Amprobe INSP-3 Wiring Inspector Circuit Tester

I wish I had this years ago. Measures several values in seconds on hot, neutral, and ground wires that tell you a lot about the health of a single-phase 120vac branch circuit. Pretty slick.In a quick walk around of my medium-sized 2-story 1989-built home I found all kinds of issues (indicated by blinking measured values), where several plugs measured 10-26% drop at 15 amp load as well as a few shorted grounds (neutral to earth). The majority were 3-5% drop, which is within NEC recommended range. All of the GFCI circuits tripped at 6mA so I couldn't test the 30mA GFCI-test feature. Now I need to decide what to do with the 20%-drop circuits... that's pretty large, and potentially could cause trouble.I primarily purchased this to verify new 120vac wiring installed in an out-building that will be running lots of motors and where I don't want excessive voltage drop. Further, I'm using power strips and extension cords and this easily tests those as well. I'd like to think all county electrical inspectors use something like this before giving their Final Approval... wouldn't take long to do the whole house.Build quality looks good. Case is rubberized and has a good grip (similar feel to Fluke). Red color makes case easy to spot. Back-lit screen is easy to read and text is large enough I don't need my reading glasses. Battery case doesn't show polarity, but rather you need to look at size of connector slots and match up to battery posts. No issues putting tester and plug-wire into the zip-case if I put the tester *head-down*... fits perfectly.I found operation to be intuitive after reading some of the other reviews:* For regular circuits just plug it in and wait a few seconds for 15A results. Toggle between the two data screens with the yellow Power/Select button.* Initial test is for 15A load. You can press 10 or 20A load buttons after 15A results post and the screen will refresh.* For GFCI or AFCI circuits you need to press one of those buttons *before* plugging in, and follow screen instructions. It will show load results first and then test the other features. I did find that even after pressing the GFCI button the GFCI breaker/outlet would occasionally trip which was a nuisance; it might be I was moving from one outlet to another without resetting the unit (using power button.)It may be worthwhile going to the Amprobe website... they sometimes offer reward gifts based on dollars spent (just like Fluke). In my case my Amazon purchase of this product qualified for other free Amprobe goodies. There's also a product registration page there.UPDATE 9/16/15: I reduced the rating a point due to ongoing problems assessing some GFCI breakers where (as mentioned above) the breaker will trip even when the tester is in the right mode. In some cases I've had to reset the breaker up to 10 times before I got test results. If the outlets being tested are a long distance from the breakers and there are no helpers around to reset the breaker this can be a real time killer.

Love what the tester provides. Unfortunately it quit working within the first week of use and I got the error code "Internal Fault Contact Factory". So here's the deal. I've come to the conclusion this tool is invaluable in troubleshooting and diagnostics to the point that I have ordered a second one. One to have in the field and one for back up for when it fails. I can't have down time waiting on a tool to come back from warranty especially when nobody keeps them on the shelves for purchase or replacement. Called Amprobe for warranty info today and there was no one to answer the phone or option to leave a message due to a staff meeting. Not sure how I completely feel about the tools efficiency as I only got to use it for a week. Hopefully amprobe pulls through with an efficient warranty program.

I just received my INSP-3 and spent a great day checking the circuits in the house. The unit worked as I expected it to, with one exception. Out of about 10 GFCI outlets there is one that the INSP-3 trips the instant I plug it in. I know the drill that you have to push the GFCI button on the INSP-3 before plugging in and I do that. The outlet still detects a ground fault and trips. Does this mean that there is some problem with the wiring or the outlet? The outlet responds properly when I press its test button and it does not trip when the washing machine that is plugged in there goes through its cycles. On another point, the unit is easiest to use on three-wire outlets, i.e., outlets with ground pins. But it will give useful measurements, such as voltage drop under load, on two-wire outlets. If you want the full range of information for a two wire circuit you can make that happen with a little fooling around. You just need to provide a ground reference from some other circuit. I put together a rig that converts a three-wire female plug to a two-wire male plug and separates the ground wire. By plugging the INSP-3 into the three-wire female plug and the two-wire male plug into the two-wire outlet, then connecting that ground wire to the ground on some other three wire outlet in the house, everything works.

I liked this unit at first - nice screen, quick response - but then discovered that it still wouldn't trip the new ACFI breakers in the new construction homes I was inspecting. Then, after a few months, I got the "internal fault error" that is noted in their manual. It was dead after that.They are replacing it, but after almost a month, I still don't have my replacement. 8 days ago, I got what I though was my replacement, but it turned out they shipped me the wrong product. Now I'm still waiting. I would rank their customer service as low. They should have over nighted it to me after the shipping error.Would not buy again. Will not recommend to other inspectors.

the carrying case is to small. i put mine in a kline bag. i also had a lot of trouble with it triping the breaker / gfci outlet as soon as its plugged in. i even called about it. they told me i needed to be sure to select afci / gfci before i plug it in. i have taken pics of the display with my cell phone to forward results to costumes.

Item as described, however appears to be a used or returned item. The seals on the hard plastic had been previously ripped open and the amprobe tester had visable scuffs on it.

Works out of the box exactly as described. It is definitely a very sophisticated tool that provides results you may not be able to get otherwise. I cannot validate its measurements but they do make sense, considering what I know about my house wiring and its problems.The tool is very narrowly aimed at the House Inspectors and its a "one trick pony". I wish it had more expanded capabilities. I cannot imagine that for the very considerable price you cannot get more than one function out of this tool, such as circuit tracer etc.I wish I could get it for free like some other reviewers of this product.

Works great no. Just be careful with GFCI's.

This tester amazing features and is very practical when it worksUnfortunately it suffers from an inherent design fault and fails for no reason and reads "internal fault" and Amprobe has no repair service so u are stuck replacing it every timeUnfortunately there is no other tester on the market with such good features at an affordable price