Need a Multimeter - Price vs Quality compromise

[mattb10]

Hi guys,

Me again asking another question :lol:

Amongst my five current problems with my Z, one of them is a battery drain. New battery but 2-3 days of standing still and it's too flat to start the engine. Soo.. I want to buy a multimeter and self-diagnose where the drain is coming from.

Just on Amazon having a look at the available multimeters. They range from about £2.99 all the way up to several hundreds!

Found this one for a tenner, any good? http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B003NEGZLS?keywords=multimeter&qid=1445466524&ref_=sr_1_1&sr=8-1

 

[Mangozac]

For what you want that one will do the job. In the long term the rotary switch on cheapie multimeters like that will get a bit dicky and unreliable. Also the probes tend to not make contact as well as a quality meter.

I would however recommend just a small step up in price to go to a known brand such as Tenma. Sure, it's not Fluke, but it's at least the build quality will be decent. For working on DC you don't need true RMS measurements or anything fancy like that. You probably don't need current measurement either. Something like this would do: http://uk.farnell.com/tenma/72-10395/digital-multimeter-handheld-3/dp/2450661

 

[CornishRob]

I went through this a while ago as i needed to fault find something at home.

I had previously used Fluke ones at a previous job working offshore, but i knew they were expensive so went to screw fix and picked up a cheap one. Think it was this one: http://www.screwfix.com/p/lap-mas830b-digital-multimeter-600v/75337?cm_sp=Search-_-SearchRec-_-Area1&_requestid=19267#_=p

Got it home and it was absolute junk. I couldn't believed all the good reviews. The test leads were useless and there contact patch was so ridiculously small you couldn't get them on anything. No continuity tester beep etc. In the end, i didn't trust it and took it back.

After paying £10 for a cheap, i went to the other end of the scale and purchased a Fluke 117. It was expensive, but i purchased it as an investment and will never need another again.

Im sure there are mid ground multimeters, but i went with one i have had a lot of exposure with, and know they are solid and reliable.

 

[domsz4]

I used tenma for work for ages. About 40 each. They are great and quite robust. BUT get one that has an auto turn off function the two I have don't and I'm forever having to change the damn battery.

A decent set of probes is always worth it. ESP a small set of crock clips and the probe that allows you to hook and clamp it over a wire.

 

[GuidoK]

Don't get the really cheap multimeters.

This is a good overall testreview of an australian tech nut.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZoeUgMFLyAw

A fluke 117 or the cheaper 115 are also good but much more expensive. (I have a fluke (amongst others) myself :wink: )
For automotive stuff a good 10amp (or even better 20amp) DC rating is important and a micro amp setting not at all (the smallest currents you'll measure will be milliamps, but in that 10 amp setting).
together with good leads that can handle that current and that have a integrated 4mm laminar jacks into the leadpoints so that you can hook up crocodile clips.

So test leads with pins like this (note the thicker part with the laminated section):

So that you can hook up these things (or more modern insulated ones):

Obviously you can also get separate 4mm to 4mm testleads, but good testleads with flexible (pref. silicone) insulation, sufficient wire thickness and good connectors can be quite expensive. £15-20 or so

 

[EdButler]

A 3 quid MM will be absolutely fine for your needs. You don't need support accurate measurements or day to day use.

They probably won't read anything over 1Amp very accurately but are absolutely fine for detecting something like parasitic drain on a car.

 

[GuidoK]

Do you think a 3 quid MM has a good 10 or 20 DC amp inlet to measure parasitic drain?

If they have it they're usually very badly fused. (and the leads are usually crap)

 

[A1GSS]

I've got a Fluke that's 30 years old now, utterly faultless. Brilliant bit of kit but it was >£120 in 1985...

 

[mattb10]

Hi guys,

Thank you for your replies. Just had a look at the fluke ones on Amazon. Price-wise I think they're a bit much for me (I don't even know what I'm doing yet as far as diagnosing a drain - cue Google..!)

Think I'll risk a cheap one at first and see how it goes. About a tenner isn't much to lose at this point. Plus if they genuinely don't work I'll send it back to Amazon

Edit: Well as luck would have it I've managed to locate a Velleman DVM890 at work :rofl: Now off to find a how-to guide!

 

[Taz]

I have had my fluke for over 30 years, its used every single day. Its my main tool. They can be bought second hand on ebay

 

[85genius]

Well I'm going against the grain here because I have a dirt cheap one cost about a fiver IIRC but has always worked fine whenever I have needed it although really not that often. I do agree that one with crocodile clips would be much easier to use but always managed with the cheapie. If I needed it for work then would definitely buy a good one but for infrequent DIY I have been OK. It even helped me fix my boiler a couple of weeks back!

 

[NeilP]

Well I'm going against the grain here because I have a dirt cheap one cost about a fiver IIRC but has always worked fine whenever I have needed it although really not that often. I do agree that one with crocodile clips would be much easier to use but always managed with the cheapie. If I needed it for work then would definitely buy a good one but for infrequent DIY I have been OK. It even helped me fix my boiler a couple of weeks back!

+1 Bought my cheapo one from maplins a good few years back (09 I think). Changed the battery once in that time and it's still going strong.

Clearly not the most accurate device out there but for what I need it to do, it's sufficient.

 

[VRSteve]

I have one of these

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/UNI-T-UT105-Manual-Range-Voltmeter-Ammeter-LCD-Digital-Automotive-Multimeter-/131314267998?hash=item1e92f0b75e:g:0LEAAOSw6EhUMPaP

Cheap enough but not so cheap it doesn't work.

Used mine a lot over the last couple of years and never let me down

 

[Mangozac]

I love everything about the three Fluke meters I use regularly (two at work and my personal one at home), but for a non-professional who is going to use the meter once a year a Fluke is way over the top.

Mega cheap multimeters are a gamble - some will be adequate but others far less so. They will however all be imprecise and I would be very cautious using them on AC mains (from a safety perspective). As I said in my first post, for a little bit of automotive diagnostics a cheapie meter is probably fine.

 

[Mike6]

I know nothing about Multimeters but a thought on battery drain. Is there any way you could park the car without locking the doors/setting the alarm. These items can be a major source of battery drain. Also check you havent got an interior light on all the time.

 

[jimbo1958]

Hi guys,

Me again asking another question :lol:

Amongst my five current problems with my Z, one of them is a battery drain. New battery but 2-3 days of standing still and it's too flat to start the engine. Soo.. I want to buy a multimeter and self-diagnose where the drain is coming from.

Do you have Gaptech installed?

 

[mattb10]

@Mike6 Pretty sure all interior lights are off but I'll check the boot and glove box etc tomorrow. I guess I could lock my phone in whilst recording a video and see if any light is present on it.

I will try keeping it unlocked overnight or maybe a couple days. I can block it in for security using the lady's car.

It's currently hooked up to a trickle charger so will begin investigating once fully charged.

@jimbo1958 No don't think I have Gap tech. The previous owner didn't mention it was installed anyway. I can only drop the roof using the key fob, but that's just standard for these Z4's, right?

 

[Mangozac]

I can only drop the roof using the key fob, but that's just standard for these Z4's, right?

If you have to hold the button down the entire time to drop the roof, then correct it's just standard operation.

 

[jimbo1958]

@jimbo1958 No don't think I have Gap tech. The previous owner didn't mention it was installed anyway. I can only drop the roof using the key fob, but that's just standard for these Z4's, right?

Well you can rule that out then.....had the same Parasitic Drain probs as you that turned out to be the Gaptech.

 

[mattb10]

@jimbo1958 No don't think I have Gap tech. The previous owner didn't mention it was installed anyway. I can only drop the roof using the key fob, but that's just standard for these Z4's, right?

Well you can rule that out then.....had the same Parasitic Drain probs as you that turned out to be the Gaptech.

Ah, shame. At least there's positivity in being able to locate the drain somewhere. Battery's still charging so no diagnostics performed as of yet!