Read this first: Guys, this is not How to use a multimeter class. This is how to use the multimeter that you own, presuming you own it for a reason and know what it does, to check continuity. If you're going out and buying a multimeter it should tell you on the packaging how to use it. You're looking for continuity, that it gives a reading. It does not matter what the reading is. If you want to be specific you can set your multimeter to "continuity" since that is what you're checking for, but if you set it to something else and touch the probes together and it gives you a reading you can use that too. It's giving you the same information, that there is a complete circuit. I hope that helps.
i know how to use a volt meter.i i understand perfectly the placement of the probes and the irrelevance of the colors.you method ,now that is the most efficient,intelligent,and "out of the box"way to troubleshoot and fix christmas lights.thank you for the enLIGHTenment ! subscribed
Hey man great video. But I needed this this 3 days ago when I was throwing a tantrum like a 4 year old out in front of my house when some of my lights weren't working after I had hung them all across my house. And yes I checked them before I hung them.
Haha! that happened to me on my tree last year. There was a loose bulb somewhere. You could jump on the floor and they would go on and take a step and they would go out. Was constantly yelling at the kids to stop running so the house didn't look like Club Snyder
Should have mentioned settings for novices. Also, it could be confusing to some people seeing the black wire in the plug but then using the same wire to test for continuity. Saying that out goes in the female end instead of the last bulb would be helpful. We forget that those little things are important to newbies when they're second nature to experienced users.
@@witbrodt I watched this video almost a year ago so I, unfortunately, don't remember specifics. Other than what I mentioned in my comment, I'm unable to help. Hopefully the creator sees your comment.
@@witbrodt the red line is connected for the duration of testing. The color of the probe doesn't matter as all youre looking to do is see if there is a completed circuit. For this reason the setting doesn't matter either. We're not looking for specific voltage or ohms, We're looking for a reading (any reading) to see if the circuit is complete or if there is a break in a bulb
@@TheFishinDadI’m going to test full dead string using AC mode. Manual says never connect to live circuit in OHMS (continuity) mode - seems like safety hazard to self, meter and your house. Ever test that way? BTW helpful video. Happy fishing!
My issue is on a pre-strung Christmas tree. Half a strand is out on the top part. Fuses are fine. Not sure if the bulbs are in order but will give this a try.
At 43 seconds in the video you put the black probe in to the female plug but don't really follow up on that line of testing. I assume that you we should keep the black probe in the plug and run the red probe to each light socket to check for connectivity but it isn't mentioned in the video. Instead, the video then skips to the method of testing with the red probe in the first light socket and the black probe moving from light to light. I'm also a little confused whether the lights are plugged in to power during this testing or not. There aren't many good xmas light multimeter testing videos out there and everyone is using a voltage detector for these now but my voltage detector isn't working and I got a multimeter handy so this video is all I got! Thanks for making the video but the gaps really do come from the comments.
The video shows the red probe is connected to the socket for the duration of testing. It doesn't matter what the colors are, all you are testing for is a completed circuit. If the circuit doesn't read it means there is a bulb that has blown, therefore creating a break in the circuit. The setting doesn't matter much either because again, you're not looking for specific voltage or ohms you're looking for a reading (any reading at all) to show the circuit is complete.
I have the two wires coming from the pronged end splitting, one going to the right, one going to the left. Depending on which side I put the negative probe of the prong, I'll get a reading on the first bulb it's connected to on the right or left (again depending on which side I probed the prongs), but there are no readings on the multimeter on anything after that one spot. Help. Also whichever gets a reading doesn't even light up when I put bulbs in. Yes, the bulbs have been tested that I put in
Perfect timing! I like your how to vids, the rod rack is a really good one! I'd like to share that one on my channel if you don't mind sometime and give you a shout out on it. Let me know what you think!
The Fishing Hobby absolutely man, and we're going to give another one away this year, I meant to record it today but didn't get a chance so look for that too if you're interested:)
Sounds awesome and I will definitely check out the giveaway! I don't know if you saw it, but I did a ceiling mounted rod rack video a while back. It is more just for functionality but I saw your rod rack a while back and thought it was a really nice looking design. Let me see what I can come up with on a content share video and I will run it by you first of course before making it public.
I did see that! If I had a garage I would totally have stolen it! I keep all my stuff in the basement which is also a hangout/ my workshop/ and my bedroom and the ceilings are a little low, haha!
Hoping someone in the comments might have a solution. I have an LED light strand where 2/3 is out. I used my multimeter and have a connection on adjacent sockets, but can't skip a light. I have tried replacing the "middle" bulb with a good bulb I have from somewhere else on the strand and it still doesn't work. It also doesn't matter where I am on the strand, adjacent sockets give a reading, but I can't skip a light. Anyone have any thoughts as to what might be going on?
I appreciate the comments by others, but this is the most confusing you tube I've ever seen. The common is no longer in the multimeter when you tested the first light. Where should the dial be on the multimeter? Sorry but I've watched this over and over and nothing was easy.
It doesnt matter where the dial is because you're not concerned about how much of a reading you get, only that you get a reading. You're only trying to find out if there is continuity between two points on the string. I also don't know what you mean about the common no longer being in the multimeter. Everything is connected hence the reading
Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays to all. @Bill Polhamus I don’t know what you’re talking Bill because the video is very informative as well as accurate. You need a better understanding of electrical circuits. When checking continuity through the lights you are only testing one line of the light. It would be the negative or positive side depending on the polarity of the plug. (The way that it is plugged in). Saying that, there is another line that runs (3 lines total) so be certain to check that line as well to ensure that you have tested both sides of the circuit. For those of you that are not fortunate enough to have a broken lead on your multi-tester, just touch the side of the light that is closest to the direction of where your testing. There you have it, Clear as Mud! Enjoy!
@@scotthsmith8635 the 3rd line is the other half of the strand .so thats the reason for starting in the middle.that 3rd and 2nd lines both come out of the first socket hot but the 3rd does not enter another socket til 51st socket on a 100 light strand and the 2nd line comes out of the 50th socket and does not enter another socket til the 100th socket an #1 and #100 are the only 2 sockets that all 3 lines are in together ? did i get that correct?
This is called bubble sorting and is used in computing all the time. Where you test half and then half of that and then half of that. Because this is a n squared method to sort.
Don't understand why you put the black probe of the multi meter in the end of cord of the light strand? What purpose does this serve when you use both probes for checking the light sockets? This step is confusing to me plz explain..
You're checking for continuity. You're completing a circuit. The connection needs to be complete. It doesn't matter what probe goes where as long as you have a full circuit. I would look up a circuit diagram
Some of my LEDs were out and I jumpered each one of them individually across my headlamp battery bank of 3 AAAs or 4.5 volt total and kept trying to blink them from very dim and they jump started and pretty soon they each came on to full brightness and now they work back in the original string so what's up with that?
This is actually specifically for lights wired in series. Parallel is much easier to find, BUT if you find your bad bulb and replace it and it still doesn't light the string it means you have another bulb or more somewhere. The trick is working in larger sections and moving to smaller sections. Your start point doesn't necessarily have to be at the beginning of the series. It could be between 2 sockets that you know the bulbs are good in as well
@@TheFishinDad What I mean is, my lights are wired in several groups of lights in series, and these groups are in parallel. Will it still work this way? The tester won't find false alternate paths? Trouble with mine is that nothing is lighting but the fuses are good, which leads me to believe there are several bad bulbs (all same time) or a break in common path. I've been struggling with this for some time, trying to use NCV with little luck, but refusing to give up based on principals. :P
@@Kenjaiz I imagine that each grouping would be it's own loop, so this should still work as long as you have that in mind working from section to section
@@TheFishinDad I'm in a bizarre situation. I pulled out a random bulb, tested the bulb using diode mode, and it lights up. I pulled two adjacent bulbs and attempted to test the same bulb using the same diode mode and even tried resistor mode, placing probes at the adjacent empty sockets, but it just won't read anything, as if it's opened. I made sure to flip the probes in case I got the polarity wrong in diode mode. I repeated the test at a few different spots, with the same results. I know the wires are okay, because continuity test passes with no bulbs present. So what's left? The connection with the bulbs in the socket are not good? Seems like an awful coincidence that they all have the same problem at the same time. I'm completely baffled.
Im not sure why you're here then but welcome! That's a handy mod in the newer more expensive strings that have a third, constant, wire running. Though those usually have an inhibitor halfway through the string and if you get a surge it will burn out all the lights on the second half and all will need to be replaced. Always a need to trouble shoot. Thanks for watching!
Those strands are always wired in sets of 50 bulbs. For those, you can try the light fixer pro. Surprising, but that things works. More than 50% of the time it is just a loose bulb are the shunt went bad; that thing usually will fix the shunt, and you can just change out one bulb. It also has a light test, so you can pull a bulb and see if it lights up. The voltage detector on it is lame, though.
Electrical troubleshooting always seems a black art to me. I’ve got several strings of lights that only 1/2 the bulbs work. Electric tester says good continuity everywhere. Huge waste of time. Into the trash they go. Next year no lights will be hung. Problem solved - bah humbug.
@@TheFishinDad..."10 bucks at Harbor Freight"??? I remember when HF was selling those things for like 4.99...got mines for free with a store purchase & a coupon. Anyways, great video, the beauty is in the simplicity.
True, and the majority of, (if not all), Christmas lights to my knowledge are these days. I know there were some manufactured in the 50's and 60's that were on parallel circuits but other than that I'm not aware of any newer ones.
2:26 Incorrect statement, you never tested that side. How can you determine that left side is good without touching it ?? You went from right to middle ..
@@TheFishinDad I put my multimeter on ohms x10, left the strand plugged in to the wall, as long as the needle moved I knew the circuit was complete. I got a good set of extra bulbs, as I skipped around, I always put in a good bulb. I had a bulb tester so I made sure every replacement was good. I started with the bulb closest to the wall outlet, went on from there every 5 bulbs or so.
Ohms is denoted by SI symbol on your multimeter. It looks like the Omega symbol if that helps. And it doesn't matter too much what you have it set to because you're checking if there is continuity at all, not actually measuring resistance. As long as your meter gives a reading when you touch the probes together on any setting then you have continuity. That's all you care about here. I did mention in the description that this video was for those with a basic concept of electrical current.
Read this first:
Guys, this is not How to use a multimeter class. This is how to use the multimeter that you own, presuming you own it for a reason and know what it does, to check continuity. If you're going out and buying a multimeter it should tell you on the packaging how to use it. You're looking for continuity, that it gives a reading. It does not matter what the reading is. If you want to be specific you can set your multimeter to "continuity" since that is what you're checking for, but if you set it to something else and touch the probes together and it gives you a reading you can use that too. It's giving you the same information, that there is a complete circuit. I hope that helps.
I’m all over it now!!!!!( happy life, happy life!)
i know how to use a volt meter.i i understand perfectly the placement of the probes and the irrelevance of the colors.you method ,now that is the most efficient,intelligent,and "out of the box"way to troubleshoot and fix christmas lights.thank you for the enLIGHTenment ! subscribed
EnLIGHTenment, lol, love it, thank you!
Thank you after all these years I'm no longer throwing away entire strings of lights!
Hey man great video. But I needed this this 3 days ago when I was throwing a tantrum like a 4 year old out in front of my house when some of my lights weren't working after I had hung them all across my house. And yes I checked them before I hung them.
Haha! that happened to me on my tree last year. There was a loose bulb somewhere. You could jump on the floor and they would go on and take a step and they would go out. Was constantly yelling at the kids to stop running so the house didn't look like Club Snyder
The Fishin' Dad lol
😂😂😂😂
Should have mentioned settings for novices. Also, it could be confusing to some people seeing the black wire in the plug but then using the same wire to test for continuity. Saying that out goes in the female end instead of the last bulb would be helpful. We forget that those little things are important to newbies when they're second nature to experienced users.
Yes exactly - both of these things confused me. Soooo what are the answers?
@@witbrodt I watched this video almost a year ago so I, unfortunately, don't remember specifics. Other than what I mentioned in my comment, I'm unable to help. Hopefully the creator sees your comment.
@@witbrodt the red line is connected for the duration of testing. The color of the probe doesn't matter as all youre looking to do is see if there is a completed circuit. For this reason the setting doesn't matter either. We're not looking for specific voltage or ohms, We're looking for a reading (any reading) to see if the circuit is complete or if there is a break in a bulb
@@TheFishinDad - God Bless you!!!! I was driving myself crazy trying to figure that out! Lol
@@TheFishinDadI’m going to test full dead string using AC mode. Manual says never connect to live circuit in OHMS (continuity) mode - seems like safety hazard to self, meter and your house. Ever test that way? BTW helpful video. Happy fishing!
My issue is on a pre-strung Christmas tree. Half a strand is out on the top part. Fuses are fine. Not sure if the bulbs are in order but will give this a try.
thank you. I been outside replacing bulbs for hours lol. This will be better
Hi maybe I missed it. But what do you have your multimeter set to?
Hi, I'm sorry, I don't think I did mention it. I just have it set to Ohms since we're just checking for continuity.
@@TheFishinDad thank you so much!
Genius
Great video every year during Christmas
thanks! I really appreciate you being direct and to the point. God Bless!
Wait, so one end of the multimeter was plugged into the plug end of the strand and the other probe was used to check the bulbs?
Does this work for both LED and incandescent?
Genius Status!!!! I have been struggling for ages....
Thank you! Merry xmas to you as well! I’m trying to fix my lights now!
Best of luck Diane!
At 43 seconds in the video you put the black probe in to the female plug but don't really follow up on that line of testing. I assume that you we should keep the black probe in the plug and run the red probe to each light socket to check for connectivity but it isn't mentioned in the video. Instead, the video then skips to the method of testing with the red probe in the first light socket and the black probe moving from light to light. I'm also a little confused whether the lights are plugged in to power during this testing or not.
There aren't many good xmas light multimeter testing videos out there and everyone is using a voltage detector for these now but my voltage detector isn't working and I got a multimeter handy so this video is all I got! Thanks for making the video but the gaps really do come from the comments.
The video shows the red probe is connected to the socket for the duration of testing. It doesn't matter what the colors are, all you are testing for is a completed circuit. If the circuit doesn't read it means there is a bulb that has blown, therefore creating a break in the circuit. The setting doesn't matter much either because again, you're not looking for specific voltage or ohms you're looking for a reading (any reading at all) to show the circuit is complete.
Also I did specifically state in the video that the lights were unplugged
this was great thank you so much I have been messing with these things for hours.
So glad it could help!
Awesome video, brother! Great troubleshooting advice!
thank you for not making a 20 minute video about a five minute project.
Thank you for your help man really.
Plain everyday advice that the world needs more of! FB Friend #791
Love you dude, makes perfect sense, thank you for sharing! Merry Christmas!
Thank you! Merry Christmas to you too!
Awesome tip brother
Thanks.
I have the two wires coming from the pronged end splitting, one going to the right, one going to the left. Depending on which side I put the negative probe of the prong, I'll get a reading on the first bulb it's connected to on the right or left (again depending on which side I probed the prongs), but there are no readings on the multimeter on anything after that one spot. Help. Also whichever gets a reading doesn't even light up when I put bulbs in. Yes, the bulbs have been tested that I put in
Nice tip.
Great tips man!! 👊
MrTully41 thank you sir!
Will this work on old lights, and led?
Yes
Perfect timing! I like your how to vids, the rod rack is a really good one! I'd like to share that one on my channel if you don't mind sometime and give you a shout out on it. Let me know what you think!
The Fishing Hobby absolutely man, and we're going to give another one away this year, I meant to record it today but didn't get a chance so look for that too if you're interested:)
Sounds awesome and I will definitely check out the giveaway! I don't know if you saw it, but I did a ceiling mounted rod rack video a while back. It is more just for functionality but I saw your rod rack a while back and thought it was a really nice looking design.
Let me see what I can come up with on a content share video and I will run it by you first of course before making it public.
I did see that! If I had a garage I would totally have stolen it! I keep all my stuff in the basement which is also a hangout/ my workshop/ and my bedroom and the ceilings are a little low, haha!
I have the content share video uploaded. I will try to send you a link via facebook for you to review...
Hoping someone in the comments might have a solution. I have an LED light strand where 2/3 is out. I used my multimeter and have a connection on adjacent sockets, but can't skip a light. I have tried replacing the "middle" bulb with a good bulb I have from somewhere else on the strand and it still doesn't work. It also doesn't matter where I am on the strand, adjacent sockets give a reading, but I can't skip a light. Anyone have any thoughts as to what might be going on?
I appreciate the comments by others, but this is the most confusing you tube I've ever seen. The common is no longer in the multimeter when you tested the first light. Where should the dial be on the multimeter? Sorry but I've watched this over and over and nothing was easy.
It doesnt matter where the dial is because you're not concerned about how much of a reading you get, only that you get a reading. You're only trying to find out if there is continuity between two points on the string. I also don't know what you mean about the common no longer being in the multimeter. Everything is connected hence the reading
Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays to all. @Bill Polhamus I don’t know what you’re talking Bill because the video is very informative as well as accurate. You need a better understanding of electrical circuits. When checking continuity through the lights you are only testing one line of the light. It would be the negative or positive side depending on the polarity of the plug. (The way that it is plugged in).
Saying that, there is another line that runs (3 lines total) so be certain to check that line as well to ensure that you have tested both sides of the circuit.
For those of you that are not fortunate enough to have a broken lead on your multi-tester, just touch the side of the light that is closest to the direction of where your testing. There you have it, Clear as Mud! Enjoy!
@@scotthsmith8635 the 3rd line is the other half of the strand .so thats the reason for starting in the middle.that 3rd and 2nd lines both come out of the first socket hot but the 3rd does not enter another socket til 51st socket on a 100 light strand and the 2nd line comes out of the 50th socket and does not enter another socket til the 100th socket an #1 and #100 are the only 2 sockets that all 3 lines are in together ? did i get that correct?
This is called bubble sorting and is used in computing all the time. Where you test half and then half of that and then half of that. Because this is a n squared method to sort.
I think you mean Binary Search?
Thanks, what about what to set the multimeter at😢
Why can't I check continuity on a christmas light bulb
You can. Continuity is ohms
Don't understand why you put the black probe of the multi meter in the end of cord of the light strand? What purpose does this serve when you use both probes for checking the light sockets? This step is confusing to me plz explain..
You're checking for continuity. You're completing a circuit. The connection needs to be complete. It doesn't matter what probe goes where as long as you have a full circuit. I would look up a circuit diagram
Some of my LEDs were out and I jumpered each one of them individually across my headlamp battery bank of 3 AAAs or 4.5 volt total and kept trying to blink them from very dim and they jump started and pretty soon they each came on to full brightness and now they work back in the original string so what's up with that?
Would this method work with lights that are wired in both parallel and series? Could I just pick my starting point at one end of the series?
This is actually specifically for lights wired in series. Parallel is much easier to find, BUT if you find your bad bulb and replace it and it still doesn't light the string it means you have another bulb or more somewhere. The trick is working in larger sections and moving to smaller sections. Your start point doesn't necessarily have to be at the beginning of the series. It could be between 2 sockets that you know the bulbs are good in as well
@@TheFishinDad What I mean is, my lights are wired in several groups of lights in series, and these groups are in parallel. Will it still work this way? The tester won't find false alternate paths?
Trouble with mine is that nothing is lighting but the fuses are good, which leads me to believe there are several bad bulbs (all same time) or a break in common path. I've been struggling with this for some time, trying to use NCV with little luck, but refusing to give up based on principals. :P
@@Kenjaiz I imagine that each grouping would be it's own loop, so this should still work as long as you have that in mind working from section to section
@@TheFishinDad I'm in a bizarre situation. I pulled out a random bulb, tested the bulb using diode mode, and it lights up. I pulled two adjacent bulbs and attempted to test the same bulb using the same diode mode and even tried resistor mode, placing probes at the adjacent empty sockets, but it just won't read anything, as if it's opened. I made sure to flip the probes in case I got the polarity wrong in diode mode.
I repeated the test at a few different spots, with the same results. I know the wires are okay, because continuity test passes with no bulbs present.
So what's left? The connection with the bulbs in the socket are not good? Seems like an awful coincidence that they all have the same problem at the same time.
I'm completely baffled.
This is a good method, but unfortunately, it only works on old type incandescent bulbs
I'm not sure what it's called but when a bulb burns out on my lights, only that bulb goes out. Makes it easy to see which ir is.
Im not sure why you're here then but welcome! That's a handy mod in the newer more expensive strings that have a third, constant, wire running. Though those usually have an inhibitor halfway through the string and if you get a surge it will burn out all the lights on the second half and all will need to be replaced. Always a need to trouble shoot. Thanks for watching!
@@TheFishinDad thanks, I've never used a multimeter so I'll need to learn that first but thanks for the video.
Ok, but what if every bulb is bad? Lol.
I had a half a dozen string lights where half the string lit up, and not the rest. I wound up tossing them. Should of tried this first.
Those strands are always wired in sets of 50 bulbs. For those, you can try the light fixer pro. Surprising, but that things works. More than 50% of the time it is just a loose bulb are the shunt went bad; that thing usually will fix the shunt, and you can just change out one bulb. It also has a light test, so you can pull a bulb and see if it lights up. The voltage detector on it is lame, though.
Maybe if you could at least lower the music. You have a quiet voice and speak quickly which makes it difficult to understand you.
YESSS!! 3yrs after this comment, but YESS!! So hard to hear :(
Haha lower music
Electrical troubleshooting always seems a black art to me. I’ve got several strings of lights that only 1/2 the bulbs work. Electric tester says good continuity everywhere. Huge waste of time. Into the trash they go. Next year no lights will be hung. Problem solved - bah humbug.
😲What do I do if I don't have any of the tools to test it???
The multimeter I have was 10 bucks at harbor freight. Less than the cost of a string of lights.
@@TheFishinDad..."10 bucks at Harbor Freight"??? I remember when HF was selling those things for like 4.99...got mines for free with a store purchase & a coupon. Anyways, great video, the beauty is in the simplicity.
Are you going to do some ice fishing?
Jalen McKenzie I'm hoping to. It will be my first year doing it so I'm slowly but surely getting geared up for it
Can’t hear what you’re saying the Christmas music is louder low sound quality
It's a 6 year old video
Couldn't hear you over the music
you must have been a telephone repairmen
This will only work on strings that are wired in series.
True, and the majority of, (if not all), Christmas lights to my knowledge are these days. I know there were some manufactured in the 50's and 60's that were on parallel circuits but other than that I'm not aware of any newer ones.
Most modern Christmas lights have to series circuit
TURN THE MUSIC OFF!! Cannot hear anything you are saying!
No can do livin country. Its a 5 year old video. Merry Christmas
2:26
Incorrect statement, you never tested that side. How can you determine that left side is good without touching it ?? You went from right to middle ..
Try 3:50 for the answer😊
binary search for the win
noice
Turn it on to what setting...come on.
Please refer to the pinned comment
@@TheFishinDad I put my multimeter on ohms x10, left the strand plugged in to the wall, as long as the needle moved I knew the circuit was complete. I got a good set of extra bulbs, as I skipped around, I always put in a good bulb. I had a bulb tester so I made sure every replacement was good. I started with the bulb closest to the wall outlet, went on from there every 5 bulbs or so.
You did not explain anything. You didn't even explain where to set the Multimeter. I am not as smart in the electrical field i have no idea.
Ok so i read a comment saying you set the meter to ohms. I do not have that setting.
Ohms is denoted by SI symbol on your multimeter. It looks like the Omega symbol if that helps. And it doesn't matter too much what you have it set to because you're checking if there is continuity at all, not actually measuring resistance. As long as your meter gives a reading when you touch the probes together on any setting then you have continuity. That's all you care about here. I did mention in the description that this video was for those with a basic concept of electrical current.