Wiring a digital volt /ammeter

[CH3CH2OH]

I bought a volt / ammeter off ebay that will read up to 300 v and I want to wire it to show the 220 going to the boiler

If I attach the red wire from the ammeter to red and black to neutral, it reads 110v

This might be a stupid question but here goes

in order to get the meter to read 220v do I wire it as follows?

attach the red to the red pole and the black to the black pole. Will it now read 220v? or fry the meter??

if this is not correct, what is the correct way to wire it?

Thanks for the input

[bellybuster]

yes, red to red, black to black. you need to read both sources of 110v. This is only true for the volt meter side of the meter. The amps are a different story.

[CH3CH2OH]

I was 99% sure but it didn't come with any instructions or anything so thought I'd check

I made a new control box out of a 30 amp disconnect switch, some ebay parts and the PSR/pot out of the original MK 5500 I bought about 5 years ago.

The volt / ammeter has a built in shunt so the ct was easy to hook up. Ran the load wire from the PSR 25 to the element through the donut to measure amp changes as the pot is adjusted

Thanks

[CH3CH2OH]

red to red and black to black = nothing

red to red and black to neutral = meter turns on reading 110v

any ideas?

[rad14701]

Do you have a picture of it...??? Make...??? Model #...??? Anything...???

[acfixer69]

C Your not giving too much info on the new wiring but I will guess here. When r to r and b to b if read after the relay the element needs to be in service or it will read 0 volts. Just checking may be that simple.

AC

[CH3CH2OH]

Here is the same one.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/300922607400?ss ... 1423.l2649" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

when it is hooked up to the red and black poles BEFORE the relay nothing happens no backlight, no readings, nothing, looks dead

if it is hooked up red to red pole and black to neutral everything comes on and it reads 110v , 0 amps as there is no load hooked up

ammeter ct has the wire after the psr going to the element running through the donut to measure amps going to element

[acfixer69]

C r to r and b to b before the relay and no voltage That meter is same as I have neutral rail is not used just earthed.
What country are you in??

AC

You may have made a wiring error in the new box if you are in the north americas

[CH3CH2OH]

Canada

[CH3CH2OH]

This is my wiring

[CH3CH2OH]

Wow do I feel stupid now!!

When I clipped the breaker back in, I missed the proper slot by one space and of course I had both poles clipped into the same bus

All fixed and running right now!!!

[pope]

Okay I'm looking to install the same volt/amp meter to my system. Just a sanity check, but if I have 220v 30a to the 5500w element, my black pole currently runs to the ssr and on to the element, the red pole runs straight through. If I were to connect red to red by splitting that line with a wire nut and wiring in the meter, do the same for the black pole after the ssr, and loop, say, the red line through the donut, the meter should work properly? I've been staring at wiring diagrams for an hour and I just don't want to start any fires.

[Lyonsie]

I used to work in electrics. Soley based upon what iv researched here, american and European electrical systems are completely different. The laws surrounding measuring amperage and voltage won't have changed though. There two very different methods.

[skow69]

Okay I'm looking to install the same volt/amp meter to my system. Just a sanity check, but if I have 220v 30a to the 5500w element, my black pole currently runs to the ssr and on to the element, the red pole runs straight through. If I were to connect red to red by splitting that line with a wire nut and wiring in the meter, do the same for the black pole after the ssr, and loop, say, the red line through the donut, the meter should work properly? I've been staring at wiring diagrams for an hour and I just don't want to start any fires.

All good except the black wire must be connected before the ssr where the voltage remains constant. If you connect it after the ssr, then when you turn the power down below 80 volts it will fail. I know that sounds wrong. I fought hard against it until I saw the proof. It is a very very smart meter.

The donut can go on either the black or red anywhere. The current is constant in a series circuit.

BTW miswiring won't flame up. It just goes BANG and stops working. Then you feel like an idiot and order a new one.

[pope]

Going 'bang' sounds manageable. I'm sensitive to electric fires after a hot laptop had a more dramatic end than a simple 'bang'. But that's another story for another thread; suffice to say there are more smoke detectors in the house now (I understand this was a different cause than miswiring, but I still had to share). I'll wire before the SSR as suggested and be firing it up on Sunday when the part comes in! Looking forward to it, thanks very much for the info.

[Pipinchaz]

Belly Buster,
I am looking at the Still Dragon lg controller kit for my build alone with a 220V 5500 watt element and would like to wire in an Amp meter.
How can I do this and what amp meter would you recommend?
Thank you.