Federal Pacific Stab Lok Electrical Panel and Breakers
Marin County isn’t a new community. With the majority of houses constructed in the 1940‘s, 1950‘s, 1960’s, and 1970’s – there’s a lot of old electrical panels that are now obsolete and unsafe.
Quite often, there are warning signs that can let you know there are electrical problems brewing with your system. If you are seeing any of these symptoms give us a call immediately. A Divine Electric technician can update your electrical panel (and review the wiring) when you experience any of the following common electrical issues:
- Appliances not running correctly or running at lower power
- Appliances need to be switched out with each other and unplugged in order to run a different appliance
- Small countertop appliances such as microwaves and automatic coffee makers can actually tax older electrical systems quite a bit because they draw so many amps
- Melted electrical wires are never a good sign
- Your system is frequently blowing out fuses
- Your system is frequently tripping breakers
- Your breakers are not tripping when they should
Our technicians always give you competitive ‘fixed price’ project costs so that no matter how long it takes us to do your project, the cost will be the same and there are no surprises at the end of the job.
See more information listed below our Federal Pacific Community Safety Notice
The Purpose of Your Federal Pacific Breaker
The breaker in your home is solely meant to guard the structure from any potentially harmful electrical issues. It prevents circuit overloads, short circuits and power surges from meeting the panel and causing any permanent damage. If a breaker becomes defective or doesn’t operate properly anymore it’s no longer blocking those surges and shorts which, if not blocked don’t just destroy your home’s wiring, they cause a spark which literally leads to a fire.
Why Are Federal Pacific Breaker Boxes Bad?
There have been a number of studies that concluded at least one in four Federal Pacific breakers were broken. Meaning that when the surge comes through, they won’t properly tip off at least 25 percent of the time. However, when the studies from the 1980s came out a federal judge deemed Federal Pacific guilty of performing faulty testing on their own products, which allowed them to release a new line of similar breakers that “met the standards set the UL,” though they did not, in fact, meet any safety standards.
The worst part about Federal Pacific breakers is that they can certainly look like they’re working faithfully for years, until they just don’t. Then they start short circuiting, overheating and becoming extreme fire hazards. Your wires will melt and electricity will run unstopped until it burns itself out. This is what causes the panel to catch fire and, as we all know, electrical fires aren’t easy to put out.
What Happens When Federal Pacific Breakers Aren’t Replaced?
An estimated 2,800 house fires per year are supposedly caused by Federal Pacific breakers. The company has been out of business for years now, which is why they couldn’t afford to put forth a proper recall in 1983 when the two-year investigation finally concluded the breakers a hazard to homeowners.
More Information
Many of the homes in the Marin County area, including Belvedere and Fairfax, were built between the 50s and 60s and some are even older. While this renders the homes charming and extremely unique, it also means they’re always in need of constant updates. On occasion, you may need to change out a sink, or a potentially dangerous electric breaker, and though it’s few and far between, you may have to check in about the possibility of being exposed to asbestos. As a homeowner, there are so many things that can go wrong at any one point, and you’ll have to be prepared to take action and protect your primary investment: Your home. Unfortunately, Federal Pacific has ensured that your electrical circuit breaker is another one of those things that you’re just going to have to take into account when considering the safety of your home.
The Purpose of Your Federal Pacific Breaker
The breaker in your home is solely meant to guard the structure from any potentially harmful electrical issues. It prevents circuit overloads, short circuits and power surges from meeting the panel and causing any permanent damage. If a breaker becomes defective or doesn’t operate properly anymore it’s no longer blocking those surges and shorts which, if not blocked don’t just destroy your home’s wiring, they cause a spark which literally leads to a fire.
Why Are Federal Pacific Breaker Boxes Bad?
There have been a number of studies, starting in the 1980s, that concluded that at least one in four Federal Pacific breakers were broken. Meaning that when the surge comes through, they won’t properly tip off at least 25 percent of the time. However, when the studies from the 1980s came out a federal judge deemed Federal Pacific guilty of performing faulty testing on their own products, which allowed them to release a new line of similar breakers that “met the standards set the UL,” though they did not, in fact, meet any safety standards.
The Results of Federal Pacific Breakers:
An estimated 2,800 house fires per year are supposedly caused by Federal Pacific breakers. The company has been out of business for years now, which is why they couldn’t afford to put forth a proper recall in 1983 when the two-year investigation finally concluded the breakers a hazard to homeowners.
The Electrician’s Job
Since Federal Pacific breakers have been deemed unsafe, there have been some skeptics, holding out hope because they hadn’t seen a bad version of the breaker, yet. Mostly that comes in the form of a bad electrician who doesn’t have your best interest at heart. The truth is, if you have a home that’s anywhere from 25 to 65 years old, you’re at risk. The worst part about Federal Pacific breakers is that they can certainly look like they’re working faithfully for years, until they just don’t. Then they start short circuiting, overheating and becoming extreme fire hazards. Your wires will melt and electricity will run unstopped until it burns itself out. This is what causes the panel to catch fire and, as we all know, electrical fires aren’t easy to put out.
Contact Divine Electric Norcal
We’re passionate about the safety of all of the citizens in Marin County, which is why we’d be happy to give you a professional safety council about your breaker, even if you don’t intend for us to do the work to replace your electrical breaker. We care more about being the best community member than we do about being the most popular electrician in Fairfax, which is why we succeed at both.
How Can We Help?
Our team is available to help with your electrical needs:
Divine Electric made our day. Our electrical issue at home was quickly and accurately diagnosed, and immediate repairs made things right again. Nathan was on time, friendly, and knowledgeable. He made everything easy to understand, and followed up to be sure all was well at the end of the day! We couldn’t be happier.
- D. Whaley
Founded by Darin Divine in 2003 who has been in the Bay Area residential electrical industry since 1996, we serve Marin County, select San Francisco areas, and surrounding communities.
We provide a full range of services from simple ‘Service and Repair’ dispatches to ‘Contractor Projects’ for residential and light commercial contractors and architects.
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