How to Use a Greenlee Multimeter

Contents

The Intro

This guide will show you just how to make use of a digital multimeter (DMM), an important tool that you can use to detect circuits, discover other individuals’s electronic designs, and even a Greenlee multimeter. Hence the ‘multi’-‘meter’ or multiple measurement name.

One of the most fundamental points we measure are voltage as well as current. A multimeter is likewise excellent for some fundamental sanity checks and also troubleshooting. Is your circuit not functioning? Does the switch work? Put a meter on it! The multimeter is your first defence when repairing a system. In this tutorial we will certainly cover measuring voltage, current, resistance as well as continuity.

Every fixer must understand their way around a multimeter, which has just north of a zillion uses for testing electronic parts and also circuits.

In this tutorial we’re mostly likely to reveal you just how to make use of a multimeter. This tutorial is mostly attended to for beginners that are starting out in electronics and also have no concept exactly how to make use of a multimeter and exactly how it can be helpful. We’ll discover one of the most common attributes on a multimeter and how to measure current, voltage, resistance as well as just how to examine continuity.

What is a multimeter and also why do you require one?

A multimeter is a measurement tool absolutely required in electronics. It incorporates 3 important features: a voltmeter, ohmeter, and ammeter, and also in some instances continuity.

The tool enables you to understand what is taking place in your circuits. Whenever something in your circuit isn’t functioning, it will certainly help you repairing. Right here’s some scenarios in electronic devices projects that you’ll find the multimeter useful:

is the button activate?
is this cable performing the electrical power or is it broken?
just how much current is moving via this led?
just how much power do you have left on your batteries?

What could multimeters measure?

Mostly all multimeters can measure voltage, current, and also resistance.

A lot of multimeters have a continuity check, leading to a loud beep if two things are electrically attached. This is valuable if, for example, you are building a circuit and also linking cords or soldering; the beep suggests whatever is attached as well as nothing has come loose. You can also use it to make certain 2 things are not attached, to aid stop short circuits.

A lot of multimeters additionally have a diode check function. A diode is like a one-way valve that just lets electricity circulation in one instructions. The exact function of the diode check can differ from one type to another. If you’re dealing with a diode as well as can not tell which method it goes in the circuit, or if you’re uncertain the diode is working effectively, the check function can be rather handy. If your DMM has a diode check function, checked out the guidebook to figure out exactly just how it functions.

Advanced models may have other functions, such as the capability to measure and also determine various other electric elements, like transistors or capacitors. Since not most multimeters have these features, we will not cover them in this tutorial. You can read your multimeter’s manual if you require to make use of these functions.

What Do All the Symbols Mean?

There’s a great deal taking place when you consider the selection knob, however if you’re just mosting likely to be doing some fundamental things, you won’t even use fifty percent of all the setups. All the same, right here’s a run-through of what each sign indicates:

Direct Current Voltage (DCV):In some cases it will certainly be denoted with a V– instead. This setup is used to measure direct current (DC) voltage in things like batteries.
Alternating Current Voltage (ACV): Sometimes it will be represented with a V ~ rather. This setup is made use of to measure the voltage from alternating current sources, which is basically anything that links into an outlet, as well as the power originating from the outlet itself.
Resistance (Ω): This measures just how much resistance there is in the circuit. The lower the number, the simpler it is for the current to move with, and vice versa.
Continuity: Usually signified by a wave or diode sign. This merely evaluates whether a circuit is full by sending an extremely small quantity of current through the circuit and also seeing if it makes it out the other end. If not, then there’s something along the circuit that’s creating a problem– find it!
Straight Current Amperage (DCA): Similar to DCV, however rather of giving you a voltage reading, it will certainly inform you the amperage.
Direct Current Gain (hFE): This setting is to examine transistors as well as their DC gain, however it’s mainly pointless, because a lot of electrical contractors and hobbyists will certainly make use of the continuity check rather.

Your multimeter could additionally have a committed setup for testing the amperage of AA, AAA, and 9V batteries. This setting is generally signified with the battery icon.

Again, you most likely will not also use fifty percent of the settings shown, so do not get overwhelmed if you only know what a few of them do.

Just how to Utilize a Multimeter

For beginners, allow’s review several of the various components of a multimeter. At the very standard degree you have the device itself, together with two probes, which are the black as well as red cords that have plugs on one end and also metal suggestions on the other.

The tool itself has a display screen at the top, which gives you your readout, and there’s a large selection knob that you can spin around to pick a specific setting. Each setting might likewise have different number worths, which are there to measure different strengths of voltages, resistances, as well as amps. So if you have your multimeter collection to 20 in the DCV section, it will measure voltages approximately 20 volts.

Your DMM will certainly likewise have 2 or 3 ports for plugging in the probes:

COM port mean “Common”, and the black probe will constantly connect into this port.
VΩmA port (occasionally denoted as mAVΩ) is simply a phrase for voltage, resistance, as well as current (in milliamps). This is where the red probe will link into if you’re measuring voltage, resistance, continuity, as well as current much less than 200mA.
the 10ADC port (sometimes denoted as just 10A) is utilized whenever you’re measuring current that’s more than 200mA. If you’re not exactly sure of the current draw, begin with this port. On the other hand, you would not use this port whatsoever if you’re measuring anything other than current.

Caution: Make sure that if you’re measuring anything with a current greater than 200mA, you plug the red probe into the 10A port, instead of the 200mA port. Otherwise you could blow the fuse that’s within of the multimeter. Additionally, measuring anything over 10 amps might blow a fuse or destroy the multimeter too.

Your measurement tool might have completely different ports for measuring amps, while the other port is particularly simply for voltage, resistance, and continuity, yet many less costly multimeters will share ports.

Anyhow, allow’s start in fact using a multimeter. We’ll be measuring the voltage of a AA battery, the current draw of a wall clock, and the continuity of a simple cable as some instances to obtain you began and knowledgeable about making use of a multimeter.

Parts of Multimeters

A multimeter is made up by four vital areas:

Display: this specific is just where the dimensions are shown
Selection Knob: this picks what you intend to measure
Ports: this is where you plug in the probes
Probes: a multimeter comes with 2 probes. Normally, one is red and the various other is black.

Ports

“COM” or “–” port is where the black probe must be linked. The COM probe is traditionally black.
10A is made use of when measuring big currents, more than 200mA.
µAmA is made use of to measure current.
VΩ permits you to measure voltage and resistance and also examination continuity.

COM

COM mean typical as well as is usually linked to Ground or ‘-‘ of a circuit.The COM probe is conventionally black however there is no distinction in between the red probe and also black probe other than shade.

10A

10A is the special port made use of when measuring big currents (higher than 200mA).

Selection Knob

The selection knob allows the user to establish the tool to check out different points such as milliamps (mA) of current, voltage (V) and also resistance (Ω).

Probes

2 probes are linked into 2 of the ports on the front of the device. The probes have a banana kind connector on completion that connects into the multimeter. Any probe with a banana plug will certainly deal with this meter. This permits different kinds of probes to be made use of.

Probe Types

There are several different kinds of probes readily available. Right here are a few of our faves:

Banana to Alligator Clips: These are wonderful cables for attaching to huge cords or pins on a breadboard. Helpful for executing longer term examinations where you don’t need to have to hold the probes in position while you adjust a circuit.
Banana to IC Hook: IC hooks work well on smaller sized ICs as well as legs of ICs.
Banana to Tweezers: Tweezers come in handy if you are requiring to check SMD components.
Banana to Test Probes: If you ever before damage a probe, they are cheap to change!

Measuring Voltage

To start, allow’s measure voltage on a AA battery: Plug the black probe into COM as well as the red probe right into mAVΩ. Establish to “2V” in the DC (straight current) array. Nearly all portable electronic devices make use of direct current), not alternating current. Attach the black probe to the battery’s ground or ‘-‘ and also the red probe to power or ‘+’. Squeeze the probes with a little pressure against the positive and negative terminals of the AA battery. If you’ve obtained a fresh battery, you should see around 1.5 V on the screen (this battery is brand name new, so its voltage is a little greater than 1.5 V).

You can possibly measure DC voltage or AC voltage. The V with a straight line suggests DC voltage. The V with the wavy line implies AC voltage.

Measuring voltage

Set the setting to V with a wavy line if you’re measuring AC voltage or to the V with a straight line if you’re measuring DC voltage.
Make sure the red probe is connected to the port with a V next to it.
Link the red probe to the favorable side of your component, which is where the current is originating from.
Connect the COM probe to the various other side of your component.
Read the worth on the screen.

Tip: to measure voltage you need to connect your multimeter in parallel with the component you intend to measure the voltage. Positioning the multimeter in parallel is putting each probe along the leads of the component you intend to measure the voltage.

Measuring a battery’s voltage

In this instance we’re going to measure the voltage of a 1.5 V battery. You recognize that you’ll have around 1.5 V. So, you ought to select a range with the selection knob that can review the 1.5 V. So you should select 2V when it comes to this multimeter. If you have an autorange one, you do not need to worry concerning the variety you need to pick.

Begin by activating it, connecting the probes into their particular ports and after that setting the selection knob to the greatest number value in the DCV section, which in my case is 500 volts. If you do not understand at the very least the voltage variety of the important things you’re measuring, it’s constantly an excellent concept to begin with the highest value initially and also then function your way down until you get an exact reading.

In this instance, we understand the AA battery has a very reduced voltage, however we’ll begin at 200 volts simply for the purpose of example. Next, place the black probe on the adverse end of the battery and also the red probe on the positive end. Take an appearance at the analysis on the screen. Because we have the multimeter set to a high 200 volts, it reveals “1.6” on the display, meaning 1.6 volts.

However, I want a more exact analysis, so I’ll relocate the selection knob reduced down to 20 volts. Below, you can see that we have a more precise analysis that floats between 1.60 and 1.61 volts. If you were to ever establish the selection knob to a number worth less than the voltage of the important things you’re examining, the multimeter would certainly simply review “1”, indicating that it’s overwhelmed. So if I were to establish the handle to 200 millivolts (0.2 volts), the 1.6 volts of the AA battery is too much for the multimeter to deal with at that setting.

In any situation, you could be asking why you would require to examine the voltage of something in the first location. Well, in this situation with the AA battery, we’re checking to see if it has any juice left. At 1.6 volts, that’s a fully-loaded battery. Nevertheless, if it were to review 1.2 volts, it’s close to being pointless.
In a much more practical scenario, you can do this kind of measuring on a cars and truck battery to see if it could be dying or if the alternator (which is what bills the battery) is going poor. A reading between 12.4-12.7 volts means that the battery is in good condition. Anything reduced and also that’s evidence of a dying battery. Additionally, start your automobile up as well as rev it up a little bit. If the voltage doesn’t raise to about 14 volts or two, then it’s most likely that the alternator is having problems.

Overload

What happens if you choose a voltage setup that is also reduced for the voltage you’re attempting to measure? Nothing negative. The meter will simply present a 1. This is the meter attempting to inform you that it is overloaded or out-of-range. Whatever you’re trying to review is also much for that specific setting. Attempt altering the multimeter handle to a the following greatest setup.

Selection Knob

Exactly why does the meter knob checked out 20V and also not 10V? If you’re seeking to measure a voltage much less than 20V, you look to the 20V setup. This will certainly permit you to read from 2.00 to 19.99. The very first digit on many multimeters is just able to show a ‘1’ so the ranges are limited to 19.99 rather than 99.99. Thus the 20V max array rather of 99V max range.

Measuring Resistance

Connect the red probe into the ideal port and also turn the selection knob to the resistance area. After that, link the probes to the resistor leads. The way you attach the leads doesn’t matter, the result coincides.

Normal resistors have color codes on them. If you do not know what they mean, that’s ok! There are plenty of on the internet calculators that are simple to use. However, if you ever discover yourself without internet accessibility, a multimeter is really useful at measuring resistance.

Pick an arbitrary resistor as well as set the multimeter to the 20kΩ setup. After that hold the probes against the resistor legs with the very same quantity of stress you when pressing a key on a key-board.

The meter will certainly check out among three points, 0.00, 1, or the actual resistor value.

In this situation, the meter checks out 0.97, indicating this resistor has a worth of 970Ω, or regarding 1kΩ (remember you remain in the 20kΩ or 20,000 Ohm mode so you need to relocate the decimal 3 areas to the right or 970 Ohms).

If the multimeter reads 1 or presents OL, it’s strained. You will need to try a higher mode such as 200kΩ setting or 2MΩ (megaohm) setting. There is no damage if this happen, it merely means the range knob requires to be readjusted.

In the instance the multimeter reads 0.00 or nearly absolutely no, after that you need to reduce the setting to 2kΩ or 200Ω.

Keep in mind that several resistors have a 5% resistance. This indicates that the color codes may indicate 10,000 Ohms (10kΩ), but since of discrepancies in the manufacturing process a 10kΩ resistor can be as low as 9.5 kΩ or as high as 10.5 kΩ. Do not fret, it’ll work just great as a pull-up or basic resistor.

As a policy of thumb, it’s rare to see a resistor much less than 1 Ohm. Keep in mind that measuring resistance is not best. Temperature can influence the checking out a whole lot. Likewise, measuring resistance of a gadget while it is literally installed in a circuit can be very challenging. The surrounding parts on a circuit card can substantially impact the reading.

The mockup generally looks like with a fundamental clock running off of a AA battery. On the favorable side, the cable going from the battery to the clock is separated. We merely place our 2 probes in between that break to finish the circuit again (with the red probe connected to the source of power), just this moment our multimeter will certainly review out the amps that the clock is pulling, which in this case is around 0.08 mA.

While the majority of multimeters can also measure alternating current (AC), it’s not truly a good suggestion (especially if its online power), considering that AC can be unsafe if you end up making an error. If you need to see whether an outlet is working, utilize a non-contact tester instead.

To measure current you need to remember that parts in collection share a current. So, you need to attach your multimeter in series with your circuit.

TIP: to place the multimeter in collection, you require to put the red probe on the lead of a component and the black probe on the following component lead. The multimeter acts as if it was a wire in your circuit. If you detach the multimeter, your circuit won’t function.

Before measuring the current, make sure that you’ve connected in the red probe in the best port, in this instance µAmA. In the instance below, the very same circuit of the previous instance is utilized. The multimeter is component of the circuit.

Continuity

If there is really low resistance in between 2 factors, which is much less than a couple of ohms, both factors are electrically connected and also you’ll hear a constant sound. If the noise isn’t continual or if you don’t hear any kind of audio in any way, it suggests that what you’re testing has a faulty link or isn’t linked in any way.

WARNING: In order to check continuity you ought to switch off the system. Switch off the power source.

Touch both probes with each other as well as, as they are linked, you’ll hear a continual sound.To test the continuity of a wire, you just require to link each probe to the cable pointers.

Continuity is a terrific way to examine if two SMD pins are touching. If your eyes can not see it, the multimeter is usually a terrific second testing source. When a system is not working, continuity is another point to aid fix the system.

Set your multimeter to the continuity setting utilizing the selection knob.
The readout on the display will quickly review “1”, which implies that there isn’t any kind of continuity. This would certainly be appropriate considering that we have not linked the probes to anything yet.
Next off, make certain the circuit is unplugged and has no power. After that link one probe to one end of the wire and the various other probe to the various other end– no matter which probe goes on which end. If there is a total circuit, your multimeter will certainly either beep, show a “0”, or something apart from a “1”. If it still reveals a “1”, then there’s an issue and also your circuit isn’t full.
You can also test that the continuity feature deals with your multimeter by touching both probes to each other. This finishes the circuit and also your multimeter ought to allow you know that.

A continuity examination tells us whether two points are electrically connected: if something is continual, an electric current can stream easily from one end to the other.

If there’s no continuity, it indicates there is a break somewhere in the circuit. This could suggest anything from a blown fuse or poor solder joint to an improperly wired circuit.

Changing the Fuse

One of one of the most common mistakes with a new multimeter is to measure current on a bread board by penetrating from VCC to GND. This will quickly brief power to ground through the multimeter creating the bread board power supply to brownish out. As the current hurries via the multimeter, the internal fuse will heat up and also then stress out as 200mA flows through it. It will happen in a flash and also with no actual distinct or physical indication that something is incorrect.

Bear in mind that measuring current is done in collection (disrupt the VCC line to the breadboard or microcontroller to measure current). If you try to measure the current with a blown fuse, you’ll most likely see that the meter reviews ‘0.00’ as well as that the system does not switch on like it needs to when you affix the multimeter. This is due to the fact that the internal fuse is broken as well as functions as a damaged cord or open.

To change the fuse, locate your convenient dandy mini screw motorist, as well as start taking out screws. The parts and also PCB traces inside the multimeter are developed to take different amounts of current. You will damage and also potentially wreck your multimeter if you unintentionally press 5A through the 200mA port.

There are times where you require to measure high current devices like a motor or burner. Do you see both locations to place the red probe on the front of the multimeter? 10A left wing as well as mAVΩ on the right? If you attempt to measure greater than 200mA on the mAVΩ port you risk of blowing the fuse. However if you make use of the 10A port to measure current, you run a much reduced threat of blowing the fuse. The trade-off is sensitivity. As we spoke about above, by utilizing the 10A port and handle setting, you will only have the ability to read down to 0.01 A or 10mA. A lot of systems use greater than 10mA so the 10A setting as well as port works all right. If you’re attempting to measure really low power (micro or nano amps) the 200mA port with the 2mA, 200uA, or 20uA can be what you need.

Final thought

You’re now prepared to use your digital multimeter to begin measuring the globe around you. Really feel free to start utilizing it to address many concerns. A digital multimeter will certainly respond to several inquiries about electronics.

A multimeter is an essential tool in any type of electronics lab. In this guide, we’ve revealed you How To Use a Multimeter. You’ve learned just how to measure voltage, current and resistance, as well as how to inspect continuity.