Power Condition...

[noshali]

What kind of a voltage meter can I use to monitor what voltage is coming in the power outlet and most importantly how many hz it is.

So is it really 110v at 60 hz. I am testing some invertors and want to make sure that eveything is kosher before I plug in something. Also what would help is if I could monitor 220v at 50 hz.

thanks & regards,

 

[WayneW]

Most low-end multi-meters do not have a frequency function. So you would probably need a higher quality device to do that.

The cheapest way I know to monitor frequency is to use a Kill-A-Watt or Watts-Up power usage monitoring device. Those are about $30 and up. But they are only 110V.

But, nothing short of some form of waveform analyzer, such as an oscilloscope will tell you the quality (ie roundness) of the waveform. Inverters & UPSes are famous for putting out stepped square waves and calling it a sine-wave-approximation. There is no problem doing that, as long as your load is happy with the waveform.

 

[noshali]

Thanks for the info. Kill a watt looks promising at least does eveerything for the 110v stuff. Now what is the difference between sine wave stuff and how do I choose a good invertor. I saw some pure sine wave ones that were twice the price of the regular ones.

I want to use this with a 12 volt battery or a 12 volt power source. Shouldn't it give me 110 at 60 hz...and how does hz stuff come in play with a straight 12 volt dc?

regards,