Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. If you are using a later version (Excel 2007 or later), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for later versions of Excel, click here: Entering Large Time Values.
Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated May 10, 2021)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003
If you format a cell for elapsed time (using a custom display format of [h]:mm:ss), then Excel allows you to enter hours, minutes and seconds into that cell. For instance, you could simply enter 129:14:30 to signify 129 hours, 14 minutes, and 30 seconds. You run into a problem, however, if you try to enter very large time values into the cell. When you try to enter time values in excess of 10,000 hours, as in 12721:52:45, then Excel won't parse the entry as a time, but treats it as text.
The interesting thing is that when a cell is formatted for elapsed time using [h]:mm:ss, the cell can easily display elapsed times that have more than 10,000 hours. Thus, you can sum a range of cells to result in a value more than 10,000 hours, but you cannot enter a larger value.
Unfortunately, there seems to be no way around this in Excel. The best solution, however, might be to rethink how the data is entered. After all, 10,000 hours is equal to 416 days and 16 hours—well over a year. You could easily create a column for entering days and use another for partial days. A third column could then use a formula to return the elapsed hours based on the other two columns.
Another solution is to simply not rely on Excel to do the parsing of your input. If you have a huge number of hours to enter (such as 32,315), then you could enter the following in the cell:
=32315/24
Excel maintains what you enter as a formula, but displays the proper number of hours, minutes, and seconds. If you want to get more precise, you can enter a fractional amount that represents the portion of an hour represented by your time. For instance, 37 minutes and 15 seconds is 0.620833 of an hour. Thus, you could enter the hours as follows:
=32315.620833/24
Of course, entering times in this manner can get tedious, particularly when you have calculate the fractional portion of an hour represented by minutes and seconds. To overcome this, you could create a custom function that allows you to enter hours, minutes, and seconds, and returns a value that is easily formatted using the elapsed time format. The following function will do the trick:
Public Function RealBigTime(hr As Double, _ min As Double, sec As Double) As Double Dim hr1 As Double Dim min1 As Double Dim sec1 As Double Application.Volatile hr1 = hr / 24 min1 = min / 24 / 60 sec1 = sec / 24 / 60 / 60 RealBigTime = hr1 + min1 + sec1 End Function
After creating the function, enter something like =RealBigTime(32341,30,45) in a cell. The result is a value that can be formatted with the elapsed time format to 32341:30:45.
Note:
ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (2038) applies to Microsoft Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. You can find a version of this tip for the ribbon interface of Excel (Excel 2007 and later) here: Entering Large Time Values.
Comprehensive VBA Guide Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) is the language used for writing macros in all Office programs. This complete guide shows both professionals and novices how to master VBA in order to customize the entire Office suite for their needs. Check out Mastering VBA for Office 2010 today!
If you distribute a workbook that is used by others for data entry, you may want a way to make sure they fill in certain ...
Discover MoreEnter a value into a cell and "poof!" it is automatically divided by 100. What's going on, and how can you fix it so that ...
Discover MoreUsing the Character Map to insert symbols in Excel.
Discover MoreFREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
2018-11-16 06:56:18
Paolo
Hello.
I'm trying to use your model to solve my issue.
I've been working via macro VBA (Excel 2007).
I've a sum of cell in format "[hh]:mm:ss" that often exceed 24 h, returning incoherent outcomes.
Suppose in cell J140, after being applied the following two instructions, I've the undesired result.
cell.Formula = "=SUMIF(A1:A137,A" & foundrow & ",J1:J137)"
cell.NumberFormat = "[hh]:mm:ss"
How can I apply your function in order to have the desired outcome?
Thank's, Paul
Got a version of Excel that uses the menu interface (Excel 97, Excel 2000, Excel 2002, or Excel 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Excel, visit our ExcelTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.
FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
Copyright © 2024 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.
Comments