This review will look at the UK’s top 5 portable appliance testing (PAT) testers. We’ll assess their features, prices, and usability. Before that, we’ll highlight the factors to consider before choosing a PAT tester.
PAT testing involves assessing electrical appliances to determine their safety conditions and finding out whether or not those appliances meet safety standards. Portable appliance testing entails doing a visual inspection of the equipment and performing the PAT test.
But choosing the right PAT testing device is often not an easy task. In the UK, there are many brands with a wide range of functionalities available on the market. So, whether you’re a beginner or a veteran in the game, it’s important to consider some factors before settling for a PAT tester.
Essential factors to consider before buying a PAT tester
- Your budget
- The volume of PAT testing you want to do
- How do you want to record the test results?
- Do you want a battery-powered or mains-powered tester?
- Portable or stationary?
Now, here are our top 5 picks for PAT testers in the UK:
Kewtech’s EZYPAT PAT Tester
Price: £341.00
The Kewtech EZYPAT PAT tester is a basic, user-friendly PAT tester suitable for low-volume testing assignments. It can perform substitute leakage and polarity testing, insulation resistance testing, and earth bond continuity testing with a 200mA test current. The Kewtech EZYPAT PAT tester has a clear LCD screen that turns green (when an appliance has passed) and red (when an appliance has failed). What’s more, this tester is compact and very mobile.
This testing device has the capacity for continuity tests (5 seconds) for Class I appliances as well as extension leads. Also, users can incorporate test lead resistance as they use the tester because it has a test lead function.
The Kewtech EZYPAT PAT tester has three auto-test sequence buttons that can be used for testing Class I and Class II appliances, as well as extension leads. It has a remarkable battery life and meets all regulatory standards.
Some of the accessories that come with this PAT tester include a bag, an extension lead adapter, an earth lead with probe and croc clip, a quickstart manual, and an end of the line calibration certificate.
The Seaward Primetest 100 PAT Tester
Price: £420.00
The Seaward Primetest 100 PAT Tester is at the top of the UK’s most commonly used PAT testers. As a basic PAT tester, it provides a means for beginners and entry-level electrical engineers to efficiently carry out a handheld low testing workload.
It’s an easy-to-handle, affordable, compact, and battery-powered handheld unit. The Seaward Primetest 100 PAT tester does not need to be plugged into a power source to perform tests. And since the instrument has test modes that are fully manual, it can perform accurate substitute leakage tests, earth continuity, and insulation resistance.
The Seaward Primetest 100 PAT tester has a simple three-way push-button interface and provides accurate and reliable results. The PASS and FAIL limits can be customised for voltage change for insulation resistance and earth continuity. The device can also be customised to skip earth testing.
It is easy to read and designed with a bright LCD, that can be transferred – for free – to the PAT mobile APP on the Google Play Store. It also allows users to store digital information on their manual PAT tester. Users can log results, tag photos, export data, and print labels from their smartphones.
With an easy-to-read LCD and a long-life battery, this tester can carry out primary supply assessments and pre-programmed test sequences for various kinds of tests.
Some of the accessories that come with the Seaward Primetest 100 PAT tester include an earth bond lead, a half-metre extension adapter, and 6 x AA batteries. Other accessories are an instruction manual, a case with zipped pouches, a 230V extension lead test adaptor, and a 12- month manufacturer’s warranty.
Martindale HPAT600/2
Price: £300
The Martindale HPAT600/2 is a basic, lightweight, and battery-energised PAT tester suitable for beginners and experienced users. This testing instrument is designed with memory and can allow the direct storage of nearly 200 individual PAT testing records. It has two modes -manual and automatic.
The Martindale HPAT600/2 is safe for a 200mA earth bond test and can test Class I, Class II, and removable mains power cords. This tester can test the electrical safety of all types of in-service UK electrical appliances.
While the tester’s insulation test feature is 250V, its earth continuity test is 200mA. The device can perform IEC lead polarity tests and earth continuity tests. It can also perform insulation tests and simulated load tests. The Martindale HPAT600/2 complies with the updated IET Code of Practice (4th edition). The complete kit comes with rechargeable batteries and chargers (both for mains and cars).
The Seaward Apollo 500+ PAT Tester
Price: £1,360
The Seaward Apollo 500+ PAT Tester is an advanced tester that has a large internal memory that can store up to 10,000 PAT testing results and appliance records. It’s compact, lightweight, and portable. Because it’s downloadable, users don’t have to write PAT certificates when using the device constantly.
It’s built for high-volume testing workloads to provide simple but professional rapid testing. It has advanced data transfer capabilities and a wide range of features for electrical tests. This tester also comes with a risk assessment tool for determining a risk-based suggested retest period.
The Seaward Apollo 500+ PAT tester is a smart downloading PAT testing device with a wide selection of high-spec features. For instance, it’s built to speed up general testing on various kinds of equipment. Other features include an extensive firmware update, an extensive battery pack, and a QR update. It can produce coded PAT labels With the QR functionality, that can be read by an end user’s smartphone.
The tester can test 3 phase appliances and do point-to-point testing on equipment that is fixed in place. In addition, it can perform battery-powered tests as well as function when plugged into the mains.
The device is built with a full QWERTY keypad that has five recognisable function buttons and a large high-definition colour display. In short, the Seaward Apollo 500+ is an improvement on the previous Apollo 500s and remains compliant with the 5th edition of the IET Code of Practice.
Metrel GammaPAT Lite MI3311 PAT
Price: £670
The Metrel GammaPAT Lite MI3311 PAT Tester is a battery-energised, downloadable PAT tester with a wide range of functionalities. The outcome of the self-check on the device is stored on the tester’s internal memory and can be accessed when needed. Also, the device gives users the option of avoiding extra resistance in test leads by nullifying the extension lead adaptor. This helps to achieve accurate readings.
The testing device is built in a way that makes it useful for beginners and experienced PAT testers. It can be used in two modes: simple and auto. While the auto design is more advanced, the simple mode can be used for different lead tests.
It has an inbuilt battery charger as well as an inbuilt memory. The internal memory can store as many as 1700 test results. The software that the device downloads can be bought separately or purchased with the package.
Although PAT testing is not compulsory, it remains one of the most effective ways of ensuring electrical appliances are safe, therefore helping to prevent danger. And because of the vital role PAT testers play, it’s only right to choose the right one for the job.
For a low-volume testing workload, you may want to consider the Martindale HPAT600/2, Kewtech EZYPAT PAT tester, or the Seaward Primetest 100 PAT Tester. However, when the number of tests you want to carry out is large, then Metrel GammaPAT Lite MI3311 PAT and the Seaward Apollo 500+ PAT Tester would serve you best.
