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Testing Services
Overview
An appliance tester is a test instrument designed specifically for testing the
electrical safety of an appliance to a designated in standard. In
Australia, the applicable standard is the AS/NZS3760:2003 and for that reason,
appliance testers designed for use in Australia can perform tests and provide
results in accordance with the AS/NZS3760:2003.
The concept behind an appliance tester is that the device automatically checks
key aspects of an appliances electrical safety, and provides the user with a
PASS or FAIL result based on those measurements.
Although an appliance tester checks the electrical
integrity of an appliance, it is actually the initial visual inspection of an
appliance before testing which is most important and will identify the vast
majority of faults.
Physical Inspection
Where applicable, in-service testing and
inspection shall include:
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External inspection of the equipment and the
connecting facilities (eg flexible supply cord);
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Protective earth continuity tests for Class
1 equipment, power boards and cord sets;
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Insulation testing, which may be achieved by
measuring insulation resistance, or leakage current; and
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Confirmation of the correct polarity of live
connections in cord sets with re-wireable plugs and cord extension sockets.
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Checks for damage to flexible supply cords
that include:
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The inner cores of flexible supply cords
are not exposed or twisted;
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The external sheaths of flexible supply
cords are not cut, abraded, twisted, or damaged to such an extent that
the insulation of the inner cores is visible; and
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Unprotected conductors or the use of
banding insulation tape are not in evidence.
Note: Refer to AS 3760:2003, 2.3.2 for more
information relating to physical Inspection of electrical equipment.
Tests performed
In accordance with AS/NZS3760, the main tests we perform
are:
Some appliance testers just report a simple PASS or FAIL for each test.
More expensive equipment - like ours - can retain the actual result for each
test to be uploaded into a computer. We can also save additional asset
details, since the tester includes a full keyboard - such as comments on
condition, or location.
Our appliance tester (the Seaward PT300) also has a 30mA
residual current detection (RCD) test, which we perform when relevant.
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