Lower budget alternative for a Fluke 368 ? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: Kjelt
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 21, 2019, 08:30:32 am
content: Hi I need to measure leakage currents at my home at 1 to 30mA true RMS since my leakage current breaker sometime trips since last weekThe Fluke is ofcourse wonderfull but with over 800 euros out of the budget for an occasional test.My question are there lower budget alternatives or are there low current AC clamps (resolution 0,5mA to 0,1mA AC or better) I can use on my Fluke 187 regular true RMS multimeter?thanks,

author: MosherIV
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 21, 2019, 07:59:37 pm
content: HiI do not know what a leakage clamp is.The current clamp a lot of people here recommend is the Uni-T ut610e.It is capable of measuring ac and dc down to 1mA

author: Kjelt
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 21, 2019, 08:23:50 pm
content: Quote from: MosherIV on October 21, 2019, 07:59:37 pmThey call it a Leakage Current Clamp Meter because it is very sensitive in the ac current range:https://www.fluke.com/en-us/product/electrical-testing/clamp-meters/fluke-368-fcRanges:QuoteQuoteThanks, I also saw cheap Voltcraft current clamp meters but also to 1mA.I hoped you could buy a sensitive current clamp to connect to your multimeter with a resolution of 0,1mA that would suffice to test my equipment to see which is the culprit.

author: Jon.C
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 21, 2019, 09:34:56 pm
content: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32869449561.html?spm=2114.12010615.8148356.1.f5e8260aytrl7Nhttps://www.ebay.com/itm/Alphatek-TEK-775-AC-Earth-Leakage-Current-Clamp-Meter-Tester-200mA-200A/273897427535?hash=item3fc58f124f:g:F4YAAOSw3FNZlFs0https://www.ebay.com/itm/AMECaL-ST-9810-Mini-AC-Earth-Leakage-Current-Clamp-Meter-Tester-Equiv-TEK775/173659075427?hash=item286ee33363:g:uoIAAOSwPCVX9KgX

author: Electro Detective
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 21, 2019, 09:51:17 pm
content: Quote from: MosherIV on October 21, 2019, 07:59:37 pm@ MosherIV: I think you mean theUnit-T UT210Eperhaps?a nice little unit that does well for AC as well as DCI recently chose it over the Fluke 368 which imho is a wayyy overpriced (even by Fluke standards) one trick pony with limited AC bandwidthand in my trial case did not really want to read anything 'low' except clean-ish 50hz sine wavesIIRC the Unit-T UT210E is good enough (but not great) for AC leakage issues,or at the least, leakage differences, once you've got a reference that does not trip RCD/GFCI etcIt shouldn't disappoint, but just make sure you can return it if it does.@ Kjelt: if you're in a real pinchthere's always the dirty way of butchering the earth ground wire on an extension cord that a member documented with a picture at EEVblog somewhere..,running that wire (via my suggestion > retractable and joinable? banana plugs, and inline 50 to 100ma fuse please) through the mA AC current inputs of the 287,run power through that jerry rig and plugging in devices to find the nasty/s or what combo/accumulation of devices exceeds 25 to 30mA that causes the trippingIf that fails, it's time to suspect the outlets/wiring and do a moisture hunt around the propertyEDIT:now that I'm loaded up with coffee, stand by for some serious revision or partial/total retraction of my blab abovei.e. sometimes it's not that easy or straightforward getting a reading on those elusive AC milliamps for many reasons

author: Kjelt
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 22, 2019, 05:13:55 am
content: Quote from: Electro Detective on October 21, 2019, 09:51:17 pmIndeed esp. when it is spurious , like twice a day max.If it was continuous it is way easier.Now I feel like your username, trying to find the culprit, it is detectives work.After butchering the outdoor lighting two days ago I suspected and completely isolating that, my new suspect is the central heating unit.

author: Kjelt
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 25, 2019, 02:31:03 pm
content: Well I still decided to buy a dedicated Earth leakage meter because I do want the higher resolution to see what each apparatus in my household is leaking.I found one for a 1/3 of the Fluke price: the Megger DCM305E from the UK.Just toyed around with it and it is right on par with my Keysight which is very good.Range Resolution6mA 0.001mA +/-2%60mA 0.01mA600mA 0.1mA6A 1mA +/-3%60A 10mA100A 100mAThanks everyone for their contribution