Rant: The old way to check a door lock circuit versus just using a meter

I was on a call for a stuck car in a downtown office building last Tuesday, and the fault code pointed to the door lock. The old head who trained me always said to listen for the relay click and watch the light on the lock box (you know, the one with the little red LED). I spent maybe 20 minutes doing that, crawling around, trying to see if the light was on from a bad angle. My helper finally just handed me his Fluke meter and said 'check for 90 volts.' I did, and it was reading like 12. The problem was a corroded terminal in the junction box three floors up, not the lock itself. That click-and-light method is fine for a quick check, but it totally missed the voltage drop. Now I go straight for the meter. Has anyone else found a 'standard' way of doing things that actually wastes more time than it saves?

3 comments

3 Comments

jenkins.reese14d ago

My pride still hurts from that lesson.

jana_scott14d ago

I read somewhere that pride is the armor we wear to hide our soft spots.

joseph_ellis858d ago

Ever wonder how many of those old school tricks are just superstition in a tool belt. Sounds like you proved one wrong with a meter. What's the next "standard practice" you'd like to see retired for good.