How to Measure Resistance With a Multi-Meter That Is One Decimal Off

Electric circuits have three basic qualities: voltage, current, and resistance. Voltage is analogous to water pressure, current is analogous to the volume of water that flows through a pipe, and resistance is analogous to the diameter of the pipe. You can measure these qualities using a multi-meter. Multi-meters are usually only capable of measuring a quality within a given range. For example, a multi-meter might be capable of measuring from 0 to 1 million Ohms (a measure of Resistance). Some have sensitivity dials that let you change this range. You can use this sensitivity dial to help measure resistance more accurately.

Things You'll Need

  • Multi-meter with two probes
  • Resistor
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Instructions

    • 1

      Attach one of the multi-meter probes to one end of the resistor by clipping the probe to the metal wire that sticks out of either end of the resistor.

    • 2

      Attach the other multi-meter probe to the other end of the resistor.

    • 3

      Turn on the multi-meter. Do this by turning on the switch marked "Power," or in some cases by turning the dial on the face of the multi-meter from "Off" to any other setting.

    • 4

      Set the dial to measure "Resistance," or "Ohm." Most multi-meters have several settings for measuring resistance. For example, the GB GDT-190A has five sensitivity settings for resistance: 200, 2000, 20K, 200K, and 2000K. Set the dial to any one of these resistance settings.

    • 5

      Read the measured resistance. If the value is preceded by multiple zeroes and a decimal point, you have the sensitivity set to the wrong setting. You can improve the accuracy of the reading by turning the dial to a lower number on the dial (e.g. move from 200K to 20K). On most multi-meters, each resistance setting is a factor of 10 larger than the previous, so every time you turn the dial the decimal point moves one digit over. For example, if you move the dial from 200K to 20K, the decimal point moves one spot the right.

    • 6

      Change the dial until you have a resistance reading with at least one digit to the left of the decimal point (e.g. "4.70").

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