Replacing FPE Individual 2 Pole Breakers - Federal Pacific/Federal Electric

[brycenesbitt]

I see a lot of these single 50A stab-lok apartment FPE main panels: they make be shudder every time.
There's never one just ready answer that works for most.

How could these be handled, balancing cost, potential damage to the old subpanel wires, and getting something modern in?
Is there a small panel that can take two 2-pole breakers (GFCI if needed) and fit in the same space below each meter?

There are tens of thousands in my area like this.

The Siemens W0408l1125spa50 is kind of the right thing, but the wire entry for the subpanel does not necessarily
line up, it's too wide for some of the meter banks, and you don't get to pick the breaker as it comes with one.

 

[Buck Parrish]

BTW What is your area? I never see them in my area(s)

 

[LarryFine]

Either of these may work?

Eaton 125 Amp 4-Space 8-Circuit Main Lug Outdoor Load Center BRC48L125RP - The Home Depot

Specially narrow body panel is designed for easy installation, Eaton's BR load centers house the branch circuit breakers and the wiring required to distribute power to individual circuits. This panel is a main lug panel which is used as sub-panel to add circuits to an existing main breaker...

www.homedepot.com

Siemens EQ 125 Amp 4-Space 8-Circuit Main Lug Outdoor Load Center W0408ML1125U - The Home Depot

This 125 Amp 4-Space 8-Circuit Outdoor Main Lug Load Center is designed for all-weather use with a NEMA Type 3R rating. It is made of hot-dipped galvanized steel for rust resistance and has a polyester

www.homedepot.com

 

[brycenesbitt]

BTW What is your area? I never see them in my area(s)

San Francisco Bay Area. Buildings from the 1940's to mid 1970's this was a very common brand. Often it's one per unit for apartments, plus a house meter.
Often the can is still in good shape, meaning if there were an Eaton Flex Center style replacement guts, that would save a lot of effort.

 

[norcal]

What about a Siemens 2 space loadcenter? For a 50A, 2-pole breaker they would fit in the footprint, would be a little smaller which could throw a monkey wrench in the works if things could not be made to line up. How many circuits in the house panel?

 

[brycenesbitt]

How many circuits in the house panel?

This was just a typical example, so it will vary. Often the house panel has 1 or 2 main stab-lok breakers for subpanels elsewhere.
The issue really is where the subpanel wires come through the wall, and can-opening the old panel box off without damaging wires. The old panels are certainly painted in place, and perhaps the building has been skim coated with stucco since.

Are there any "new guts" that could go into the "old FPE boxes"? In theory the same thing could happen with Zinsco equipment, but for some reason in my area it's mostly Zinsco copper bus interiors and not much of an apparent problem.

 

[ramsy]

Are there any "new guts" that could go into the "old FPE boxes"?

When I took an Eaton retrofit catalog to an IAEI meeting the plan-checker went nuts, since the space requirements have changed for new equipment.

If replacement guts are not specifically listed for the smaller space requirements of existing equipment, the listing-sensitive building officials may demand NRTL field certification. So these retrofit kits may be limited to DIY hack jobs, or paid-off mortgages that dropped their property insurance.