Fluke 1653b ze issue 0.00 every time

[tomspark93]

I bought a brand new fluke 1653b just before Christmas, however I haven't really used it much as its mainly for personal use as I am looking to set up alone in the near future and I use a separate tester at work. When I bought the tester it came with a valid calibration certificate as this was included in the deal. It is valid until December.

Now, everything is working fine apart from when I carry out an external earth fault loop impedence test. This applies to both low current and high current test modes. The readings I am getting are 0.00 ohms ze and fault currents in the area of >20ka whilst carrying out pfc tests. This is happening consistently on different installs and I have cross checked with another calibrated tester which displays more expected readings, so I believe it's an issue with the tester.

Any ideas where to go from here? I'm pondering whether it's a calibration issue, faulty leads or whether the testers faulty. Any ideas would be handy before i part with any more money. Thanks guys.:juggle2:

 

[rattlehead85]

Had the exact same problem with a kewtech kt64 which turned out to be the processor which was unrepairable. Get it sent away and checked by a fluke dealer asap otherwise you might end up in the same boat as me.

 

[tomspark93]

Thanks, I've just sent fluke an email. I hope this is still under warranty if that's the problem.

 

[davesparks]

Check that the leads are nulled correctly and try it again.
Also you could try introducing a small known resistance in to the test and see if the tester registers this.
What result do you get when carrying out a Zs test? How does it compare to the same test carried out with an alternative tester?

 

[rattlehead85]

The more i read threads on these MF testers the more im beginning to think they are best left alone in favour of individuals.

 

[tomspark93]

Thanks Dave. I should've said in my op that I've tried that. So during a Zs test at a socket which obviously has the R1+R2 resistance I will get a reading above 0.00 ohms maybe 0.34 lets say. Although this is still lower than what the other tester would display. With something like a wander lead in series I'd get a more expected reading as well. It just seems to be ze where I get a reading of 0.00

 

[tomspark93]

Thinking slightly out of the box could it be a calibration issue if say it was calibrated with leads that are of a higher resistance to the ones I'm using (which came with the tester) hence it displaying a lower reading. Obviously a ze is low anyway it wouldn't take much before you get to 0. Although surely that's why you zero the leads. I hope that makes sense.

 

[Farmelectrics]

Get it re calibrated and explain to them what's been happening see what that say

 

[shanky887614]

The more i read threads on these MF testers the more im beginning to think they are best left alone in favour of individuals.

on another note im using cheap extech silicon leads on my fluke 179 i was using it today for safe isolation and some quick continuity tests (goes into Mohms ^^)

anyway i was getting a very high reading when nulling the leads on the megger in comparison and the leads are a lot longer on the fluke.

the quality of some leads are terrible

 

[davesparks]

Thinking slightly out of the box could it be a calibration issue if say it was calibrated with leads that are of a higher resistance to the ones I'm using (which came with the tester) hence it displaying a lower reading. Obviously a ze is low anyway it wouldn't take much before you get to 0. Although surely that's why you zero the leads. I hope that makes sense.

The calibration laboratory will have used correctly nulled leads, assuming you used a calibration laboratory and not a cheap calibration service.

It sounds like your results are consistently inaccurate, so for example every result you get may be 0.5ohms out. In this case your typical Ze values will be measured as a number below zero, but as the meter cannot display a result less than zero, zero is what it displays.

Assuming you have nulled the leads correctly and confirmed your test leads are in good order then I would say your tester needs to go back under warranty. You should have at least 2 years warranty

 

[Engineer54]

I bought a brand new fluke 1653b just before Christmas, however I haven't really used it much as its mainly for personal use as I am looking to set up alone in the near future and I use a separate tester at work. When I bought the tester it came with a valid calibration certificate as this was included in the deal. It is valid until December.

Now, everything is working fine apart from when I carry out an external earth fault loop impedence test. This applies to both low current and high current test modes. The readings I am getting are 0.00 ohms ze and fault currents in the area of >20ka whilst carrying out pfc tests. This is happening consistently on different installs and I have cross checked with another calibrated tester which displays more expected readings, so I believe it's an issue with the tester.

Any ideas where to go from here? I'm pondering whether it's a calibration issue, faulty leads or whether the testers faulty. Any ideas would be handy before i part with any more money. Thanks guys.:juggle2:

I take we are talking about purchasing this MFT just before Xmas 2014 and that the calibration certificate is valid until Dec 2015? The manufacturers warranty however will be generally be for 24 months....

If the above is correct, Unit is still under warranty, so stop arsing around. Package the lot up and send it all back to Fluke along with a copy of the calibration certificate it came with. Let them determine what's wrong with the MFT, it's down to them to provide you with a unit that is fit for purpose, whether that be by replacing your unit for new, or repairing your unit to factory stated specifications at their cost....
Why YOU are considering spending any more money on getting this MFT sorted out, is quite honestly beyond me!!

 

[Geordie Spark]

I take we are talking about purchasing this MFT just before Xmas 2014 and that the calibration certificate is valid until Dec 2015? The manufacturers warranty however will be generally be for 24 months....

If the above is correct, Unit is still under warranty, so stop arsing around. Package the lot up and send it all back to Fluke along with a copy of the calibration certificate it came with. Let them determine what's wrong with the MFT, it's down to them to provide you with a unit that is fit for purpose, whether that be by replacing your unit for new, or repairing your unit to factory stated specifications at their cost....
Why YOU are considering spending any more money on getting this MFT sorted out, is quite honestly beyond me!!

It's these young kids Eng ........... They have no idea. :frown2:

 

[tomspark93]

Haha thanks! I've had a reply off fluke technical this morning and they think it's a hardware issue so it's going back to them under warranty. If there's anything interesting is said I will post it up. Thanks for your replies.

 

[Geordie Spark]

Haha thanks! I've had a reply off fluke technical this morning and they think it's a hardware issue so it's going back to them under warranty. If there's anything interesting is said I will post it up. Thanks for your replies.

Y'see how simple & painless that was ...... and there was you getting yersel'all in a lather running around in circles tryin' to get some sense out of a bunch of deadbeats, pan handlers & impostors!!:laugh:


(just kidding lads - honest! )

 

[Geordie Spark]

I have a thing something like this here The CALBOX Calibration Checkbox

 

[shanky887614]

I take we are talking about purchasing this MFT just before Xmas 2014 and that the calibration certificate is valid until Dec 2015? The manufacturers warranty however will be generally be for 24 months....

If the above is correct, Unit is still under warranty, so stop arsing around. Package the lot up and send it all back to Fluke along with a copy of the calibration certificate it came with. Let them determine what's wrong with the MFT, it's down to them to provide you with a unit that is fit for purpose, whether that be by replacing your unit for new, or repairing your unit to factory stated specifications at their cost....
Why YOU are considering spending any more money on getting this MFT sorted out, is quite honestly beyond me!!

i would take it back to the place i got it from tell them its faulty and i would want either a loan tester from them,a new one or my money back.

it wouldnt be the first time ive done it either

 

[Engineer54]

i would take it back to the place i got it from tell them its faulty and i would want either a loan tester from them,a new one or my money back.

it wouldnt be the first time ive done it either

The supplier/retailer is only responsible (if that's the right term for it) if a fault occurs within 30 days, better suppliers within 60 days, and then generally only if they are an appointed retailer. After that it's solely down to the manufacturer to fulfill its warranty obligations. You can always take the unit back to the retailer, but beyond that 30 or 60 days they will only be obliged to send the unit to the manufacturers service dept. No obligation at all to provide a loan unit, a replacement unit and certainly no chance of a refund.


Probably quicker to return the unit to the manufacturer yourself, at least you know when the unit was actually sent...

 

[rattlehead85]

This is exactly what happened to me. The calibration was carried out including a hardware replacement was returned and was used twice in the 30 day period. After this the tester failed again, it was returned and i was then told the unit was now obsolete and could not be repaired. This was done at Kewtech service department where they charged me a lot of money for the original hardware replacement.

 

[Engineer54]

This is exactly what happened to me. The calibration was carried out including a hardware replacement was returned and was used twice in the 30 day period. After this the tester failed again, it was returned and i was then told the unit was now obsolete and could not be repaired. This was done at Kewtech service department where they charged me a lot of money for the original hardware replacement.

I take it that the unit was out of it's manufactures standard warranty period, which the above posts have been based on?

Even so i would have been back on to the service dept's manager and ask them for a full refund of the calibration/hardware charges if they cannot fulfill their 30 day warranty obligations through no fault of your own.... You have paid for a warranted service that they willingly accepted and carried out on a parts plus labour arrangement that ultimately failed. You are now left with a unit that is unfit for purpose...

 

[rattlehead85]

I take it that the unit was out of it's manufactures standard warranty period, which the above posts have been based on?

Even so i would have been back on to the service dept's manager and ask them for a full refund of the calibration/hardware charges if they cannot fulfill their 30 day warranty obligations through no fault of your own.... You have paid for a warranted service that they willingly accepted and carried out on a parts plus labour arrangement that ultimately failed. You are now left with a unit that is unfit for purpose...

Since been onto them to try but they have refused any sort of refund as their get out excuse is that they cant cover an item once the 30 days are up as it is open to wear and tear damage in transit or onsite misuse. Therefore in my case i have no other option other than to scrap the tester and see if i can sell for parts and steer well clear of kewtech branded gear in the future.[emoji107][emoji107]