1,500V multimeter and 60A wireless current clamp for solar installations
by Steve Bush · Electronics Weekly.comFluke once again has solar power engineers in mind with a pair of instruments, both true-RMS, CAT III and rated to 1,500V: the 283 FC digital multimeter and the a283 FC wireless ac and dc current clamp.
These follow on from April’s PVA-1500HE2 and 1,500V 30A solar installation analyser and I-V curve tracer, and its less capable PVA-1500T2 cousin.
“With the multimeter and wireless current clamp, technicians can measure voltage and current simultaneously and automatically calculate VA power. This feature eliminates the need to change the measurement setup,” according to the company. “Fluke Connect allows the 283 FC to transmit measurements to a smartphone or tablet for detailed analysis that is uploaded to the cloud.”
Maximum operational distance between meter and clamp is 10m.
Along with voltage (down to 600mV) and VA with the clamp, the multimeter has continuity, capacitance and frequency ranges.
It comes with the company’s TL175-HV CAT III 1.5kV and CAT IV 1kV rated silicone test leads, matching both ratings of the meter. There is also a case and a hanging strap with a magnet on it to hang the meter from suitable surfaces.
It has back-lighting which extends to the control panel, and both visual and audio polarity indicators as well as user-defined thresholds for go/no-go testing.
Both the multimeter and current clamp, which is rated for 60A, are combined in a kit called ‘823 FC/PV’, that keeps the TL175-HV test leads (lower in the photo) and adds a pair of 1.5kV test leads (right) compatible with MC4 connectors. A case and magnetic strap are again included.
Multimeter battery life is typically >150h with the back-light off (3x AA alkaline), reducing to >100h once the current clamp is wirelessly connected. The current clamp has 2x AA cells on which it operates for >80h.