subject: Smart Tips to Measure Power With a Clamp Meter [print this page] Smart Tips to Measure Power With a Clamp Meter
Clamp meter is known as a device which is used for measuring the current in the power line without the need to break the circuit. This device does so by taking the measurement of magnetic field that induced around the conducting wire. Since the circuit does not need to be broken, the clamp meter is not only safer than the standard mutimeter but it also can allow much quicker testing. Moreover, this device is available as a stand-alone unit which is indispensable for those working on the high-powered circuits. At this time, this article is going to give you some tips to measure power with a clamp meter. So, just take a look at the tips below.
The first thing that you should do is to turn on the dial on the meter to the setting which matches the current of the circuit that you want to measure. Then, you need to choose between AC and DC. It is known that the household wiring is AC, while many electronics and appliances convert AC power to the DC signal within their circuits.
The second thing that you have to do is to set the meter for measuring in the range close to the expected current, in either amps or the milliamps. The household circuits most likely will produce the power currents in the amps range. Meanwhile, the smaller electronics are going to produce the milliamp currents.
The third thing that you should do is to isolate the single wire carrying the current that you wish to measure. It is very important for you to make sure that the wire is away from the other current-carrying conductors to get an accurate measurement.
The fourth thing is to open the clamps that can be done by pressing the lever on the side of the meter, and you need to place them around the wire and then close the clamps firmly. Finally, you can read the display for getting the current measurement.
