General Tools BF10 User Manual

AC CIRCUIT BREAKER

FINDER

USER’S MANUAL

BF10

Please read this manual carefully and thoroughly before using this product.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 –4

Key Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 –5

Safety Instructions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

What’s in the Blister Pack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Product Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Operating Instructions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 –8

Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Changing the Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Warranty Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 – 11

Return for Repair Policy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 – 12

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INTRODUCTION

Thank you for purchasing General Tools & Instruments’
(General’s) BF10 AC Circuit Breaker Finder. Please read this
manual carefully and thoroughly before using the product.

The BF10 can perform two functions:

1. Automatically identify the circuit breaker or fuse
associated with any 110V outlet without tripping the
breaker or blowing the fuse

2. Identify five common receptacle wiring faults

The AC Circuit Breaker Finder has two components—an AC­powered transmitter and a battery-powered receiver. When
the transmitter is plugged into an AC outlet, it powers on and
sends a signal down the branch circuit all the way to the
circuit breaker panel. If the tip of the battery-powered
receiver is then used to “scan” all of the panel’s breakers (in
other words, touch each one in turn), a sensor in the tip will
light a green LED on the front of the receiver each time it
detects a signal. If no signal is detected, a red LED will light.

A first scan will cause the green LED to light several times if
the transmitter’s signal has leaked onto adjacent branch
circuits. On a rare occasion a second scan may be needed.
During each scan, the BF10 uses a patented circuit that
automatically adjusts the sensitivity of the sensor to rule out
weaker signals representing “false positives.”

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The plug-in transmitter also doubles as a socket tester. By
measuring leakage currents, it can identify five common
outlet wiring faults: missing earth (ground), missing neutral,
live and earth reversed, live and neutral reversed, and open
circuit. The type of fault is indicated by a unique pattern of
colored LEDs on the front of the transmitter as well as the
pulsed tone that it emits.

The BF10 is NOT a comprehensive diagnostic instrument:

• It cannot test the ground fault circuit interruption function of
GFCI receptacles.

• It cannot measure the quality of earth (ground) connections,
detect two hot wires or more than one fault in a circuit, or
detect reversed grounded and grounding conductors.

The BF10 is a simple instrument for detecting common
improper wiring of GFCI and non-GFCI outlets. All detected
problems should be referred to a qualified electrician.

If you need a comprehensive diagnostic instrument, General
recommends its CA10 Circuit Analyzer. For details, visit
www.generaltools.com and enter “CA10” in the SEARCH box.

KEY FEATURES

• Automatically locates the breaker or fuse associated with any
110V outlet without tripping the breaker or blowing the fuse

• Also identifies five common outlet wiring faults

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