Looking for a Clamp-on DC (and AC) meter

[Steve777]

Don't need a high end one, as it will be used at home on an occasional basis, not daily on my job. But would like one which is easy to use and will last. Primary use of the clamp on will be measuring current (and V too if that's possible) on panel leads and the like. Thought that folks here might have some recommendations.

TIA

 

[sunshine_eggo]

I have a Klein Tools CL800. A bit spendy, but I'm very happy with it.

I have found that ones that can do DC are just plain more expensive. AC clamp ammeters can get really cheap.

My only regret is that I didn't get something that can measure surge or "INRUSH" current as it's usually referenced on a INRUSH capable ammeter.

No idea if this one is any good:

https://www.amazon.com/KAIWEETS-Multimeter-Auto-ranging-Temperature-Capacitance/dp/B07Z398YWF

But it shows me a checkbox for another 20% off, and it does DC current. No INRUSH. Lotsa ratings. Did not check if they were legit.

 

[pvgirl]

The UNI-T UT210e is a compact ac/dc clamp meter, has actual safety ratings, and is $54. Although only safety rated to 300volts.

The Extech MA445 is safety rated to 600volts but is $89

 

[prometheanfire]

ut216 for a catiii rated unit, but if using for solar or utility connections I'd stick to cativ rated units, the cl800 has you covered there.

 

[SupraSPL]

I also use the Uni-T UT210E. Mine reads about 5% low when clamping DC. Where has it been all my life

 

[Shimmy]

Glad I got my Fluke a long time ago; it has given me nearly 20 years of good service. I wouldn't pay $400 for the equivalent product today though.

 

[Skypower]

Bought this back in 21’. Used it hundreds of times. It’s default settings at power up is DC. One of the best features is its low voltage resolution .XXXX This is great for hunting down any bad connection by running a steady load through the circuit, measure across the junctions and look for an outlier/oddball. The in rush feature works great. The bad the thermocouple attachment is cheap. The auto off is annoying but it would probably eat batteries even faster than it does without it. Would I buy it again? Absolutely

 

[Hedges]

I like Fluke, one has been reliable for 20 years. But it isn't clamp.

I bought Harbor Freight Ames 1000A AC/DC model for $100.
0.01A resolution, also does inrush (AC at least, not sure if DC inrush).
I didn't want 0.1A resolution, 0.3A accuracy, when comparing PV strings in less than full light.

How to measure DC current?

Hello, What device can I use to measure the current and voltage at the output of solar panels and deduce the power?

diysolarforum.com

 

[wme]

I have a Klein Tools CL800. A bit spendy, but I'm very happy with it.

I have found that ones that can do DC are just plain more expensive. AC clamp ammeters can get really cheap.

My only regret is that I didn't get something that can measure surge or "INRUSH" current as it's usually referenced on a INRUSH capable ammeter.

No idea if this one is any good:

https://www.amazon.com/KAIWEETS-Multimeter-Auto-ranging-Temperature-Capacitance/dp/B07Z398YWF

But it shows me a checkbox for another 20% off, and it does DC current. No INRUSH. Lotsa ratings. Did not check if they were legit.

I have this one HT206D, used it a dozen times in the last 18 months and it worked everytime. No idea of the lifespane.

 

[Will Prowse]

I have a Klein Tools CL800. A bit spendy, but I'm very happy with it.

I have found that ones that can do DC are just plain more expensive. AC clamp ammeters can get really cheap.

My only regret is that I didn't get something that can measure surge or "INRUSH" current as it's usually referenced on a INRUSH capable ammeter.

No idea if this one is any good:

https://www.amazon.com/KAIWEETS-Multimeter-Auto-ranging-Temperature-Capacitance/dp/B07Z398YWF

But it shows me a checkbox for another 20% off, and it does DC current. No INRUSH. Lotsa ratings. Did not check if they were legit.

I was just going to recommend this one as well. Used mine today and fluke gave same readings

 

[Horsefly]

Another vote for the Klein CL800. It also has a peak function that does a mostly decent job at measuring inrush current.

 

[prometheanfire]

CL900 has a proper inrush mode, I've been happy with it.

 

[Dave911]

Bought this back in 21’. Used it hundreds of times. It’s default settings at power up is DC. One of the best features is its low voltage resolution .XXXX This is great for hunting down any bad connection by running a steady load through the circuit, measure across the junctions and look for an outlier/oddball. The in rush feature works great. The bad the thermocouple attachment is cheap. The auto off is annoying but it would probably eat batteries even faster than it does without it. Would I buy it again? Absolutely
View attachment 172827

Look at the Klein CL800, its looks almost identical. Likely made by the same company?

 

[Dave911]

I have two Klein CL800 clamp meters. One is in my bag for customers, the other one stays home.

About 6 months ago I was at a customer site and they had just received 6 very special potentiometers that are used to detect the dancer arm position for a wire payoff machine. The pots cost about $100 each. They are good for millions of cycles. I didn't have my meter handy so I borrowed a new Fluke Clamp meter (AC/DC). The engineer I borrowed it from said it was brand new and that they paid $4 or 500 for it. I put it on ohms and measured the pot we thought was bad. Yep, it was open circuit. Infinite ohms. Grabbed one of the new $100 pots and measured that. It is also bad!?! Wait, that can't be. Borrowed the electricians Fluke Clampmeter, yep they are both bad, both meters agreed. Got another one of the new pots and measured it. Wow, another bad pot... repeat. Something is really wrong. I go to my car and get my tool bag and pull out my Klein DVM. I think it is the 700. Its a regular DVM. not a clamp meter. Now both of the pots are good! I pull out my Klein CL800 clamp meter and it agrees with my Klein 700 DVM. I pull up the spec sheet for the fancy ass Fluke Clamp meters. It can only read up to 4000 ohms! Seriously. The same was true of the electricians lesser Fluke meter.
Fluke quality and capability of their meters is crap. Most are made in China. The Fluke lifetime warranty, that is now useless as well. I had a Fluke DVM, returned it under warranty. They said it had "some" corrosion on the PCB. Fluke has had quality issues for years now. Google "Fluke Corrosion Problems". Yes, they didn't bother to coat many DVM PCBs. Don't buy Fluke unless you have lots of extra money and want to pay more for less.

 

[v_green57]

Bought this back in 21’. Used it hundreds of times. It’s default settings at power up is DC. One of the best features is its low voltage resolution .XXXX This is great for hunting down any bad connection by running a steady load through the circuit, measure across the junctions and look for an outlier/oddball. The in rush feature works great. The bad the thermocouple attachment is cheap. The auto off is annoying but it would probably eat batteries even faster than it does without it. Would I buy it again? Absolutely
View attachment 172827

I have two of the 60A version of these. I like them. They are very compact so you can jam the clamp jaws into small places. Don't take up a lot of space in the toolbox.

Another bonus is that they were both smack dab on voltage calibration wise when checked against my calibration source. It is amazing how even the "big boys" are off right out of the box. Back when FLA batteries were the only thing, small inaccuracies didn't matter much. LFP changed all that.

 

[Skypower]

I have two Klein CL800 clamp meters. One is in my bag for customers, the other one stays home.

About 6 months ago I was at a customer site and they had just received 6 very special potentiometers that are used to detect the dancer arm position for a wire payoff machine. The pots cost about $100 each. They are good for millions of cycles. I didn't have my meter handy so I borrowed a new Fluke Clamp meter (AC/DC). The engineer I borrowed it from said it was brand new and that they paid $4 or 500 for it. I put it on ohms and measured the pot we thought was bad. Yep, it was open circuit. Infinite ohms. Grabbed one of the new $100 pots and measured that. It is also bad!?! Wait, that can't be. Borrowed the electricians Fluke Clampmeter, yep they are both bad, both meters agreed. Got another one of the new pots and measured it. Wow, another bad pot... repeat. Something is really wrong. I go to my car and get my tool bag and pull out my Klein DVM. I think it is the 700. Its a regular DVM. not a clamp meter. Now both of the pots are good! I pull out my Klein CL800 clamp meter and it agrees with my Klein 700 DVM. I pull up the spec sheet for the fancy ass Fluke Clamp meters. It can only read up to 4000 ohms! Seriously. The same was true of the electricians lesser Fluke meter.
Fluke quality and capability of their meters is crap. Most are made in China. The Fluke lifetime warranty, that is now useless as well. I had a Fluke DVM, returned it under warranty. They said it had "some" corrosion on the PCB. Fluke has had quality issues for years now. Google "Fluke Corrosion Problems". Yes, they didn't bother to coat many DVM PCBs. Don't buy Fluke unless you have lots of extra money and want to pay more for less.

I almost threw my Fluke away….. I forgot how long it took to boot ?

 

[Tomthumb62]

Don't need a high end one, as it will be used at home on an occasional basis, not daily on my job. But would like one which is easy to use and will last. Primary use of the clamp on will be measuring current (and V too if that's possible) on panel leads and the like. Thought that folks here might have some recommendations.

TIA

Another respected user on this forum recommended this one and for the price it’s quite good. No idea if it’ll last 6 months or 17 years.

Supposedly it also measures in rush current but I haven’t confirmed that yet. It does measure some portion of the in rush, much faster than my killawatt device, but not sure it’s accurate enough to really trust that number. But worth the $24 I paid:

Digital Clamp Meter, Multimeter Voltage Tester Auto-ranging, Measures Current Voltage Temperature Capacitance Resistance Diodes Continuity (AC/DC Curr https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08MTY51R4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apip_t72LroBxb6Kpr

 

[Brett V]

I have a Uni-T UT210E and a Fluke 375 that cost over $300. Both do the same job.

 

[JRH]

Don't need a high end one, as it will be used at home on an occasional basis, not daily on my job. But would like one which is easy to use and will last. Primary use of the clamp on will be measuring current (and V too if that's possible) on panel leads and the like. Thought that folks here might have some recommendations.

TIA

I bought a Klein CL 900 about 2 years ago..it’s been a very good unit..I like it a lot…it’s actually a lot better than my ability to use it ..I am not an electrical dude… …Inrush both AC and DC ….(2000 amps IIRC) .……it was about 170.00 .. I have two smaller basic Ideal brand units they are pretty decent…..I had a nice older Fluke model for awhile but it got backed over by my truck…. I had a craftsman that was very nice but it simply stopped working one day…dunno why…

 

[schmism]

I have UT210e $60 has worked great for the 3+ years ive had it.