Recommendations for a Voltage Indicator and Proving Unit

[David Prosser]

depends where you work and if you work for customers that have there own rules. For example we expect all our contractors to have proving units and voltage indicators that match up with each other and test up to 550v DC.

 

[R-fur]

I have always used Drummond testers, Especially like their new LED ones. Bombproof.
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And what’s wrong with this then??

Years ago when I was an SAP with a DNO the old Clyde Valley Power Company substations had the original home made testers in them. A Plywood box with two 60W lamps in series inside, holes in the front so you could see the lamps, Substation name signwritten at the top and a special bracket on the wall to hang it on, next to the rack for spare fuses. Wish I had kept one.

 

[RDB85]

I have always used Drummond testers, Especially like their new LED ones. Bombproof.
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Years ago when I was an SAP with a DNO the old Clyde Valley Power Company substations had the original home made testers in them. A Plywood box with two 60W lamps in series inside, holes in the front so you could see the lamps, Substation name signwritten at the top and a special bracket on the wall to hang it on, next to the rack for spare fuses. Wish I had kept one.

I’ve not seen the Drummond ones.

 

[R-fur]

Google 'Drummond MTL20B

 

[RDB85]

They look good the Drummond Kits:

Safe Isolation and Voltage detection kits from Master Lock and Martindale

Safely isolate electrical circuits with our safe isolation and voltage detector kits from Master Lock and Martindale. Be safe, use our safe isolation kits and voltage detector kit to lock off the RCD and MCB.

www.test-meter.co.uk

 

[DPG]

Yeah it's a bit old and been sculling round the bottom of a toolbox for years!

If it was a carrot, it would be rotten by now.

I am not sure i want to test it though, how times have changed, it was the right thing to use in the 70's, now scared to use it.
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It does......
View attachment 61136

1977 - 2020 and still working, take that megger/fluke/martindale

Get it on ebay and use the words 'vintage', 'barn find' and 'industrial '

 

[telectrix]

i bought this on ebay to replace one i lost. cheap as chips. phase sequence. does the job.
UNI-T Waterproof Type Digital 2 Pole Voltage Tester

 

[pc1966]

The tester I have also bleeps on continuity - I hate that as I'm usually checking for safety and periodically jump then realise it a different f'ing bleep for N-E continuity and not L-N reversal and still energised!

So I would go for one that does one job only - to check for volts. If buying another I would probably go for the Drummond, or something cheap like the "Kewtech Kewvolt 2" or "Socket & See VIP150" that also needs no battery. To be fair my one still warns if volts and no battery but i think the voltage-range LEDs don't light, so would go for one that does one simple job.

However, some folk like a simple continuity probe bleeper feature for other testing, and I know some folk who like the non-contact sort for seeing if something is live, but never use them to prove dead!

 

[Julie.]

The tester I have also bleeps on continuity - I hate that as I'm usually checking for safety and periodically jump then realise it a different f'ing bleep for N-E continuity and not L-N reversal and still energised!

So I would go for one that does one job only - to check for volts. If buying another I would probably go for the Drummond, or something cheap like the "Kewtech Kewvolt 2" or "Socket & See VIP150" that also needs no battery. To be fair my one still warns if volts and no battery but i think the voltage-range LEDs don't light, so would go for one that does one simple job.

However, some folk like a simple continuity probe bleeper feature for other testing, and I know some folk who like the non-contact sort for seeing if something is live, but never use them to prove dead!

Yeah, that's one thing about the megger tpt320, it's a useful function, but inevitably take me by surprise every time!

That's just familiarity though, whatever you learn with eventually feels like the only right way.

To this day, whenever I see a black wire, my mind thinks neutral, takes me a moment to check myself!

 

[nicebutdim]

The tester I have also bleeps on continuity - I hate that as I'm usually checking for safety and periodically jump then realise it a different f'ing bleep for N-E continuity and not L-N reversal and still energised!

The previously resommended Fluke 2 pole testers allow their buzzer to be silenced.

Think I remember reading specs of a tester from some manufacturer (although I could be wrong about this) that also vibrated for use in noisey environments - that would take some getting used to!

 

[RDB85]

The tester I have also bleeps on continuity - I hate that as I'm usually checking for safety and periodically jump then realise it a different f'ing bleep for N-E continuity and not L-N reversal and still energised!

So I would go for one that does one job only - to check for volts. If buying another I would probably go for the Drummond, or something cheap like the "Kewtech Kewvolt 2" or "Socket & See VIP150" that also needs no battery. To be fair my one still warns if volts and no battery but i think the voltage-range LEDs don't light, so would go for one that does one simple job.

However, some folk like a simple continuity probe bleeper feature for other testing, and I know some folk who like the non-contact sort for seeing if something is live, but never use them to prove dead!

Thanks I like the Drummond, but they are quite expensive. I’m leaning towards one that doesn’t need batteries. The Socket and See looks similar to Martindale and the Proving Unit like the Megger.