MULTIMETER STUDY PART 2

Measuring Voltage

Ø  Plug the black probe into the COM port on your multimeter.

Ø  Plug the red probe into the VΩmA port.

 

Ø  Switch on your multimeter, and set the dial to DC voltage mode (indicated by a V with a straight line, or the symbol ⎓).

Ø  Virtually all consumer electronic devices run on DC voltage. AC voltage—the kind that runs through the lines to your house—is considerably more dangerous, and beyond the scope of this guide.

Ø  Most multimeter are not auto ranging, meaning you will need to set the correct range for the voltage you expect to measure.

Ø  Each setting on the dial lists the maximum voltage it can measure. So for example, if you expect to measure more than 2 volts but less than 20, use the 20 volt setting.

Ø  If you're not sure, start with the highest setting.

   

Ø  Place the red probe on the positive terminal, and the black probe on the negative terminal.

Ø  If your range was set too high, you may not get a very accurate reading. Here the multimeter reads 9 volts. That's fine, but we can turn the dial to a lower range to get a better reading.

Ø  If you set the range too low, the multimeter simply reads 1 or OL, indicating that it is overloaded or out of range. This won't hurt the multimeter, but we need to set the dial to a higher range.

Ø  With the range set correctly, we get a reading of 9.42 volts.

Ø  Reversing the probes won't do any harm; it just gives us a negative readi