PAT testers

[psycotichaggis]

Hi, I'm hoping to get some good pointers as to which PAT tester(s) to invest in. I'm Currently a student at HNC level having previously completed NC electrical engineering last year. I'm hoping this investment could help fund me through the next couple of years at Uni, as student loans don't stretch so far when you've a house and kids to keep I did complete a 1 day PAT course, which I was completely disappointed with as my 5 year old could've passed it, but have since booked into the 5 day C&G course that my uni's offering in march .... My budget is obviously quite limited and I had initially considered a Seaward primetest 100, but have since found out that this model only does 500V IR and not 250V IR.. I'd be hoping to have a tester capable of at least both 500V & 250V IR and suitable for I/T equipment. Thanks for taking the time to read and any advice is appreciated

 

[hazelm]

Hi, I'm hoping to get some good pointers as to which PAT tester(s) to invest in. I'm Currently a student at HNC level having previously completed NC electrical engineering last year.

Very happy with a Megger PAT420 - holds all of our 4,300 items which I expect will increase to 5,000 when I finish testing everything on the railway!

 

[alanl]

I'd be very cautious about paying any more than £250 for a PAT tester. There is very little money to be made doing it, unless you can get a big contract with a large Company.
The cheap way is to buy a low ohm resistance meter, and an insulation tester off ebay for £75 for the pair, then make up a set of test plugs. The whole lot would be £100 max.

5 day course? That is rather a long time for something that is pretty basic, especially as you say you have an HNC in electrical engineering. If someone had no experience at all, then I'd say 5 days may be good, but more than 2 days would be a waste for anyone with a knowledge of electrics.
ETS at Birmingham do a 2 day course, and it is excellent, tells you all you need to know. 3 days would be too long IMO.

 

[psycotichaggis]

Very happy with a Megger PAT420 - holds all of our 4,300 items which I expect will increase to 5,000 when I finish testing everything on the railway!

It's a little (lot) more than I can afford at present was looking at less than £500 .... less than £5 would be better

 

[markc123]

PAT stickers don't cost alot..........

a non-smudgeable pen will be your biggest outlay.

 

[psycotichaggis]

Thanks alanl, Yeah the '5 day course' is apparently over a 4 week period with the exam on the 5th week. However with it being an open book exam I had wondered weather it'd be worth the paper it's written on.. Probably wouldn't be any more beneficial that the certificate I have .. I just like the Idea of having a C&G in my C.V... Also being up in Inverness options and opportunities are limited .... Thanks for the advice though and I'll investigate the possibilities of individual meters and testers

 

[psycotichaggis]

PAT stickers don't cost alot..........

a non-smudgeable pen will be your biggest outlay.

I've seen a few various testers in my price range ... I just wanted to know what I should avoid of if there are any I must have! also, would you advice ball point or fine line ??

 

[alanl]

FWIW, I did the 2377 course in December. I've already got virtually every other C&G qualification,2391/2396 etc., but I knew virtually nothing about In-service Inspection and Testing.
I've got to say it was an excellent course. I did it at ETS in Birmingham, and they are probably one of the better trainers out there.
I'd say that every electrician should do this course, as you learn so much.
How many classes of equipment are there? Class I, Class II - how many more?
I didn't know.
And I'm meant to be a qualified sparky.
Can old 13A plugs still be used - the ones without the sheathing on the live pins?

Stuff like that, everyone should know, but they don't. There are at least 10 more examples that I was surprised that I didn't know.
Well worth doing, with a good tutor.

 

[psycotichaggis]

Thank you MarkF, what a fantastic response! I've had a quick look at instrotech's web site and in particular the Martindale HPAT600 Metrel MI3311 Gamma PAT Pro (as advised) I'll study them further over the weekend but the price on the Martindale HPAT600 is instantly appealing