At 10:47 PM 3/15/2011, Robert Stevens wrote:
>Makes me wonder that if you were to run a test wire with a fuse in
>its line, bypassing the fuse panel, to the wires going into the back
>of the fuse panel at #8, .... if you'd then find out
>that something has "melted" in the panel that is creating the resistance?

Bob, when you're tracing a short circuit controlled by a single fuse
and without easy means to disconnect parts of it there are three
basic ways to go about it.  First is visual inspection, oops I mean
looking at it.  Second is measuring resistance; but that requires a
much more sensitive ohmmeter than most of us have access to.  The
third (which I described in my previous post) is essentially to fake
a very sensitive ohmmeter by passing a large but controlled current
through the circuit and measuring the voltage drops.  The branches
with no current flowing will show a constant low voltage, but the
branch with the short will show a voltage that decreases as you get
nearer and nearer to the short.

Ah - with the new clamp-on DC ammeters there's a fourth method as well.

Then there are all the ways involving unhooking stuff, of course.

Yours,
David