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[Chris Hindle]

A power tester with a battery icon?  Seems to store data?

Can't report an open hot if there's no power coming into the tester......
1 picture shows "Open Grd Neu" and 30 volts. Not doing that without a local power source.
Chris.

[Frank Koenig]

I was at my local Home Despot this morning (yes, you can pity me) and they didn't have them in yet. If it's a solid piece and has the ability, and enough resolution, to measure neutral-to-ground voltage as well as line voltage it would be pretty nifty. Along with a NCVT it would do everything I need without having to carry a big meter and tangly test leads.  --Frank

[Tim McCulloch]

I was at my local Home Despot this morning (yes, you can pity me) and they didn't have them in yet. If it's a solid piece and has the ability, and enough resolution, to measure neutral-to-ground voltage as well as line voltage it would be pretty nifty. Along with a NCVT it would do everything I need without having to carry a big meter and tangly test leads.  --Frank

Sez the guy with the Tektronix boom box... 

[John Roberts {JR}]

Not to beat a dead horse... I would be tempted to bet donuts to dollars that the new device does not detect RPBG without an external ground reference.

http://www.johnhroberts.com/OD1.htm

I had to come up with an independent 0V reference (the operator's body) that would require a marketing effort as well as throwing money at UL to convince them of human safety. I managed to buffer the external reference contact satisfactorily (>500 MOhm at 500v) but ran out of will power for a long and expensive uphill struggle just to market a $20 gadget.

JR

[Stephen Swaffer]

I am guessing JR is right.  It is easy to design something for the expected faults-but my guess is that an engineer with little to no real world experience involving wiring by handymen that do "everything" would have no idea what a bootleg ground is, or why that hack it would be used (face it, I don't think you can even find NM without a ground these days)-though plenty of guys still cut off that pesky bare wire.  If you don't know the faults you need to test for, how would you design the test?

Not to knock Klein-I like their products and they seem to have good value.  However, they did have an issue with one product line resulting in a recall for failing to detect voltage.  Would I still use their products?  Sure-but not if I am doing something that a failure could be deadly-at least not without being extra careful-something that call fall by the wayside when things get pushed to the last minute-though I know that never happens.

[John Roberts {JR}]

I am guessing JR is right.  It is easy to design something for the expected faults-but my guess is that an engineer with little to no real world experience involving wiring by handymen that do "everything" would have no idea what a bootleg ground is, or why that hack it would be used (face it, I don't think you can even find NM without a ground these days)-though plenty of guys still cut off that pesky bare wire.  If you don't know the faults you need to test for, how would you design the test?

Not to knock Klein-I like their products and they seem to have good value.  However, they did have an issue with one product line resulting in a recall for failing to detect voltage.  Would I still use their products?  Sure-but not if I am doing something that a failure could be deadly-at least not without being extra careful-something that call fall by the wayside when things get pushed to the last minute-though I know that never happens.

I would be jumping up and down and waving my arms if people were dropping like flies from RPBG wiring faults, but they aren't. I am mainly aware of the deadly potential because Peavey was sued by an unfortunate guitar player who got between two properly designed (Peavey) guitar amp grounds, with one energized by a RPBG mis-wired outlet.

Not trivial but not expensive. I have published my design and shared it with the world, no one is beating a path to my door.

Don't confuse the richness of the display, with the value of the data presented.

JR   

[John L Nobile]

Not to beat a dead horse... I would be tempted to bet donuts to dollars that the new device does not detect RPBG without an external ground reference.

http://www.johnhroberts.com/OD1.htm

I had to come up with an independent 0V reference (the operator's body) that would require a marketing effort as well as throwing money at UL to convince them of human safety. I managed to buffer the external reference contact satisfactorily (>500 MOhm at 500v) but ran out of will power for a long and expensive uphill struggle just to market a $20 gadget.

JR

I read your article and actually understood it. Very well written. Wish you could have gotten that tester to market.

[John Roberts {JR}]

I read your article and actually understood it. Very well written. Wish you could have gotten that tester to market.

Life is short and widespread use of GFCI outlets can save lives.

I predict my outlet tester would have been a black hole for time and money, two things I do not have in surplus.

JR

[Frank DeWitt]

I just wanted a small rugged meter that I could pull out, an jam into a outlet to see if it has some where near 120 VAC.  I like it.

[Jonathan Johnson]

Yikes.

According to the HD page: CAT II 135V safety rating

So if you plug it into a NEMA 5-15 that someone has wired for 240V, it will be toasted? Hopefully it won't blow up in your hand.

[ProSoundWeb Community]