How To Check Christmas Lights With A Multimeter

After learning about the basic details of an led the next step for any aspiring robot or electronic circuit builder is to learn about how to test an led which is much the same as the method used to test any diode with a multimeter.

How to check christmas lights with a multimeter.

After the setup is correctly followed a forward voltage drop will be displayed. The joy of a beautifully lit home can quickly turn to frustration when a burned out bulb or two render an entire string of lights dark. How does it work. Christmas lights are wired to stay lit even if one of the bulbs burns out.

If your christmas lights are fine the next step includes checking the power plug. Only measure resistance with circuit de energised you and your dmm don t like volts applied. To test led lights you will need a multimeter with a diode setting. A multimeter provides a convenient way quickly to find the dead bulbs that will need to be replaced in order to restore your holiday decorations to their fully lit glory.

You will end up having two probes plugged in the multimeter. In this section we ll see how to test leds and measure resistance. But this doesn t always happen. Place the probes of your digital multimeter at both ends of the power plug.

Set up the multimeter to measure the resistance in your christmas tree lights by following the manufacturer s instructions. Sometimes a couple of bulbs or the entire light string doesn t light up when you plug the cord into a power outlet. In one of the female socket insert one of your multimeter probes. For this one requires a multimeter and of course the led to be tested.

A decent mid range multimeter will likely cost between 50 100 usd. When this happens use a non contact voltage detector to determine exactly which light bulb is faulty. On the male plug touch the remaining multimeter probe into one of the prongs.