I feel silly asking this question. I have an old voltage tester a friend gave me. It didn't come with any instructions and I wanted to learn how to use it for basic purposes. If I put a picture of it up somewhere could someone point out which settings to use to test things like receptacles, lamps, etc. ?

I've searched the web and haven't found anything on voltage meters and how to use them.

Thanks and I apologize if I should take this somewhere else.

 

Sure, post a picture so we can see it.

 

Thanks so much.

Here's a picture of it: http://www.emcloughlin.com/voltageMeter.html

All I want to know how to do is figure out how to test a cable, receptacle/light switch... etc.

Thanks again!

 

I found something about this tester but then my computer freaked out so ill give you the website i found it at. You can actually download the manual for it at www.garderbender.com go to tester, then similar products, then manual downloads.

 

Thanks for the link... but I could not find the specific page for that model product.

 

I'm not sure how much you know so I will answer this way and hope I cover what you need. On the face of the meter the V with the straight line out of its side and the ranges 200m to 600 is for DC voltage (car, dc motors, electronic devices etc)The range with the other V is for AC or standard household voltage. It is best if your not 100% sure of what your dealing with to always start testing at the highest range and then work down so you don't destroy the meter. The A setting is for Amps in in this case low amps such as those found commonly in electronic devices, these are measured by going in series with the cirucit you are testing and I don't reccommend playing with that without reading a little on basic electronics first. The setting with the funny sybol on it and I am not sure how else to describe it is for ohms this is done when there is absolutly no chance of any power being in the area you are testing. It will show resistance and can be used to test if a switch is good or not.
There is one more stetting at the bottom it is the symbol for a diode and it is for testing them again a good beginers guide to electronics will explain its purpose and use.
To use this tester for testing voltage of a receptacle the setting should be on the AC scale and I would always recommend the 500v setting (just in case) the red lead to one side of the receptacle and the black to the other. You can do this through the prong inlets in the front of the device and don't even have to remove them. First test is across the hot and neutral which should give you 120V (or close to that) the second is from hot (the smaller of the two openings) and the ground hole(u shaped one by itself) this again should be 120v. The third test is from the neutral to ground which should always read 0V (sometimes a small voltage is detected depending on the meter). This can be done the same way on lights or any other device remembering what is the hot and what is the neutral and ground.
To test a switch to see if it is good then you turn the power off to the device test it with the voltage setting to make sure you did indeed turn off the right circuit never assume a circuit is without power always test for it first. Then using the ohm setting putting one lead to one screw and the other to the other screw you should get two different reading depending if the switch is on or off.
It is recommended to get some baisc electrical books for beginners and read them before attempting to do any electrical testing as it is a very dangerous thing to play with. Many good books are available. Good luck I hope my long winding explanation helps

 

Thank You. Thank You. Thank You. Your explanation is extremely useful. I understand some basic concepts like resistance and continuity but wasn't sure which settings to use for testing those. I'll pick up a book as you suggested to reinforce what you've said.