Troubleshooting open and short in parallel circuits
In parallel circuit if one branch opens the other branch currents remain the same. This is because the
other branches still have the same applied voltage.
If one branch of a parallel circuit becomes shorted all branches are shorted too.
An open in parallel means infinite resistance that results in no current.
A short in parallel means developing extremely high current.
It’s a bit difficult to troubleshoot parallel circuits so there must be rules applied to do so;
Make a measurement with knowledge of what a good or bad reading is
Make few measurements as possible
Select the best rule
The best tool for troubleshooting parallel circuit are
Current probe
Current probe senses the magnetic field produced by a current carrying conductor and corresponding
voltage. Useful for circuits with discrete interconnecting wires. Current probe will sense no current if a
circuit is open.
Temperature `probe
Anothe3r attachment that can be used with DMM. Power dissipation in a circuit produces heat and
therefore relative value of temperature can be measured and used to troubleshoot a circuit.
Trouble shooting series-parallel circuits
The techniques we used to troubleshoot series and parallel individually should be combined to trouble
shoot series-parallel circuit
In series parallel circuit an open or short circuit in one path changes the circuit for the other resistance.
To troubleshoot series-parallel circuit first a technician should gather the information or data about the
defect in circuit they want to fix. To do these measurements should be done. Measurements like
voltage, current and resistance measurement. These measurements help us specify what is the defect
that occurred on our circuit.
