Extech Instruments MA260 User manual

USERGUIDE
200ATrueRMSOpenJawClampMeterwith
AutoSensingTechnology
ModelMA260
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MA260‐en‐GB_V1.15/15
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Introduction
ThankyouforselectingtheExtechMA260200ATrueRMSOpenJawClampMeter.TheMA260
incorporatesAutoSensingwherethemeasurementtypeisautomaticallysensedandconfigured,
noneedtoturnadialtoselectthemeasurementtypeorrange.ForACVoltage,theAuto‐sense
featurealsoevaluatesinputsignalsandadjuststheInputImpedancetoeliminateeffectsofghost
voltages.
TheMA260measuresACcurrent,AC/DCVoltage,Resistance,Continuity,andDiodeandoffers
extra‐largedisplaydigits,datahold,andadisplaybacklightfunction.Thenon‐contactVolt‐
Detectionfeaturesenseselectricalsourcessafely.

Thisdeviceisshippedfullytestedandcalibratedand,withproperuse,willprovideyearsofreliable
service.Pleasevisitourwebsite(www.extech.com)tocheckforthelatestversionofthisUser
Guide,ProductUpdates,ProductRegistration,andCustomerSupport.
SafetyInformation
Toensurethesafeoperationandserviceofthemeter,followtheseinstructionsclosely.Failureto
observewarningscanresultinsevereinjury.
WARNINGS
WARNINGSidentifyhazardousconditionsandactionsthatcouldcauseBODILYHARMorDEATH.
Thetimedelaythatresultsfromthemeter’sautomaticsensingcircuit(1to2seconds)maycauseGFCI
circuitstoresetandbreakerstotrip.
ItisnotrecommendedtousecalibrationequipmenttotesttheMA260.Calibratorscanbedamagedif
usedtotesttheMA260.
IndividualprotectiveequipmentshouldbeusedifHAZARDOUSLIVEpartsintheinstallationwhere
measurementsaretobecarriedoutcouldbeaccessible.
Iftheequipmentisusedinamannernotspecifiedbythemanufacturer,theprotectionprovidedbythe
equipmentmaybeimpaired.
Alwaysuseproperterminals.
Toreducetheriskoffireorelectricshock,donotexposethisproducttorainormoisture.
Verifythemeteroperationbymeasuringaknowncurrent.Ifindoubt,havethemeterserviced.
Donotapplymorethantheratedvoltage/currentasmarkedonthemeter.
Toavoidfalsereadingsthatcanleadtoelectricshockandinjury,replacebatteryassoonasthelow
batteryindicatorappears.
Donotusethemeterinoraroundexplosivegasorvapor.
Whenusingtestleadsorprobes,pleasekeepfingersbehindthefingerguards.
Removetestleadsfromthemeterbeforeopeningthebatterycompartmentorthemetercase.
Usecautionwithvoltagesabove30VACrms,42VACpeak,or60VDC.Thesevoltagesposeashockhazard.
ProbeassembliestobeusedforMAINSmeasurementsmustberatedasappropriateformeasurement
CategoryIIIorIVaccordingtoIEC61010‐031andmusthaveavoltageratingofatleastthevoltageof
thecircuittobemeasured.
Donotexposemetertoextremesintemperatureorhighhumidity.
De‐energizetheinstallationundertestorwearsuitableprotectiveclothingwhenplacingorremoving
theflexiblecurrentprobefromatestsetup.
Donotapply/removetheflexiblecurrentprobeto/fromUNINSULATEDHAZARDOUSLIVEconductors
whichmaycauseelectricshock,electricburn,orarcflash.
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MA260‐en‐GB_V1.15/15
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CAUTIONS
CAUTIONSidentifyconditionsandactionsthatcouldcauseDAMAGEtothemeterorequipment
undertest.Donotexposethemetertoextremesintemperatureorhighhumidity.
SafetySymbolsthataretypicallymarkedonmetersandinstructions
Thissymbol,adjacenttoanothersymbol,indicatestheusermustrefertothe
manualforfurtherinformation.
DonotapplyorremoveclampfromHAZARDOUSLIVEconductors
Equipmentprotectedbydoubleorreinforcedinsulation
Batterysymbol
ConformstoEUdirectives
Donotdiscardthisproductinhouseholdtrash.
ACmeasurement
DCmeasurement
Earthground

PERIEC1010OVERVOLTAGEINSTALLATIONCATEGORY
OVERVOLTAGECATEGORYI
EquipmentofOVERVOLTAGECATEGORYIisequipmentforconnectiontocircuitsinwhichmeasuresare
takentolimitthetransientover‐voltagestoanappropriatelowlevel.
Note–Examplesincludeprotectedelectroniccircuits.
OVERVOLTAGECATEGORYII
EquipmentofOVERVOLTAGECATEGORYIIisenergy‐consumingequipmenttobesuppliedfromthefixed
installation.
Note–Examplesincludehousehold,office,andlaboratoryappliances.
OVERVOLTAGECATEGORYIII
EquipmentofOVERVOLTAGECATEGORYIIIisequipmentinfixedinstallations.
Note–Examplesincludeswitchesinthefixedinstallationandsomeequipmentforindustrialusewith
permanentconnectiontothefixedinstallation.
OVERVOLTAGECATEGORYIV
EquipmentofOVERVOLTAGECATEGORYIVisforuseattheoriginoftheinstallation.
Note–Examplesincludeelectricitymetersandprimaryover‐currentprotectionequipment
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MA260‐en‐GB_V1.15/15
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Description

MeterDescription
1. Transformercurrentmeasurementjaw
2. Non‐contactVolt‐DetectionandAC/DCcontactvoltageindicator
3. BacklitMulti‐functionDisplay
4. Power/Holdbutton
5. COM(‐)Terminal
6. Voltage,Resistance(+)InputTerminal
7. Backlightbutton
8. Finger‐HandGuard
Notethatthebatterycompartmentislocatedonbackofmeter


DisplayDescription
1. Automaticmeasurementdetect
2. Lowimpedancemodeisalwaysactive
3. DataHold
4. Diodetest
5. Continuityalert
6. DCmeasurement
7. ACmeasurement
8. Voltage
9. Amperes
10. BatteryStatusinPercent
11. Resistance/Continuityohms
12. Kiloprefix
13. Maindisplaydigits
14. Batterystatus
15. Minussign
16. DANGER.Livevoltagedetected
17. AutoPowerOFF
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MA260‐en‐GB_V1.15/15
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Operation
CAUTIONS

ReadandunderstandallWARNINGandCAUTIONstatementslistedinthesafetysectionofthis
manualpriortouse.NotethatthemeterPowersupintheResistance/Continuitymode.
PoweringtheMeter
1. PressthePower‐Holdbuttontopowerthemeter.Checkbatteriesifunitfailstopowerup.
2. PressandholdthePower‐HoldbuttonuntilOFFappearsonthedisplay,releasethepower
buttontopoweroffthemeter.
3. ThemeterhasanAutoPowerOFFfeature(APO)wherethemeterisswitchedOFFafter20
minutesofinactivity.Todisablethisfeatureseethefollowingsection.
Note:Themeterdisplaysthebatterycapacitywhenpoweringup.Pleasereplacethebatterywhen
thedisplayshows<10%batterypower.
DisableAutoPowerOFF
Note:ThemeterwillautopowerOFFafter20minutesofinactivity.Todefeatthisfeature,follow
thestepsbelow.
1. WiththemeterOFF,pressandholdthepowerbuttonuntilAPOflashesthree(3)times.
2. TheAutoPowerOFFfunctionwillnowbedisableduntilthenextcycleofpower.Notethatthe
APOdisplayiconisalwaysshowingwhentheAPOfeatureisactive.
Self‐TestandRelatedCautions
ThemeterperformsaSelf‐Testroutinewhileitispoweringup.Abatterystatuspercentagevalue
appearsonthescreen,ifitreads10%orlower,replacethebatteries.
CAUTION:Donottakeameasurementwhilepoweringupthemeter.Doingsowillcausea
Self‐TestfailureandFAILwilldisplay.
CAUTION:DonotusethemeterifFAILisdisplayedontheLCD.Powerdownthemeter
andstartagain.Donotattemptmeasurementsuntilthemeterisfullypoweredup.
CAUTION:Ifthemeterisusedinthevicinityofequipmentthatisgenerating
electromagneticinterference,thedisplaymaybecomeunstableorthemeasurementdisplayed
maybewidelyinaccurate.
DisplayBacklight
WiththemeterpoweredON,pressthebacklightbuttontoswitchthebacklightONorOFF.Note
thatexcessiveuseofthebacklightwillshortenthebatterylife.
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MA260‐en‐GB_V1.15/15
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VoltageMeasurements
WARNING:Donotapply>1000VAC/DCbetweenthemeter’sterminalsandearthground
CAUTION:Whenconnectingthetestleadstothecircuitordeviceundertest,connectthe
blackleadbeforethered;whenremovingthetestleads,removetheredbeforetheblacklead.


ACVoltageMeasurements
WARNINGS:
Thetimedelaythatresultsfromthemeter’sautomaticsensingcircuit(1to2seconds)maycauseGFCI
circuitstoresetandbreakerstotrip.
ItisnotrecommendedtousecalibrationequipmenttotesttheMA260.Calibratorscanbedamagedif
usedtotesttheMA260.
1. Inserttheblacktestleadbananaplugintothenegative(COM)
jackandtheredtestleadbananaplugintothepositive(V/Ω)
jack.
2. Touchthetestprobetipstothecircuitundertest.
3. NotethatbecauseoftheAuto‐Sensefunctionthemeterstarts
inthecontinuity(resistance)modeand,afterseveralseconds,
enterstheVoltagemode.Thistimedelaymayprecludethe
meter’suseonsomeapplications,pleaseusecaution.
4. Readthevoltageinthedisplay.Thedisplaywillindicatethe
properdecimalpointandvalue.
5. NotethatthevoltagedetectLEDmaylightwhenACVvoltageis
measured.Themeteriscapableofmeasuringvoltagefrom
1.3VACto1000VAC.Signalsbelow1VACwilltriggerthemeter’s
alertbeeper.

InputImpedance
Theinputimpedanceisgreaterthanorequalto6Kohmsforinputvoltagesupto30V.
Theinputimpedanceincreaseswithinputvoltagetoapproximately420Kohmsat1000VAC.
ForACVoltage,theAuto‐sensefeatureevaluatesinputsignalsandadjuststheInput
Impedancetoeliminateeffectsofghostvoltages.
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MA260‐en‐GB_V1.15/15
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DCVoltageMeasurements
1. Inserttheblacktestleadbananaplugintothenegative(COM)jack
andtheredtestleadbananaplugintothepositive(V/Ω)jack.
2. Touchthetestprobetipstothecircuitundertest.Besureto
observethecorrectpolarity(redleadtopositive,blackleadto
negative).
3. Readthevoltageinthedisplay.Thedisplaywillindicatetheproper
decimalpointandvalue.Ifthepolarityisreversed,thedisplaywill
show(‐)minusbeforethevalue.
4. ThemeteriscapableofdetectingDCvoltagesfrom+2.1Vto
+1000Vandfrom‐0.7Vto‐1000V.
5. Themeter’salertbeeperwillsoundashorttoneforpositiveDC
voltagemeasurementsandalongtonefornegative
measurements.
ACCurrentMeasurements
WARNING:Donothandlethemeterabovethefingerandhandguardbarrier.
CAUTION:ObserveCATIV600VwithrespecttoEarthGroundfortheJaw.
1. Positiontheclamparoundoneconductorwiththeconductorpositionedasfarintotheclamp
jawaspossible.Seeaccompanyingdiagramsforcorrectandincorrectuse.
2. Readthecurrentinthedisplay.Thedisplaywillindicatetheproperdecimalpointandvalue.
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MA260‐en‐GB_V1.15/15
8
ResistanceMeasurements
1. Inserttheblacktestleadbananaplugintothenegative(COM)jack.
Inserttheredtestleadbananaplugintothepositive(V/Ω)jack.
2. Touchthetestprobetipsacrossthecircuitorpartundertest.Itis
besttodisconnectonesideofthepartundertestsotherestofthe
circuitwillnotinterferewiththeresistancereading.
3. Readtheresistanceinthedisplay.Thedisplaywillindicatethe
properdecimalpointandvalue.
ContinuityCheck
1. Inserttheblackleadbananaplugintothenegative(COM)jack.
Inserttheredtestleadbananaplugintothepositive(V/Ω)jack.
2. Touchthetestprobetipstothecircuitorwireyouwishto
check.
3. Iftheresistanceislessthanapproximately25Ω,theaudible
signalwillsound.Ifthecircuitisopen,thedisplaywillindicate
“OL.”.
4. Notethatthebeeperisoffwhentheresistanceis>400Ω.
Howeverthebeepermaysoundwhentheresistanceis
between25Ωand400Ω.
DiodeTest
1. Inserttheblacktestleadbananaplugintothenegative(COM)jack
andtheredtestleadbananaplugintothepositive(V/Ω)jack.
2. Touchthetestprobestothediodeundertest.Forwardvoltagewill
indicate0.4to0.8VReversevoltagewillindicate“OL”.Shorted
deviceswillindicatenear0ohmsandbeep;anopendevicewill
indicate“OL”inbothpolarities.
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9
SmartDataHold
TofreezetheLCDmeterreading,presstheholdbutton.Whiledataholdisactive,theHOLD
displayiconappearsontheLCD.Ifnosignalissensed,themeterwillflashtheHOLDiconseveral
timesandautomaticallyexittheDataHoldMode.
FromtheDataHoldmode,pressthedataholdbuttontoreturntonormaloperation.TheHOLD
iconwillswitchOFF.
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Note:Dataholdisnotavailablewhennoinputisdetected.
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Themeter’sbeeperwillsoundcontinuouslyandtheLCDwillflashinthefollowingtwoDataHold
instances:
1. Themeterdetectsasignaldifferentthantheheldreading.
2. Thedetectedsignalisthesameunitofmeasureastheheldreadingbutis50countsgreater
thanorlessthantheheldreading.
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Non‐contactVolt‐DetectionFeature
TheNon‐contactVolt‐DetectionLEDilluminateswhenthe
meterisplacedclosetoanelectricfield.IftheLEDisnotlit,
thereisstillapossibilitythatvoltageispresenthowever.
Pleaseusecaution.
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10
Maintenance
WARNING:Toavoidelectricalshock,disconnectthemeterfromanycircuit,removethe
testleadsfromtheinputterminalsandturnOFFthemeterbeforeopeningthecase.Donot
operatewithanopencase.
CleaningandStorage
Periodicallywipethecasewithadampclothandmilddetergent;donotuseabrasivesorsolvents.
Ifthemeterisnottobeusedfor60daysormore,removethebatteriesandstorethemseparately.
BatteryReplacement
1. Removethesmall(middle)Phillipsheadscrewatthebackofthemeter.
2. Openthebatterycompartment
3. Replacethetwo1.5VAAAbatteriesobservingcorrectpolarity.
4. Re‐assemblethemeterbeforeuse
5. Safety:Pleasedisposeofbatteriesresponsibly;neverdisposeofbatteriesinafire,batteries
mayexplodeorleak;nevermixbatterytypes,installnewbatteriesofthesametype.
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Neverdisposeofusedbatteriesorrechargeablebatteriesinhouseholdwaste.
Asconsumers,usersarelegallyrequiredtotakeusedbatteriestoappropriate
collectionsites,theretailstorewherethebatterieswerepurchased,or
whereverbatteriesaresold.
Disposal:Donotdisposeofthisinstrumentinhouseholdwaste.Theuseris
obligatedtotakeend‐of‐lifedevicestoadesignatedcollectionpointforthe
disposalofelectricalandelectronicequipment.

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