The uses of ceramic fuses nowadays are endless. When they are busted, though, it’s not a beautiful sight. After all, you’re stuck with a broken item. And if you don’t even know to identify a blown fuse, you won’t even know what’s wrong. So-
How to tell if a ceramic fuse is blown?
You need to start off by disconnecting the electrical equipment from power. And then take off the fuse. Be sure if your multimeter is working first. If it’s working, check your ceramic fuse next. If you don’t hear any beep sound then your fuse is broken.
This is just a brief overview. We’ve gone over the details in our article below.
Interested in knowing about them? Let’s scroll down and read the whole article!
How to Identify A Blown Ceramic Fuse
Glass fuses are usually easier to check if they’re blown or not. That’s why some like glass fuses over ceramic fuses.
But we’re talking about identifying blown ceramic fuses here.
To identify a blown ceramic fuse you basically have to test that particular fuse. Testing a fuse isn’t that hard at all. You may easily do this while remaining at home.
Without any further ado, let’s get right into identifying the blown ceramic fuse-
Step 1: Turning off The Equipment
You have to make sure your equipment is turned off before anything else. Make sure you have disconnected it from any type of power source.
If your equipment isn’t turned off, you risk damaging the equipment. You may even end up injuring yourself in the process.
Worst case scenario, you get sent to the hospital.
Once you have disconnected the equipment from any power source, take off the fuse. You don’t screwdrivers to take off a fuse.
Fuses are mounted in such a manner that they may be readily adjusted on and off. All you need to do is apply very little pressure with your hand.
Step 2: Testing The Multimeter
You’ll need a multimeter for testing your ceramic fuse. They’re available at almost every large hardware store. Here’s a list of some of the best Multimeters out there-
| Product 1 | |
| Product 2 |
You can use any of these multimeters to ensure accurate results. They have a lot of uses. You can check for grounding with a multimeter.
A multimeter’s function is to verify continuous circuit continuity. After turning your multimeter on, you need to place it in the continuity setting. The continuity setting looks like five vertical lines on the multimeter.
Now, we’ll be testing the multimeter first because we need to know our equipment is working. If our testing equipment itself isn’t working, how are we going to test the fuse?
Anyways, to test the multimeter, touch the ends of both of its wires. A beep sound is supposed to happen when you touch the wires. If it makes the sound then the multimeter is fine.
Now you can move on to testing the fuse.
Step 3: Testing The Ceramic Fuse
Once you’re sure you have a working multimeter, it’s time for you to check the fuse. Testing the Ceramic fuse is very easy.
Hold the two wires of the multimeter at two ends of the fuse. If you hear the beep sound, then the fuse is working. If you don’t, the fuse is broken.
The procedure will be somewhat different when you’re using a digital multimeter. First, test the multimeter itself. Check the reading and write it down.
Then test the ceramic the same way. Check if the reading is the same or not. If it’s not the same then it’s broken. And you’ll have to replace it.
When using a multimeter to test a tiny ignition coil, the procedure is fairly similar.
Follow all these steps thoroughly and you won’t face any more problems.
Alternative Method: Without A Multimeter
There’s an alternative that doesn’t require a multimeter. You’ll need a Finger-Safe Terminal to check your fuse for this method.
Without further ado, let’s look at how you can do this task-
Step 1: Placing The Wires
Safety is your first concern here. See if there’s any makeshift wire that’s touching any type of metal surface.
If any wire is touching any metal surface it could hurt you. You could get an electric shock or there could be an explosion.
See if you can identify if those wires are from Cerro wires or Romex or not. Those wires tend to be good. They have a pretty good name in the market too.
Anyways, take up the two wires in your hands. You’ll be placing one on the neutral side of the fuse. And the other one on the load side of the fuse.
Step 2: Testing The Fuse
The cables have interconnected bulbs that glow when electricity flows through them. If the fuse is okay, the bulbs will glow.
They’ll glow even if nominal voltage runs through them. But if the bulbs don’t glow then your fuse is blown. You’ll have to replace it.
Choose the approach that is most appropriate for you. Just remember to be safe.
FAQs
Question: Can I change a ceramic fuse for a glass fuse?
Answer: It’s usually not recommended to do so. Because a ceramic fuse and a glass fuse don’t usually have the same ratings. It’s only okay if they have the same ratings.
Question: Is it possible to know whether a fuse is blown simply by looking at it?
Answer: There are two methods to do this. One is if you notice a visible amount of gap. The other is, the insides covered in a dark smear.
Question: Why do the fuses in my house keep blowing?
Answer: Blowing fuses on a regular basis might indicate that the circuit is overloaded. This could be fixed by moving appliances and devices to other circuits.
Conclusion
This is just about everything on how to tell if a ceramic fuse is blown. To determine if a fuse has blown, all you need is a multimeter.
If your fuse is alright but your electrical equipment isn’t working, get an electrician.
Good luck!