Why We Keep Pulling FPE Panels Out of Homes

Federal Pacific Electric panels - also known as FPE or Stab-Lok panels - have been flagged as a fire hazard for decades. The breakers in these panels are known to fail to trip during an overload, which means instead of cutting power like they should, they can let circuits overheat and start a fire. We've been pulling these out of homes consistently, and every time we do, we find the same story: an older home, a panel that's been sitting behind a cabinet door for years, and a homeowner who had no idea what was hiding back there.

Here's what makes these jobs more involved than a standard panel swap. By the time we get the old FPE panel out, we're often dealing with wiring that's been run, re-run, and patched together over multiple decades. A tangled mess of conductors dropping from an open ceiling cavity isn't just an eyesore - it's a sign that the electrical system has been worked on by a lot of different hands with a lot of different approaches. Getting it right means sorting through all of that, not just swapping the box.

On the exterior side, these older homes often have meter bases and service entrances that are just as dated as the panel inside. We handle the full scope - from the weatherhead and meter base down to the new panel and the wiring that feeds it. When everything is done, the service entrance is clean, the new panel is properly loaded and labeled, and the wiring inside is organized and secure.

If your home is older and you've never had the electrical system looked at, it's worth knowing what you have. A lot of homeowners don't find out they have an FPE panel until they're trying to sell the house and it shows up on an inspection report. At that point, it becomes a negotiation issue on top of a safety issue. Getting ahead of it is always the better move.