Installation testing tools are used to ensure a facility’s electrical systems are installed safely and function correctly.
Faster and simpler – the Fluke 1670 Series aims to build on the company’s already great reputation for high-quality testing equipment.
We had the perfect tradie in mind for this test – Dean Wilks from Outlook Electrical. He needed to run some mandatory tests on a site in Melbourne, so we paid a visit with one of the new multifunction testers from the 1670 Series – the 1674FC.
Test #1: Speedy operator
The 1670 Series is all about speed.
Testing 30 per cent faster lets tradies like Dean get on with other jobs sooner. The 1670 Series also significantly speeds up documentation.
Gone are the days of slogging through menus and manually pulling everything together. With the 1670 Series, documentation time is cut by 50 per cent, making the whole process quicker and easier..
Fluke’s fantastic TruTest™ software helps making work simple before, during and after testing.
The software allows tradies to create their own custom auto-tests, as well as process straightforward reports for themselves and customers.
Dean particularly liked being able to establish his own templates before testing, which meant the data he was after quickly appeared on easily readable data sheets.
“When I add up how much time all this saves, it easily saves me over 50 per cent of time I’d spend compared to manually doing everything,” he said.
With Fluke Connect, that data is stored at a central point, making it a piece of cake for tradies to manage and share key points of data with customers.
Test #2: Easy fixer
One major reason behind the speediness of the 1674FC is the Auto Test* function.
This allowed Dean to run the entire test sequence with the press of just one button.
“This is great, easy and quick,” he said.
“The brains in this thing is incredible, it’s so smart.”
Dean did his mandatory testing, but loved being able to customise an auto sequence test as well as set multiple pretest sequence tests.
These had him well prepared for some of the more advanced tests he could do as a sparky.
When flicking through the menu of the 1674FC, was stoked to see the new testing features, including parameter limits, interference level indication, surge protection device (SPD) and insulation monitoring device (IMD).
“It’s been extremely easy to use, with a couple of touches I can get to test options,” he said.
“For example if I go to functions – I can check voltage, continuity, and a bunch of other important tests quickly.
“It covers our seven mandatory tests but many more. It’s definitely more than just a one trick pony.”
Satisfied tradie
Compliance is key for any job involving testing, and Fluke has tradies covered. The 1670 Series meets both IEC 60364 and IEC 61157 safety standards as well as AS/NZ 3000.
Overall, Dean was blown away by just how much easier and quicker the 1674FC made his job.
“This tool has been great,” he said.
“The client’s wrapped with how quickly we worked, and it’s good knowing you’re leaving the site and everything’s above board when it comes to compliance.”
Check it out
You can find this tool online here