4.3 Using a Voltmeter

This is the third and final week of Module 4 in the Navy Basic Electricity and Electronics series. The first two weeks were:

• 4.1 Current in a Series Circuit
• 4.2 Voltage in a Series Circuit

Here are my take-aways from this final section of this module:

• Always connect the multimeter in parallel when you are using it as a voltmeter (the opposite of an ammeter).
• If you do not know the voltage range you are measuring, start with the highest reading and work down.
• Your multimeter will likely have a section for DC (direct current) and a section for AC (alternating current). AC is the kind of electricity that comes out of a wall socket. DC is the kind of current that comes from a battery or self-contained unit.
• Black lead goes to the more negative side of some load bearing or current generating object, red on the more positive side.