Hi i am very new to the product with brief use in the training academy for Land Rover i have been using the pico to find a battery drain on a 2014 range rover and have found that when using i am getting 2 differnt readings when using the 2 different clamps TA167 and TA018 and i am just wondering if there is a link or can someone point me in the right direction as to how to set it up?
Thanks
Ciaran
Good ole LR Training Academy, it may have changed now but it went like this:
Question : "How do I test that component ?"
Answer :
1. You try a known Good from another vehicle in the workshop
2. That Component wont fail, but to be sure "You try a known Good from another vehicle in the workshop "
I have followed all 3 of the above and used the various theories / methods. Using the Resistor in Series is by far the most accurate method to measure the current flowing, Especially over long periods of time. Far better than the Amp Clamp, A DMM in series is good as long as you are stood in front of it and don't blink a lot.
If you are any thing like me then you may end up buying some resistors and a thermal imaging camera - well worth the money.
Well, as STC already has explained is there multiple different techniques to use, when we are trying
to diagnose parasitic current drain from the battery.Those current clamps you are referring to are not
build to measure the low current values as milliamps (mA).
I would agree with STC, that the resistor technique to measure parasitic current drain is the best method to use.
There are also another option and its called a "uCurrent Gold" which is a professional precision current adapter
for Multimeters. It is possible to measure nanoamps with this adapter !!!!!!!.
There is another method, to use a current sensor,used in the automotive eq. In particular the sensor used by Honda in BCM.
This sensor is very heat stable and accurate.To improve sensitivity ,it is possible wind 10 turns and placed into the sensor window.Turning on the osc into the recorder mode,you can record the signal of any length.