If you have a home that was built before 1990 you’ll need to check and see if your electrical panel is an FPE panel. Federal Pacific Electric circuit breaker panels were often installed in the 70’s and 80’s. They went out of business after a major design flaw rendered 80% of the breakers ineffective. These panels are highly defective and are estimated to have caused 2,800 electrical fires every year. This is the reason this brand came under fire in the 1980s and since there was no official recall, these panels were installed in millions of homes from the 1950s to the 1980s. These panels can appear to be working fine for years, but after one over-current or short circuit, can overheat and become fire hazards.
Main Circuit Breaker Overheating?
When a breaker fails to trip, an extreme amount of power from the outside electrical supply surges into a home’s panel and circuits. When this happens, it can’t be stopped or shut off manually. The electricity will burn until it runs out off fuel or the wires melt. The panel can overheat and catch fire. This of course can cause serious harm to a home and those that live in it. Your electrical panel is designed to distribute electrical safety to each outlet in your home and provides individual circuit breakers to prevent fires.
Federal Pacific Electric Panel Hazards
FPE panels are dangerous because they have been found to cause the very thing they are supposed to prevent: electrical fires. Many of the breakers in these panels do no trip when they are overloaded or there is a surge of electricity. These panels have the potential for becoming stuck, overheating and starting fires. When they work they work well, but the problem with these breaker panels is that some of the double pole 220-volt circuit breakers and some of the single pole 120-volt circuit breakers may not operate as intended if they become overloaded. Tests conducted on the two pole 220 FPE panels showed that under certain conditions one pole may try to trip the breaker. When this happens, the circuit stays live, and the circuit breaker becomes compromised. When it is reset, it will not trip the next time if becomes overloaded.
How to Identify a Federal Pacific Electrical Panel
How can you determine if you have Federal Pacific panel in your home?
• the panel will have the label “Federal Pacific” across the front of it
• circuit breakers in the panel will be labeled “Stab-Lok”
• circuit breakers may be completely black or a combination of orange and black
Electrical Services in Delray Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Jupiter & Boca Raton & Palm Beach County Florida
Recently, insurance companies have dropped homeowner insurance policies if their FPE panels weren’t replaced by a qualified, licensed, and insured electric contractor. These panels also need to be replaced before a home can be sold. Contact Simon Electric if you have discovered you have a Federal Pacific breaker panel in your home because a new panel needs to be installed. Do not put having this done off for the safety of your home and your family. Schedule an appointment today and upgrade your panel to a safer, more reliable model.
