Rant: I thought those cheap multimeters were fine until a fridge in Phoenix proved me wrong

Last week, I got a call for a no-cool fridge at a condo in Phoenix. My old $20 meter showed the compressor windings were fine, so I told the guy it was likely the board. He wasn't happy with the quote, so he got a second opinion. That tech came out with a Fluke and found an open winding my meter completely missed. I felt like a fool and cost that guy an extra service fee. Three years ago, I would have sworn those bargain tools got the job done, but that one reading changed my whole view. Now I'm saving up for a proper meter. Has anyone else had a cheap tool fail them at the worst time?

3 comments

3 Comments

theajackson2mo ago

Tell me about it. My old meter lied to me about a capacitor once. Cost me half a day and a very angry customer. Felt like my own tools were playing a prank on me. That sting is what finally made me upgrade. You're not alone in the cheap-tool regret club.

sandrajackson2mo ago

Know exactly what you mean, @theajackson. Had a cheap meter tell me a live wire was dead once. Nearly jumped out of my skin. That cold fear is worse than the wasted time. Threw that thing in the trash right after. Now I don't even look at the bargain bin tools.

robin_henderson812mo ago

Cheap meters are fine if you test them first. @theajackson just got a bad one, but that doesn't mean they're all junk. Sometimes you just need a basic tool for a quick job.