Cheap multimeter lied to me on a fridge compressor

Picked up a $12 clamp meter off Amazon, read 4 ohms on a compressor that was actually open. Swapped in my Fluke, got OL. That cheap thing cost me an hour of chasing a ghost. Anyone else get burned by budget test gear?

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1 Comment

the_ryan12d ago

Check that cheap meter with a known resistor before trusting it on anything important. Most budget clamps use a DC resistance mode that can get confused by inductive windings and give false low readings. A quick calibration check against a 10 ohm resistor would've saved you that hour.