If I don't buy the inductive probe

[new guy]

I am working on an electric heater. It works on 480v/ac and has a cold resistance of 216 ohms. If I measure current draw using my FLUKE79 multimeter on the 10 amp scale by opening the circuit and putting the leads in series with the circuit, will the high voltage destroy the meter or blow the fuse OR give an accurate reading. What i'm asking is, can the higher voltages damage the meter or is it more about the amperages and the voltages don't matter.

[fripster]

hi,

It'll be just fine. Its about the amps. Just put it in series and measure away on the AC-Amps setting.

just my two cents.

fripster

[Robert Reed]

As fripster said,thats is the normal usage. BTW the Fluke '79's 10 amp range not only handles that current but the manual says it is permissible to handle 20 amps for 30 seconds. When measuring those higher currents (above 10 amps), the meter needs a "resting" period to cool down its internal shunt, before another measurement is made.

[haklesup]

You might burn out the fuse inside on the 10A range but you shouldn't blow the meter. At most you are still only seeing 480V and the markings on the front of the meter should tell you what's safe (usually 600V or so). Even safer would be to use an inductive current clamp but thats a new tool if you don't have one. You can probably also put a few turns of wire around the hot wire and make a current transformer. Calibrating that will take a bit of effort though.