Good reasonable clamp meter?

[chris765]

Hi all,

I've nearly completed year 2 of my 2330.

My girlfriends parents have asked for a new socket to be put in next to the ccu (fuseboard that uses BS3036 fuses)
The ccu has been almost boxed in so taking the front off will be hard, if not impossible without pulling away the built in cupboard. The majority of the cables go into the wall just above the ccu. There is two t+e that come down the front of the wall into the floorboards.
I was hoping these would be a ring for downstairs, what makes me think otherwise.. they are 1.5mm and why wouldnt they be with all the other cables. If they were for the ring then I could simply pop a socket on a leg of the ring.

Now to get to the point. To get an idea of what the cable is for I thought i could use a clamp meter to measure the current eliminating different circuits seeing if there is current flowing (of course with appliances turned on).

Now I dont think otherwise Im going to have much use for a clamp meter other than this. So can anyone recommend a budget (but goodish) meter, or can anyone think of a better way of approaching this.

Thanks for your help as always,
Chris

 

[JohnD]

an ordinary clamp meter doesn't work on T&E. You have to put it round a single conductor. This is because in T&E, the current flowing up one wire is balanced by that flowing down the other (same way an RCD doesn't trip if currents match)

some stud and cable detectors will work though.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

You might find that you have a bit of a problem using a clamp meter on twin & earth cables...

And BTW - 526.3 applies just as much to the connections inside a CU as it it does to junction boxes...

[EDIT] Doh! Again. [/EDIT]

 

[JohnD]

hee hee!

 

[Taylortwocities]

Use a contact-free voltage detector like this.

http://isswww.co.uk/Voltage-detecto...size-Voltage-detection-stick/?source=googleps

It will detect voltage in the cable (even if there is no current flowing )

 

[ban-all-sheds]

In the nick of time, TTC - I was just about to suggest getting a cheap pair of cutters and using them on the cables, then seeing which fuse blows...










{joke}

 

[plugwash]

You CAN get clam meters that will measure the load on a cable carrying both feed and return. They aren't cheap though.

 

[RF Lighting]

I've got one of said clamp meters which will read T&E and even 2 core / 3 core flex

It was expensive when I bought it and that was probably 10 years ago.