Page 16 - Testing Electronic Components

Precaution While Using Multimeter

Don’t give shock or vibration to the multimeter especially analogue
meters, which have a delicate meter movement. Sometimes even a slight
fall from the repair bench to the floor could cause the digital meter LCD
panel to cracked!

Even if after the zero ohm adjuster turned to maximum, the pointer still
does not reach zero, replace the batteries. Batteries out of life must be
immediately removed from the meter, otherwise components inside will
get corroded by leakage of the battery electrolyte.

When you are not certain of the voltage or current value, measurement is
always started on the highest range to know its approximate value.
Lower range may be selected accordingly.

Read and understand the manual book that comes with your multimeter.

Don’t replace any meter fuse with one having a higher current rating or
slower response time. In other word, do not replace the fast blow fuse
with a slow blow fuse. Go to fuse chapter to know more fuses.

Don’t take any resistance (Ohm) measurement in a circuit that has any
power applied otherwise it may cause the components inside the meter to
blow.

Don’t connect your ammeter (meter set to current range) directly across a
power source, such as a battery or power supply output. An ammeter
must always be connected in series with the load.

Always treat all electrical circuits with respect! Knowing what you’re
doing is important. If you don’t know what you’re doing in areas that

could prove dangerous, such as in 240 volt household circuits, then don’t
do it! Get more information or just ask a repair friend to show or guide
you the right way to test electrical circuits.

Lastly, there are many differences among various makes of digital and
analogue multimeters. Always study the instruction booklet that comes
with a particular meter to ensure you are using it properly and safely.

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