FPE panel refeed

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wrobotronic

wrobotronic

Senior Member
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Colorado
Hi all,

There is an addition being put on this house. They are getting a new service and thus new circuits to the new part of the house. The existing part of the house is fed with an FPE "panel" that is inside the existing pantry.

As seen in the pic this setup is precarious at best. The EC is going to try and get the HO to rewire the existing part of the house and be done with it.

However, the question is, if the HO does not want to rewire, how, as an inspector, should I remedy this. Can the EC simply refeed the FPE on a 50A breaker in the new panel? Naturally, the EC will be making the existing FPE as safe as possible, eliminating old circuits, etc.

I'm just not sure how to proceed with this inspection and keep it safe for the homeowner.

thank you very much



imagejpeg




How on earth do I make this picture smaller? I can't seem to upload from the iPad very easily.... Copy and paste is the only method that seems to work... Thanks everyone
 
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Cant see the pic... if you havent already, get a photo sharing account like Flikr; if you have a yahoo email account, it's free and takes 5 minutes to do, then you can upload pics from there.
 
In my opinion you are under no obligation to require anything. Certainly reconnecting the feeder for the FPE panel to a new breaker does no harm. From a safety point of view, it may be best to either replace the FPE entirely or leave it entirely alone. However that is really between the HO and their insurance company. As a contractor, I would try either do no work in the FPE, or get a clear acknowledgement from the homeowner that I am not to be held liable if a fire starts there later. But as an inspector I do not believe the code requires you do to anything, except perhaps to require that any new breakers put into the FPE are new listed replacements.

EDIT: this is without seeing whatever the pic shows that might be 'precarious'. But if it's just the normal FPE panel without present day wiring wiring space requirements, I'd stand by the above.
 
If the FPE panel was the service panel it will become a sub-panel. A neutral bar will need to be installed and the neutrals and grounds separated.
 
wrobotronic said:
Hi all,

There is an addition being put on this house. They are getting a new service and thus new circuits to the new part of the house. The existing part of the house is fed with an FPE "panel" that is inside the existing pantry.

As seen in the pic this setup is precarious at best. The EC is going to try and get the HO to rewire the existing part of the house and be done with it.

However, the question is, if the HO does not want to rewire, how, as an inspector, should I remedy this. Can the EC simply refeed the FPE on a 50A breaker in the new panel? Naturally, the EC will be making the existing FPE as safe as possible, eliminating old circuits, etc.
Click to expand...

In addition to what robertd mentioned, 3 wire range and dryer cables have to be changed to 4 wire if the EC turns the original FPE main panel into a sub panel.
 
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