The capacitor testing function on many multimeters will NOT read correctly if:

The capacitor testing function on many multimeters will NOT read correctly if:

• A. The capacitor has a bleed resistor.
• B. The capacitor is polarized.
• C. The capacitor is ceramic.
• D. The capacitor is electrolytic.

Answer: (A)

Capacitance measurements with a handheld meter rely on charging the capacitor with a small, relatively leakage-free current and watching how the voltage rises. The meter assumes almost no leakage path other than the capacitor itself, so the charging rate directly reflects the capacitance. If the capacitor has a bleed resistor across it, that resistor provides a parallel path for current to leak away while the meter is trying to charge the capacitor. This extra leakage changes the effective time constant the meter uses to calculate capacitance, often making the reading too small or unstable and thus unreliable. That leakage path is the primary reason readings won’t be correct. While polarized, ceramic, or electrolytic capacitors have their own measurement considerations, the bleed path distortion is the key factor that interferes with the meter’s test.

Capacitance measurements with a handheld meter rely on charging the capacitor with a small, relatively leakage-free current and watching how the voltage rises. The meter assumes almost no leakage path other than the capacitor itself, so the charging rate directly reflects the capacitance.

If the capacitor has a bleed resistor across it, that resistor provides a parallel path for current to leak away while the meter is trying to charge the capacitor. This extra leakage changes the effective time constant the meter uses to calculate capacitance, often making the reading too small or unstable and thus unreliable. That leakage path is the primary reason readings won’t be correct.

While polarized, ceramic, or electrolytic capacitors have their own measurement considerations, the bleed path distortion is the key factor that interferes with the meter’s test.