How To Tell If Ceramic Fuse Is Burned Out

Multimeters read both volts and ohms.

How to tell if ceramic fuse is burned out.

Here is a description of the two you are most likely to see. You need to test whether the ceramic fuse. For 120 volt circuits the fuses are small ceramic screw in devices that fit into threaded sockets in the fuse panel much the way lightbulbs screw into lamp sockets. A faulty interlock switch is often the culprit if you re blowing fuses regularly.

The anatomy of a fuse. If the fuse seems stuck use pliers for this. Inside the fuse there is a metal ribbon through which all the current on the circuit passes. Many electronic devices use fuses to limit the amount of current that goes through a circuit.

There are several varieties of fuses but their differences are primarily in appearance. Two different types of fuses control 120 volt circuits and 240 volt circuits in older electrical systems. If too much current flows through a circuit a fuse is designed. If too much power runs through the fuse it will burn out quite literally and open the circuit preventing the current from flowing through the circuit.

If you have glass fuse you can easily see if fuse is burned or not for ceramic types you will need continuity checker multimeter ohmmeter for continuity checker put fuse on black and red lead and if you hear beep than your fuse is ok if theres no beep fuse is burned for multimeter ohmmeter set multimeter to ohm setting closest to 1ω and put one lead on each end of the fuse and look at the. Testing a ceramic fuse is the only way to tell if the fuse has blown. Because they don t make adequate contact with the fuse they can allow dirt and dust to get in between the contact points resulting in voltage drop. The two terminals or blades that go into each end of the fuse are only connected to each other in the middle by copper silver aluminum zinc or some other alloy that can predictably maintain continuity for many years.

Step 1 turn off the power supply to the appliance or other electrical device if the device is hard wired. The most common types of automotive fuse are the blade fuse the mini fuse though the mini is really just a smaller version of the blade. If the fuse itself has not blown but the fuse holder melted it indicates that the fuse holder was making poor contact with the fuse. Make sure not to induce too much pressure or you might harm the conducting surface of the fuse.

If the microwave fuse blew because you opened the door while it was running that s a smoking gun otherwise you ll need to test the switch. Step 2 set an ohmmeter or multimeter dial to zero. Loose connections are common with poor quality fuse holders. If the appliance has a plug unplug the power cord.