What is a Digital Multimeter?
Jim: It’s a trouble-shooting aid. Digital multimeters are a tool that you can check the voltage of DC, the voltage of AC, the amps of DC, the amps of AC, and the resistance in ohms. You can get a digital multimeter at Radio Shack or Home Depot. Learning to use a digital multi-meter is important because it gives you a quick reading of your battery. You should measure your batteries when you’re plugged into shore power. When your camper is charging it should read above 13 volts. If you have a good converter and you measure your battery at 12 volts, then it’s possible that the wire could be broken or a fuse blew. You have to be cautious in how you measure the voltage in batteries. If you are not careful you could create a situation that could be dangerous. Another use for meter is the resistance reading. Say a light bulb in your camper goes bad, set the meter on resistance for a low value, like two, and then measure the light. It should read zero. If the meter doesn’t jump, then you know
A digital multimeter is a tool that can measure amps, volts, and ohms. It is different from an analog meter, which has a needle and a gauge, in that it has a digital light-emitting diode (LED) display. Digital multimeters are typically more accurate than their old analog counterparts. A digital multimeter can also have other functions; obviously, the more expensive meters will have more features, but all of them measure the three basic currents. A digital multimeter, or DMM, can be extremely helpful when trying to resolve an electrical problem. DMM’s are used all the time in the automotive industry, construction, machine repair, the computer industry, and any other field that involves any sort of electrical work. When purchasing a digital multimeter, the most important specification to look for is its operating resistance, also called impedance. The DMM becomes part of the circuit being tested, thus it affects the current in that circuit. Another specification to consider when purchasi
