Spent $80 on a cheap multimeter, fried it on a live 277 volt circuit in under 10 minutes

Was doing some lighting retrofits at a warehouse over in Chelsea last month. Grabbed a no-name meter from a discount tool spot thinking it would save me a few bucks. Put the probes on a ballast and watched the screen flash then go dead. Thing didn't even have a CAT rating on it. Had to borrow the building super's Fluke to finish the job. Any of you guys had a meter let go on you like that?

3 comments

3 Comments

skyler_lane8325d ago

Fifty bucks extra for a Fluke feels cheap when your meter's smoking.

john_singh25d agoTop Commenter

I get what you're saying but "feels cheap" is a stretch to me. Ive had a few cheap meters over the years and they all ended up either giving wrong readings or straight up dying on me. The extra fifty bucks for a Fluke is more like insurance if you ask me. Yeah it hurts upfront but when my old one started smoking I was glad I had a decent backup to swap in right away. Cheap meters cost me more in the long run with lost time and bad parts. I'd rather pay fifty now than a hundred later for a new tool and the aggravation.

kelly.daniel25d ago

My last smoke cost way more than fifty bucks and wasn't nearly as useful.