5A Standard Car Auto Blade Fuse 5 Amp ATO - Pack of 10

Product Information

Fuses are critical in any electrical system and are used to protect a circuit's cabling from excessive current that could lead to damage and, very often, an electrical fire. Excessive current is most likely to be caused by three things:

Fuses - RS Components A Complete Guide to Fuses - RS Components

Note that the main feed from the battery is fused to protect this section of cable and this cable should be large enough to supply the current required by all the loads operating at the same time (worst case). Consequently the fuse used for this cable (fuse 1) will be of a higher rating than fuses 2-5 (see below for selecting a fuse rating). As I mentioned above, car fuses are shields that prevent electronics from being damaged. They measure the electric flow that travels to the electronics they are protecting. The fuse will burn if the current is more than it is rated for. When that happens, that component will stop working until the fuse is replaced. But what do 5 amp fuses protect in cars? It is important to note that the section of cable coming from the battery +ve terminal to the first fuse (or battery distribution box) is effectively an unprotected part of the circuit. If there is a short anywhere along this length then it is very likely to catch fire as the first fuse will not experience the excess current. For this reason the length of cable from the battery +ve to the first fuse should be as short as possible so that damage is minimised in the event of an electrical fire.

As the name suggests, a tester is an electrical tool for testing electric flow. The tool illuminates light whenever it detects electric current in a component. Damage to the circuit - e.g. a wire working loose or insulation wearing through and causing a +ve wire to short to ground.

A Complete Guide to Car Fuses - RS Components

There are some instances where fuses are not normally used and one example is for the, normally short, length of cable from the battery to the starter motor. Starter motors are normally the highest current draw electrical item on a vehicle as they have to crank the engine, and the current can reach several hundred Amps, especially with large diesel engines that have a high compression ratio. For this reason it is usually deemed impractical to fuse this length of cable, although some vehicles do have fusible links which are simply a small section of lower current rating cable encased in a fireproof sleeve. They are installed with the cable being protected and are designed to melt and break the circuit in an over-current condition. The other reason for not fusing the starter circuit is that if the battery is disconnected from the alternator whilst it is turning (as would be the case if a fuse blew) the diodes in the alternator's rectifier can be damaged. The following chart outlines the blade fuse colour coding system and the corresponding amperage rating: In this article, you’ll learn how to tell if a fuse is blown in a house or car, how to test blown 5 amp fuses, and what a 5 amp fuse looks like when it burns. But first, let’s see what 5 amp fuses are used for. Low-profile mini – these are small and compact. The terminals do not extend far beyond the main fuse bodyA blown 5 amp fuse resembles a disconnected or broken ribbon across the two metal terminals. It may also resemble a burnt strip or ribbon with a powdered substance inside. The casing will also be burnt or damaged if the fuse is burnt. When a 5 amp fuse or any fuse amperage is blown, the metal strip on top of the two terminals will cut. If the fuse is burnt but not blown, the ribbon across the two metals will still be there, but the fuse casing will look burnt. Let me walk you through how I test blown fuses in my garage so you can confidently tell when a 5 amp or any other fuse amperage fails.