firenresq74
Member
I am in the Oklahoma City area. I have a customer who is a real estate agent. When he has a home inspector (not an actual authority having jurisdiction "electrical inspector") inspect a home for the sale, every time there is a federal pacific panel in the house they will put down on their list of "recommendations" that the panel is unsafe and needs to changed out. I have worked for several real estate companies in the past and usually the recommendation was to "have a licensed electrician inspect panel" Though I have always agreed with the fact that FPE panels are unsafe and should be changed out, this pattern has just recently become a trend here. So out of curiosity I started asking around to find out why this new trend has started. Two long time electrical contractors told me that FPE breakers had lost their UL listing. I assumed this was because of their tendency to turn a copper wire into a welding rod. I was asked if I could simply change out the breakers to the aftermarket kind. I told them it would be much safer and the cost would be the same amount of money, or cheaper to just change it out to a new service. BUT this got me to thinking, COULD this work? Here you can only buy used FPE breakers or new aftermarket ones made by Unique Breaker Inc. So I asked a local supply house manager, also usually very knowledgeable about such things, he said he had never heard such a thing, and he had an Oklahoma City inspector on the other line. When he got back on the line after talking to said inspector he said the inspector had never heard of this either, and that my source must have been mistaken. VERY long winded I know, just wanted to get all of the background put in here. I have since been trying to research this via the internet, and have yet to find anything "official" to prove or disprove this. What I have read so far that FPE "lost their UL listing", "Never HAD a UL listing", and that they "falsified UL listing". Can anyone clear this difference of opinion up for me, and possibly guide to something "official" to show both sides of this? (As well as for my own clarity)
Thanks Jason
Thanks Jason