Is it ok to leave scan tools, multimeters and other hand held electric devices in the cold garage? I live in Chicago and it is really cold in the garage and it is not heated. Wondering if damage will occur leaving scan tools, multimeters and other electronic devices in the cold temperatures?
Can the cold temps damage scan tools/multimeter?
- Thread starter gnx547
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RunninOnEmpty
Well-known member
generally it's fine though sometimes LCDs don't like it. Occasionally segmented displays break from it too but that's pretty rare. I would prefer not to leave an Agilent U1272A with a high-res LCD screen out there, but I'd probably be fine leaving most out there, including my Fluke 87. But in reality no matter which one you have, unless you are in a VERY extreme climate, it's unlikely to damage anything.
I can't speak for scanners but I know that multimeters are typically rated to be operable within a certain temperature range. If you're not in an extremely hot or cold climate, you shouldn't have to worry.
In general, LCD/LED screens tend to function "slower" in colder temperatures.
Hope that helps!
In general, LCD/LED screens tend to function "slower" in colder temperatures.
Hope that helps!
jlh92
Well-known member
I had a cheaper Ideal multimeter die in my garage a few winters ago. AC/DC selector button went out first followed by the LCD screen.
Strangely the free HF meters don't seem to be affected by the low temps or summer humidity.
Strangely the free HF meters don't seem to be affected by the low temps or summer humidity.
RunninOnEmpty
Well-known member
I can believe the screen, but the button? That's odd...
If that just happened I'd tell you it was a great opportunity to pick up a Brymen BM257 but I suppose you've already bought a new meter.
jlh92
Well-known member
I've actually been surviving with just a couple of the HF meters since then. I'll look into the Brymen.
RunninOnEmpty
Well-known member
Check out this video:
EEVBlog, both his Youtube videos and his forum content, is the best place to find info about multimeters. They don't have info about ALL of them but I know of no place more comprehensive.
Here's one of his teardowns of a well-known Chinese brand that still costs $50+ generally - HF and other cheaper stuff will be significant worse than this already-terrible meter:
I would never consider plugging even the Uni-T into mains power or anything high voltage, nor would I ever use it to measure more than 1-2 amps of current. Though for 12v stuff in a car it wouldn't be that unsafe.
And finally, EEVBlog's "Why cheap multimeters ****":
Greenlee typically rebrands Brymen and should be cheaper. Actually I think Brymen prices have gone up since I checked last year :/ I might have to find a different brand to recommend that is a little less expensive without being Uni-T... UEI's DM391 is a good meter for $110 but that might also be a little spendy for some.
(Sorry to ramble so much. I tend to ramble a lot...)
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A quick, unscientific search for "LCD temperature range" leads me to believe that:
(a) storage and operational temperature ranges are often different, and as expected, and if different than storage is wider than operational.
(b) the specified storage temperature range for LCD's seems to go down to at least -20C or -4F, depending on manufacturer [remember, I said it was a quick, unscientific survey].
You can draw your own conclusions but mine [based on Minnesota weather realities] are "don't worry a lot about it getting cold but let it warm up before trying to use it".
(a) storage and operational temperature ranges are often different, and as expected, and if different than storage is wider than operational.
(b) the specified storage temperature range for LCD's seems to go down to at least -20C or -4F, depending on manufacturer [remember, I said it was a quick, unscientific survey].
You can draw your own conclusions but mine [based on Minnesota weather realities] are "don't worry a lot about it getting cold but let it warm up before trying to use it".
jlh92
Well-known member
Yeah it looks like the Brymen is ~$130, same as the Greenlee rebrand. Both are well out of my price range at the moment. I'll probably just look for a decent used one when the need arises.
RunninOnEmpty
Well-known member
I've seen them under $100 before, so I was surprised when I looked them up again today.
I haul all my electronic stuff in the house during winter. Calipers, cordless drills, Power Probe, meters even cordless shop lights. They probably would be alright but the temps around here go negative at night a lot. They are just sitting in a tote in the laundry room.
RunninOnEmpty
Well-known member
What you definitely should store indoors is batteries, so if that means bringing in your cordless power tools, it's worth it. The alkaline batteries you probably use in a multimeter won't be affected too badly but NiCd and lithium-based batteries will be. I think NiMH is okay in the cold but not sure on that one.
For those with attached garages without direct heat that still stay at 50 degrees or something, though, leaving pretty much anything in there would be fine.
HammerMechanic
Well-known member
As others have said it should be fine, but I also notice the screens to be sluggish.
teletekman
Well-known member
I do keep my Modis as well as my Tektronix toaster o-scopes in the house during the winter. Granted we don't get near as cold here in the central valley as say back east but I still don't like taking chances giving what I paid for these devices. This goes for my new bore scope I got as well.
As for my Fluke meters, I have left them in my box in the garage from day one I got them when not in use and so far haven't had any issues.
As for my Fluke meters, I have left them in my box in the garage from day one I got them when not in use and so far haven't had any issues.
RunninOnEmpty
Well-known member
No way in heck would I leave my scope (a Rigol) out in the garage. I have most of my stuff in an unheated storage unit at the moment and while I'm not using the scope for anything currently, it is still waiting patiently in my bedroom. I think you made the right choice by being more careful with yours as well.
When I said earlier that LCDs don't like the cold... they can actually crack or otherwise completely break. I wasn't just referring to sluggish performance, though sluggish performance is almost a definite in the cold whereas cracking is just a slight possibility (if your equipment is good).
Here's an example of a broken LCD most likely due to cold: https://i.ytimg.com/vi/H6tDb49NEjE/hqdefault.jpg (the B5 A4 - I had one and mine did have this problem too)
I've heard of many people having laptop screens crack when left overnight in a car outside of a garage in a cold climate.
When I said earlier that LCDs don't like the cold... they can actually crack or otherwise completely break. I wasn't just referring to sluggish performance, though sluggish performance is almost a definite in the cold whereas cracking is just a slight possibility (if your equipment is good).
Here's an example of a broken LCD most likely due to cold: https://i.ytimg.com/vi/H6tDb49NEjE/hqdefault.jpg (the B5 A4 - I had one and mine did have this problem too)
I've heard of many people having laptop screens crack when left overnight in a car outside of a garage in a cold climate.
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BigNuge
Well-known member
I have kept my Flukes in my service van year round for 29 years. Never one problem outside of a slow LCD when it's real cold.
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RunninOnEmpty
Well-known member
Hard to say, but -30 can destroy some electronic components like LCDs and capacitors. Especially Chinese capacitors. So terrible.
Farmall 1066
Well-known member
I can verify that a month in a car left outside in temps ranging to -17 does not seem to phase the Harbor Freight scan tool.
crewchief888
Well-known member
my fluke, temp gun, and laptop stay in my service truck all the time.
only things i bring inside out of the cold are my li-ion batteries and phone.
near zero, (and below), air temps make the displays sluggish, and sometimes the laptop need to warm up before it will boot up.
RunninOnEmpty
Well-known member
It might perform well over a wider temp range if you put a solid state drive (SSD) in it. The bearings in a normal mechanical hard drive don't like extreme cold.
Rossco
Well-known member
Yeah I store the lappy in the cab. My Fluke meter is in a pelican box and sitting in the truck body.
When real cold -20C and lower the screen don't like to cooperate to well. Still works but dim. Never had a function error but not real precise readings are taken 99% of the time.
My power probe, the cord will stiffen up real good. The fluke leads are fairly uneffected.
When real cold -20C and lower the screen don't like to cooperate to well. Still works but dim. Never had a function error but not real precise readings are taken 99% of the time.
My power probe, the cord will stiffen up real good. The fluke leads are fairly uneffected.
neophyte
Well-known member
At least one model of Iphone could be bricked by cold.
crewchief888
Well-known member
laptop is company property, not mine. usually by the time i get where i'm going, tha laptop is warmed up enough to boot up.
Alabama who?
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I have just ordered a fancy ALL-LCD multimeter. It looks like a modern smart phone. I am beginning to think that I might have made a mistake. I live in Illinois, where typical over-winter lows formerly were always -20 degrees Fahrenheit or colder. There were days that the daytime high was -10. The other day it only got up to +17 by late afternoon. Will such a meter work in cold weather? I would not be storing the meter outside.
My neighbor's outside electric service circuit breaker box went bonkers. The box had a conduit opening at the top that was closed off, but either not sealed at all or not effectively. The rain was dripping in and hitting the 100A 240V circuit breaker just above where it attached to the input. The resulting arcing was disintegrating the bakelite. The contact was totally disconnected from the rest of the breaker. It was a wonder she had any service at all, instead of intermittent outages. I did not need to use a meter, but might have had to. This is the kind of work that I might occasionally need to do. I also sometimes work on vehicle electric systems.
Should I have ordered a meter with mechanical range switches and buttons instead?
My neighbor's outside electric service circuit breaker box went bonkers. The box had a conduit opening at the top that was closed off, but either not sealed at all or not effectively. The rain was dripping in and hitting the 100A 240V circuit breaker just above where it attached to the input. The resulting arcing was disintegrating the bakelite. The contact was totally disconnected from the rest of the breaker. It was a wonder she had any service at all, instead of intermittent outages. I did not need to use a meter, but might have had to. This is the kind of work that I might occasionally need to do. I also sometimes work on vehicle electric systems.
Should I have ordered a meter with mechanical range switches and buttons instead?
Attachments
Seems a bit overkill. My attached and insulated but normally unheated garage stays just above freezing when I'm not heating it. I've left pretty much everything out there, including all my battery powered tools, for years without ever having a premature failure. Some of my Dewalt batteries are 5+ years old and still going perfectly strong. I've got a cheapy caliper kicking around somewhere on the original 10+ year old battery that still works perfectly even.
Rabid Badger
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If you don't know what kind of meter you need to use when working with high energy circuits, you shouldn't be working on high energy circuits.
If you're going to do it anyway, at least get a meter with an independently verified CAT III certification. This Klein would work:
Klein Tools 600V AC/DC Auto Ranging Digital Multimeter, Drop Resistant, Temperature Measurement MM400 - The Home Depot
Prepare yourself to conquer all your music work projects at ease with the help of this Klein Tools AutoRanging Digital Multimeter.
www.homedepot.com
But seriously, call an electrician when it comes to the power company side of the breaker box.