, but it's horrible to use. I only get it out of the box when I need 3 decimal places of precision. Which is never.

 

[ericmark]

Most the cheap multi meters are in real therms the same, they are good for what you pay, however the leads that are supplied with it are not suitable for mains, and although it has a fuse many the fuse does not cover the 10A range.

For extra low voltage it is fine.

For low voltage I would use a clamp on type if there is no wired amp range you can't make an error and select wrong range.

With clamp on the question is do you need DC? If so the meters are more expensive as they use the hall effect to measure DC amps.

 

[chivers67]

I'd get the one from Screwfix the probes look safer to use that the others and it stands up too so easier to read in some situations - not sure if the Rolston meter does hard to tell .

 

[flameport]

This: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00LY1CH1O/

Any multimeter with a 'transistor tester' socket on it is junk and should never be used by anyone for any purpose. Likewise for any product with the name 'rolson', 'silverline', 'blackspur' and plenty of others.

 

[Spark123]

A lot of cheapo meters don't have any fusing on the current range. This is imo a must. If you are measuring mains and accidentally have the leads in the current range you may come off worst.

 

[ericmark]

You seem to have got the same advice a number of times. The cheap meters are for extra low voltage only, even if the range says 1000 volts you should not use it on anything over 50 volt AC 75 volt DC they lack the safety features. Clearly for extra low voltage having a transistor test or a diode test may be an advantage. They both measure the threshold voltage rather than ohms. With meters using a very low voltage on the ohms range a diode can show as open circuit in both directions so they have a diode test often with a buzzer and this measures voltage not ohms and will show the threshold voltage.

I also started with at that time a cheap meter the AVO Multiminor and yes I got the switch on the wrong range and got expensive blue smoke. The AVO Mk8 I replaced it with had both fuses and a cut out, however still managed to blow it up testing a spy holiday detector which put 10,000 volts between a car inner speedo drive cable and a spring coil to test the rap on a pipe line. It blow the germanium diode and the scale lost all damping and would not measure accurately. I should have been using a valve volt meter. It worked on a 6 volt battery so fact it works on a battery does not mean low voltage photography flash guns are frighting.

But to check a car is charging or look for faults on most low voltage DC stuff it is fine. No point in paying more. It is all down to intended use. For mains use you need GS38 leads often the meter is OK at the higher voltages it is the leads that let it down. Google GS38 and the leads cost four times the price of the meter.

 

[JohnW2]

.... a spy holiday detector

I think I need some education

Kind Regards, John

 

[ericmark]

.... a spy holiday detector

I think I need some education

Kind Regards, John

Sorry an American thing which is basic the same as the tester on PAT testing machines and it tests the fibre glass and dope (tar) put around oil and gas pipe lines to stop them rusting. While the pipe in my case 42 inch is still above the ground the operator pushes something like an over grown slinky spring which roles along the pipe on a long insulated wand and trails a earth wire which is like the inner of a speedo cable. Should the voltage be able to penetrate the wrap then a sounder sounds to alert one of the fault and some fool with a fibre glass blanket has to move it under the pipe while his mate pours tar called dope at 600°F onto the fibre glass blanket to seal the hole found. I would not do their job for a gold clock. In the UK they now use a cold rap on the pipes but I am told abroad the hot rap is still used. See here[URL="http://"][/url]

 

[elsmandino]

Thanks ever so much for all the above advice - really appreciate the input.

I needed one as soon as possible and managed to get one from Halfords for about £6.00 (they had an offer on, that very day, which gave me a discount if I pre-ordered it online and then picked up an hour later).

It did the trick and should seem fine for low voltage items.

However, I will look into getting something a bit more substantial (as mentioned above) if I go anywhere near "the mains".

Thanks again.

 

[Taylortwocities]

and should seem fine for low voltage items.

However, I will look into getting something a bit more substantial (as mentioned above) if I go anywhere near "the mains".

Mains voltage is low voltage!!
//www.diynot.com/wiki/Electrics:Voltage-Bands

Does the meter that you bought have a 250 AC volt range?

 

[JohnW2]

Does the meter that you bought have a 250 AC volt range?

Most of them seem to have 600V or 500V AC ranges.

Kind Regards, John

 

[Taylortwocities]

Maybe, I should have asked why he has squandered £6 on a meter that was not capable of measuring "mains" voltages.