You will know when you need them.
I'd never trust a wiggy to begin work on a circuit. It's a meter only for me.I can’t speak for other countries, but in the U.K. working on live apparatus is pretty much out of the question for a regular electrician.
Some specialists get involved with it, and also the power distribution sector, but not regular electricians.
The reasons that insulated tools are recommended (which they are) are twofold.
Firstly, you have additional protection should a circuit you think is isolated is actually live. This is a rare occurrence, but it has happened.
The main reason is that with the U.K. being 240 volt, there is a lot more protection than in countries with lower voltages. If you were working on an incorrectly isolated circuit, and if you were say touching a neutral terminal with an uninsulated screwdriver, but brushed against an earthed component, you would trip the Earth Leakage Breaker, together with any Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter.
As a non pro there is no way I would even think of working on a live circuit. The main switch would be off, the breaker for that circuit would be pulled, and if there is anybody else in the building probably removed as well.
And I’ll still use a voltage detector before working on any cable or fitting. One of these should be your first purchase!
For what it’s worth, my favourite insulated screwdrivers are these Wiha. The insulation is flush with the tip, so you don’t keep catching it when working on terminals. No penalty for using these.
415/240 is uncommon in the US, but if you find it, it's most likely in a data center.
I have a few wiggys I keep around because I'm too cheap to keep a separate LoZ meter, but I agree, they're pretty obsolete nowadays.
I’ll do it for 120v but 220v+ is too risky for me.
"Wiggy pen" is the only name I've heard them called.I've never heard a NCVT called a wiggy. We call them crickets around here.
This is what I picture when someone says Wiggy:
Yes, that's a Wiggy. Solenoid Wiggy testers are good up to Cat II, but are questionably safe on Cat III. They're LoZ, which is useful (in some odd cases), and are are pretty reliable, but not something I'd recommend anyone go out and buy.I've never heard a NCVT called a wiggy. We call them crickets around here.
This is what I picture when someone says Wiggy:
I wish more multimeter leads came with spring loaded retractable tips like my Wiggy has.
Check out Fluke's TwistGuard leads.
It has only been in the last 12 years that it became illegal to work on alive here , you can test it alive , but it was the normal to work on alive switchboards , we are talking 2000 - 4000 amp twin substation supply on a city high rise because the bank or Amex or hotel did not want a outage and it really is a lack of respect for life of us sparkies , a good change
