subject: Federal Pacific Stab-lok Panels: Why They Are A Fire Hazard [print this page] Federal Pacific Stab-Lok breaker panels were installed in homes typically in the 1970's to the mid 1980's
Brief History
The bankrupt Federal Pacific Electric Company was acquired by Reliance Electric Company, a subsidiary of Exxon Corporation, in 1979 from UV Industries. UV Industries was sued by Reliance Electric Company in June 1980 for damages claiming deceptive practices for FPE products to obtain UL listings. Reliance Electric put a freeze on all FPE products being shipped. Even though there never was a recall, the FPE products that were already on shelves nationwide still ended up being installed in homes years later.
Problems
The breaker panels by Federal Pacific Stab-Lok are a fire hazard. Under overload or short circuit conditions, the double-pole breakers failed to trip a high percentage of times. The breakers would also come loose on the buss bar. When this happened, the breakers would fail to protect the wires, overheat, arc, and possibly lead to a fire. The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) conducted laboratory tests from 1980-1983 on the double-pole FPE breakers and stated they would fail up to 25% of the time under modest load. After that, the failed breaker would never trip again no matter what overload condition it was under. The CPSC's findings were never refuted by Federal Pacific and they acknowledged the problem with them failing to trip. There were 5 tests conducted by 4 companies and 1 Federal Agency in the 1980's. Due to liability issues, only 2 of these studies were released to the public. The companies that conducted the studies were FPE, Southwest Research Inc., UL, CPSC, and Wright-Malta Corp. J.Aronstein, P.E. continued independent testing 25 years later. In Aronstein's testing, which included around 500 circuit breakers, the failure rate reached almost 60%.
The Panel's Identity
Look for 2 key items: First, "Federal Pacific Stab-Lok" will be on a sticker either inside or outside of the front cover panel door. Second, most of the Stab-Lok breakers are bright orange.
Tell Tale Signs
Every time I run across these breakers, I automatically recommend panel replacement for the above noted reasons. When I inspect them, I also look for burnt wiring, blackened lugs, melted breakers, and melted sheathing. I've ran across numerous instances where the wires from the Stab-Lok breakers were burnt. This year alone, I've ran across 2 panels that had the service entrance cables so hot that the sheathing 2"-3" up was melted and burnt. The licensed Electrician who repaired the problem on one of the homes stated that if I hadn't found that, it could have burnt the home down. The 2nd thing I look for is if there are any loose breakers. Usually, I find 2-3 that are loose. I've found some panels where almost all of the breakers were loose. Every one of these situations mentioned is a fire hazard.
Replacement Breakers
There are companies that make replacement breakers to fit the FPE Stab-Lok slots. For around $30-$40 per breaker, they can be replaced. Due to the unpredictable nature of the breakers, you never know when they will fail. From a safety standpoint, it's best to upgrade the entire panel. Please do not only replace a few breakers. The potential fire hazard is still lying there for you and your family if you don't replace them.
Recommendation
If your home has a Federal Pacific Stab-Lok main panel or sub-box installed, then please contact a licensed Electrician to have it replaced. The panel may have been there for 30 years and seem to work fine, however, the underlying problems are there and it's simply not worth the risk.
Technical Information
To research more technical information, go to CPSC's website and search for the March 18, 2008 meeting where the subject was: "Federal Pacific Stab-Lok circuit breakers and associated safety hazards." Daniel Friedman's InspectAPedia website is also a great source of information and links. It's www.inspectapedia.com/fpe/fpepanel.htm.
