Hydronic coolant heater?
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Fleet Mechanic
Joined: Feb 2023
Posts: 1,924
Likes: 817
This is the unit I purchased:
https://www.princessauto.com/en/mini...HJhJZ3dWlPchJf
"Use to measure AC/DC voltage, AC current, resistance and continuity"
Guess I need to buy a better clamp meter that will do DC amps
Cargo Master
Joined: Dec 2021
Posts: 2,378
Likes: 994
From: Chambersburg, PA
It’s giving you a reading, but it’s an inaccurate reading…..who knows how far off. I wouldn’t trust a cheap-o clamp for measuring small current draw anyway. Something like that may be ok for measuring motor draws or branch circuit loads where 500mA or so either way isn’t a big deal.
Cargo Master
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 2,332
Likes: 442
From: Eastern Washington
Well I think my cheapo clamp meter wasn't giving me a reading in DC amps as it doesn't do DC from what I can tell. I think it was showing me voltage draw???
This is the unit I purchased:
https://www.princessauto.com/en/mini-digital-clamp-meter/product/PA0008344707?srsltid=AfmBOoqSvXTZxjPdNKOjiAmTRWURw 8a5f8ck3q6LMKHJhJZ3dWlPchJf
"Use to measure AC/DC voltage, AC current, resistance and continuity"
Guess I need to buy a better clamp meter that will do DC amps
This is the unit I purchased:
https://www.princessauto.com/en/mini-digital-clamp-meter/product/PA0008344707?srsltid=AfmBOoqSvXTZxjPdNKOjiAmTRWURw 8a5f8ck3q6LMKHJhJZ3dWlPchJf
"Use to measure AC/DC voltage, AC current, resistance and continuity"
Guess I need to buy a better clamp meter that will do DC amps
Ummm.... I don't think Voltage Draw means what you think it means. Actually, I don't think voltage draw is a real thing. Voltage drop is a thing, and it's measured with test leads, not a clamp meter.
The only thing a clamp meter can measure is current. It uses induction. I think your readings were pretty good. Amps are measured the same way in AC and DC, it's just the math thats different. Theres probably some semantics that are different.
Like I said before, the clamp meter you got isn't the best for very small loads. The field is too large. A shunt style ammeter (like the fuse buddy I posted, or similar) work much better for small loads. Or a smaller clamp meter, which are better but still not awesome.
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Fleet Mechanic
Joined: Feb 2023
Posts: 1,924
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Ummm.... I don't think Voltage Draw means what you think it means. Actually, I don't think voltage draw is a real thing. Voltage drop is a thing, and it's measured with test leads, not a clamp meter.
The only thing a clamp meter can measure is current. It uses induction. I think your readings were pretty good. Amps are measured the same way in AC and DC, it's just the math thats different. Theres probably some semantics that are different.
Like I said before, the clamp meter you got isn't the best for very small loads. The field is too large. A shunt style ammeter (like the fuse buddy I posted, or similar) work much better for small loads. Or a smaller clamp meter, which are better but still not awesome.
The only thing a clamp meter can measure is current. It uses induction. I think your readings were pretty good. Amps are measured the same way in AC and DC, it's just the math thats different. Theres probably some semantics that are different.
Like I said before, the clamp meter you got isn't the best for very small loads. The field is too large. A shunt style ammeter (like the fuse buddy I posted, or similar) work much better for small loads. Or a smaller clamp meter, which are better but still not awesome.
Would that unit be good? It's not the same model number as the one you posted so just checking before I order.
Thanks again 🙂
Cargo Master
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 2,332
Likes: 442
From: Eastern Washington
https://www.amazon.ca/Electronic-Spe...s%2C185&sr=8-1
Would that unit be good? It's not the same model number as the one you posted so just checking before I order.
Thanks again 🙂
Would that unit be good? It's not the same model number as the one you posted so just checking before I order.
Thanks again 🙂
The one I posted goes an extra decimal place (It was the 304B) so to 1/100 of an amp. It's not perfect for parasitic draw, but it's the best that fuse buddy does as far as I know and it is good enough for parasitic draw.
I'm pretty sure I went over all this stuff already.
I thought you sorted all this out already... what are you trying to figure out, exactly? I could make a better recommendation if I knew what you were after.
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Fleet Mechanic
Joined: Feb 2023
Posts: 1,924
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That one only measures down to 1/10 of an amp. Not useful for parasitic draws.
The one I posted goes an extra decimal place (It was the 304B) so to 1/100 of an amp. It's not perfect for parasitic draw, but it's the best that fuse buddy does as far as I know and it is good enough for parasitic draw.
I'm pretty sure I went over all this stuff already.
I thought you sorted all this out already... what are you trying to figure out, exactly? I could make a better recommendation if I knew what you were after.
The one I posted goes an extra decimal place (It was the 304B) so to 1/100 of an amp. It's not perfect for parasitic draw, but it's the best that fuse buddy does as far as I know and it is good enough for parasitic draw.
I'm pretty sure I went over all this stuff already.
I thought you sorted all this out already... what are you trying to figure out, exactly? I could make a better recommendation if I knew what you were after.
Well, mainly just trying to figure out how many amps my coolant heater pulls and yeah, I thought I had it figured out, but not sure if that clamp meter was giving me proper info as I don't believe it measured DC amps. So if I get that 304B fuse buddy I can fairly accurately measure the amp draw from my coolant heater and air heater AND I could use it to help me track down my parasitic draw so I'll order one of those instead of buying a more expensive clamp meter.
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