Klein CL800 Meter

nickdearing88
nickdearing88 Registered Users Posts: 100 ✭✭✭
in General Solar Power Topics #1
I was doing some re-wiring in my old house basement the other day and accidentally measured AC voltage with the meter set to Amps. It was dark and thought the dial looked like is was in the wrong place and quickly changed it.

Could I have done any damage or caused mis-calibration to the meter? It appears to be working correctly.
Current system: 8-100w Renogy panels mono/poly, 2 strings of 4 panels in series - 24v 100Ah AGM Battleborn LiFePO4 batteries - Morningstar MPPT40 CC - 1500W Samlex PSW inverter
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  • BB.
    BB. Super Moderators, Administrators Posts: 33,613 admin
    #2
    Depends on meter and sometimes the settings.

    My old/cheap meter has a fuse for all amp scales except 10 amp [no fuse, direct connect].

    It is hard to say if all is ok, ok for now and will fail later, out if one or more scales are out of calibration.

    Did you notice any sparks?

    -Bill
    Near San Francisco California: 3.5kWatt Grid Tied Solar power system+small backup genset
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  • Estragon
    Estragon Registered Users Posts: 4,496 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited August 2017 #3
    I did the same thing with a cheap meter. The leads got hot pretty quick, so wouldn't rule out damage to them. So far, it agrees with readings from other meters, so I still use it.
    Off-grid.  
    Main daytime system ~4kw panels into 2xMNClassic150 370ah 48v bank 2xOutback 3548 inverter 120v + 240v autotransformer
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  • nickdearing88
    nickdearing88 Registered Users Posts: 100 ✭✭✭
    #4
    BB. said:
    Depends on meter and sometimes the settings.

    My old/cheap meter has a fuse for all amp scales except 10 amp [no fuse, direct connect].

    It is hard to say if all is ok, ok for now and will fail later, out if one or more scales are out of calibration.

    Did you notice any sparks?

    -Bill
    No sparks. I would say it was only about 2 seconds before I realized. The manual says "....always remove test leads prior to measuring current with the clamp, and I always do. I just happened to be in a rush and made a mistake.

    Estragon said:
    I did the same thing with a cheap meter. The leads got hot pretty quick, so wouldn't rule out damage to them. So far, it agrees with readings from other meters, so I still use it.
    It was very affordable from Amazon but doesn't seem to be "cheaply" made. I purchased based on a forum recommendation and it was a great choice without the Fluke prices. I didn't notice any heating but I assume because it was so short a time. What caught my attention was the unusual "voltage" reading while on the Amps setting, about 20v AC. The funny thing is I discovered a "leaky" light switch and when re-tested with another multimeter, it was allowing about 20v AC to pass through despite the switch being off, proper line voltage with the switch on.

    Of course, I'll be replacing the switch next.

    Thanks for the responses.
    Current system: 8-100w Renogy panels mono/poly, 2 strings of 4 panels in series - 24v 100Ah AGM Battleborn LiFePO4 batteries - Morningstar MPPT40 CC - 1500W Samlex PSW inverter
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  • mcgivor
    mcgivor Solar Expert Posts: 3,854 ✭✭✭✭✭✭
    #5
    Since the ammeter is not an inline but clamp on, it would be unlikely that any damage would have been caused,  most inline meters have a fuse to protect itself, leads etcetera, with  cheap economy models who knows. The mystery 20 VAC leakage from the switch is probably not really there, digital multimeters have high input impedance, giving the impression something is wrong, put a load across the conductors and it will dissappear.
    1500W, 6× Schutten 250W Poly panels , Schneider MPPT 60 150 CC, Schneider SW 2524 inverter, 400Ah LFP 24V nominal battery with Battery Bodyguard BMS 
    Second system 1890W  3 × 300W No name brand poly, 3×330 Sunsolar Poly panels, Morningstar TS 60 PWM controller, no name 2000W inverter 400Ah LFP 24V nominal battery with Daly BMS, used for water pumping and day time air conditioning.  
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  • BB.
    BB. Super Moderators, Administrators Posts: 33,613 admin
    #6
    I agree--If it is a clamp meter, you probably did not do any damage to the meter when set to current mode while measuring current.

    -Bill
    Near San Francisco California: 3.5kWatt Grid Tied Solar power system+small backup genset
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  • jonr
    jonr Solar Expert Posts: 1,386 ✭✭✭✭
    edited August 2017 #7
    My neighbor recently called me to diagnose about 20 VAC on a disconnected line.   As mcgivor says, it's induced voltage and should be ignored.

    I am available for custom hardware/firmware development

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