Give me a quick explanation of the two to five most used techniques for using a multimeter? I hate this $%^^$ thing. I've gotten to the point I plug it in switch the switch all over the place and just go to prodding around with no real rhyme or reason. I can give a couple of scenarios that are bothering me, but it would be great to have a sticky on this forum or somewhere with a good, step-by-step outline of how to use this valuable tool and what it is telling you.

For instance, I have an old Harley I am having trouble with the charging system. I need to know if it simply isn't charging anymore or if the voltage regulator or battery is fried. What setting do I use on my multimeter? Do I have to ground it or not, what are the reading likely to be telling me?

Or, I was trying to hook up my CB and find a hot fuse. Set the multimeter to 10A, kept poking it into fuse holders and got nothing that seemed to resemble a reading that would make sense to me.

Or, trying to figure out if a wire going into the harness at one point is the same as a wire coming out somewhere else. I think this is the Ohm thing and you just put the multimeter on thhe two ends and see if you get a reading.

I know this is basic stuff, but mine digital multimeter from Lowes didn't have a manual and the last one I got was written so I couldn't understand it. The people at Radio Shack can't help with anything electronic anymore, just cell phone plans. Any help or and links to a good page somewhere else would be very much appreciated.

 

Set meter to dcv 25 put red pos. probe on pos termanal of battery. Black neg. probe on neg. of battery.If its a digetal meter it will read 12.5 on good battery if analog neddle will go about half way up.Look towards right side of meter and under the letters dc #s will be 5 10 25 125 since you are on 25 scale follow that line to the left to neddle that will be the volt reading. try that first and let us know if it works.

 

The best way to see if a vehicle including a motor cycle is charging, is to read the voltage of the battery with the engine off, and then with the engine running. So you want to read DC volts. Put it on a scale that will read around 12 volts. For instance I have a old radio shack meter with a needle, and it has a 20v scale, so that's what I put it on to read 12v stuff. Make sure your leads are also in the right holes. Most meters usually have special plugs for amps, don't use those plug holes. The best thing to do is get the meter setup, and then put the leads on a good battery and see if the meter works correctly.

Then go to the motorcycle and read the battery voltage. It should be around 12 volts, + or- a little bit. If it's 10 volts, then it has a bad cell.

Then get the engine running, and read the battery voltage again. It should be higher than the previous reading. A higher voltage reading means the charging system voltage is higher than the battery voltage, so current is flowing into the battery. A normal charging voltage for a car or truck is around 14 volts.

In this case, you are still looking for dc voltage, which is still 12 volts in this case. You always have to use both leads of the meter to get a reading, so in this case the battery is too far away, so you can use the metal part of the body for the negative, since the neg cable of the battery is bolted to the body. Then poke around in the fuse box with the other lead. Like before, you can go out to the battery first to get the meter setup correctly, so you know it is working correctly.

I think you pretty much have this mode down. Set the meter up, and touch the leads together to make sure it works. Things to remember. In this mode, you are using the battery inside the meter. So it doesn't work very well if you have voltage already on the wires you are trying to test. In some of the old meters doing this will blow the fuse. So just make sure the circuit you are ohming out is dead. Also for continuity checks, always use rx1. You want a wire to be as close to zero ohms as it can be, so rx1 will give you the most sensitive reading.

Write in with more examples or ask more questions if you need to. Learning to use a meter can save a lot of guess work and money if you work on your own vehicles.

 

What model DMM do you have? I was kind of like you, then I went to school for MECP and I learned alot about how to use the meter.

Electricity flows, if it can't enter and exit your meter, it will not read. VDC is going to be the most common setting. It tells the pressure of the power in the wire/battery. Amps- your meter has be connected in series to what your testing. Basically, disconnect one wire and use the probes as jumpers to connect the wire through the DMM. Most DMMs can only handle 10 or amps, if you pull more than that through (like connecting it directly to a battery) the fuse will blow.

For your testing wires for connection, if you have a position called continuity or has the image of a couple small arcs, this is a more fun setting. All of the meters I've used had a buzzer or dinger for continuity, so you don't have to watch the meter. When you have a connection, it makes an audible noise and shows ohms.

 

I made a rough draft for anyone interested. http://sites.google.com/site/reax222...attredirects=0

Maybe I can get some feed back or more information.