Is My Federal Pacific Electrical Panel Safe

Federal pacific electric panels may not meet today s updated safety codes.

Is my federal pacific electrical panel safe.

Federal pacific electric panels were produced from the mid 1950s well into the 1980s. You can identify a zinsco electrical panel with its brightly colored breakers pink yellow red blue and green. Federal pacific panels also known as fpe panels were a popular residential electrical panel choice in the mid to late 20th century. Your circuit breaker panel ensures your home s electrical safety but is the panel itself safe.

They are typically clearly labeled with the words federal pacific electric or fpe also when you open the door you will often see the words stab lok in the center or on the side of the breaker panel. A federal pacific electrical panel as well as other brands and derivatives of fpe breakers are supposed to function as follows. Experts say that fpe panels produced during that time frame would not conform to today s updated safety codes and would no longer be allowed to be sold to the general public. If you suspect that you may have a federal pacific electric zinsco or an outdated circuit breaker panel in your home or in any event you have not had your panel inspected recently you owe it to yourself and your family to contact a licensed electrical contractor in your area for an inspection.

The panel was well known in the building community as a cheaper alternative to some of the more recognizable panel companies such as general electric i t e and square d. If your home was built between 1950 and 1990 and is equipped with a federal pacific electric fpe circuit breaker panel with stab lok circuit breakers you run a significant risk of breaker malfunction and fire. And canadian homes were built with circuit breaker panels that one expert has questioned as a potential fire hazard. There is no supporting evidence from any government agency or regulatory authority.

The result of the defect has linked them to numerous electrical fires. Federal pacific stab lok breaker panels are normally easy to recognize. There has been and continues to be a lot of discussion about the safety of federal pacific fpe stab lok circuit breaker panels and the fact that they may have inherent defects. A circuit gets overloaded this often happens when plugging in too many high powered devices and appliances into a low voltage circuit.