Once you identify the faulty bulb, you replace it with one that is working and your Christmas lights will come on. You then keep narrowing down by groups until you get the exact bulb. In case the multimeter does not read zero, then the problem lies between the two points you have placed your probes on. You then extend your range to a farther point and pick another bulb or point. If the multimeter reads zero, then all the bulbs between these two points are good. You then, for instance, remove the bulb at the middle of the string and place the second multimeter probe into the hole. You remove the first bulb on the string and place one of your multimeter probes into the hole. What you want to do is to check out multiple lights at the same time by grouping them. This creates a huge problem as you don’t know the exact bulb that has burnt out and you have to check each bulb individually. Testing The BulbsĪs said before, where there is a problem with a single bulb, the entire string of bulbs does not light up. In case you don’t have a multimeter, see our guide on how to test a fuse without a multimeter. In case the multimeter reads zero after taking on these couple of steps, you proceed to directly check for problems at the bulbs. If it reads anything other than zero, then the fuse is bad and needs to be changed. You can alternatively check for continuity by placing your multimeter probes on each end of a fuse. Once you open up this part of the jack, either visually check for a blackened fuse or a broken fuse filament. The fuses are typically located inside the male jack casing and placed between the prongs. This is because where there is no externally visible damage, figuring out where the problem could be is almost impossible.Īlternatively, the problem could just be with one of the fuses. P.S: One important thing to note is that if there is a problem with the string after doing this test, it is better for you to change the whole string of Christmas lights. Once this is done and none of them reads zero, there is a problem with the string.If the multimeter doesn’t read zero, recheck with a combination of holes and pins. If the multimeter reads zero, then the string is good.Place one of your probes into one of the holes on the female side of the string and the other probe on one of the pins on the male side of the string.Plug the red probe into the volt-ohms (VΩ) socket, plug the black probe into the common (COM) socket, and set your multimeter to ohms (Ω).This runs from the male plug to the female plug, so these are the points where you want to focus on.Įnsure your Christmas light isn’t plugged into any power source. The first thing you want to do is test whether the return leg wire is okay. You also check the fuses and then the light bulbs to further single out the problem.Īll these involve a lot of other steps and we will dive into them now. If the multimeter reads zero, then there is no problem with the wire string. To test faulty Christmas lights, you set your multimeter to AC voltage and test for continuity between the female plug end and the male plug end. How To Test Christmas Lights With Multimeter Positive and negative multimeter probes.To test out your Christmas lights, you will need the following. The return leg wire running through the entire string of lights is bad somewhere.There is a problem with a bulb, most likely from a burnt-out filament.This wire also needs to be in good condition for electricity to properly go through the whole string.įrom these, we can see that there are three reasons your Christmas light bulbs may not come on There is also a return leg that goes from the male plug end to the female plug end without going through the bulbs. When one of these fuses goes bad, expectedly, electricity doesn’t go through and the lights don’t come on. Where there is a break in the circuit coming from just one light bulb, all the bulbs go off.Īdditionally, the Christmas light jack typically comes with a couple of fuses located at the male jack end. Christmas lights in series Christmas lights in parallelĮither way, on the hot leg that goes through the bulbs, one bulb passes electricity to another on the same string and this must continue for all the bulbs to light up. Our major problem in this post generally relates to old-style Christmas lights.Ĭhristmas lights either entirely exist as a “series” of lights on a single wire string or a parallel group of lights connected in “series” to one plug. To know where your Christmas lights could be having problems, it is important to know how they work. How To Test Christmas Lights With A Voltage Tester.How To Test Christmas Lights With Multimeter.Required Tools To Test Christmas Lights.In this guide, you’ll learn the following:
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |