Circuit Breakers At Home Depot

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Arcs to ground can trip the AFCI at low amperage levels, while arcs to neutral are allowed to a much greater degree. The whole point is to prevent fires from starting when electrical faults occur that would not normally trip a simple circuit breaker. Even a 15 amp circuit can create fire producing heat levels without tripping a breaker.

There is no breaker that will fit a FPE panel except a FPE. The

breakers are still being manufactured and are available at Lowes

and Home Depot stores, but they are expensive. The failure rate of

FPE breakers is worrisome and if I had one in my home I would

change it.

Federal Pacific has been out of business since the early 80's

The current breakers being sold at Home Depot etc, are NOT

manufactured by Federal Pacific since that company no longer

exists. They are made by aftermarket companies. The FPE problems

are not associated with the newer products, HOWEVER, there may be

issues with the older FPE panels themselves. It is important to

inspect the panels carefully and see that there are no burned or

arcing areas and that all screws on the bus bar are securely tight

and the bus is not damaged in any way. The breakers must fit

properly and SECURELY in to the panel bus bar and the panel cover

must hold the breakers securely in place as there are no actual

screws to hold the breakers in place. If the breaker fit is loose

or sloppy, there is a problem.To clarify the answer to the

question, there ARE other options to Federal Pacific or the

aftermarket manufactured products. Federal Pacific has a 'sister'

company in Canada called Federal Pioneer. They are still in

business and still being installed today. Although there was a

recall on some of there breakers several years ago, there is not

the notorious history to Federal Pioneer and they have continued to

improve on the product designs.The Federal Pioneer breakers are

available in Canada at very competitive prices. There are some

sellers on ebay as well, but the shipping costs may be a bit high

if you order one or two breakers only.Federal Pioneer is marketed

by Schneider Electric of Canada. Check online for further details

on the products and availability. You can also buy US made breakers

manufacturers like 'American' 'Challenger' and 'Connecticut'

electric and a few others. Old, used or NOS 'Federal Pacific'

breakers have been determined to have high failure rates and should

not be used as replacements. Existing Federal pacific breakers

should be replaced even if they 'appear' to be functioning

normally.

Keep in mind that the Federal Pacific panels themselves may not

meet current codes or standards and should not be used for new

installations or 'expansions'. Replacements of existing breakers

are usually 'grandfathered' in but once again, the breaker panels Beetle racing adventure.

themselves should be checked out thoroughly for damages and ALL

screw connections should be tight and secure and breakers should be

secure in the bus bar. Covers should be securely installed. It may

not be cost effective to replace ALL breakers as opposed to Trace memory walkthrough.

replacing the entire breaker panel itself. Weigh out the costs

Circuit Breakers At Home Depot

carefully as well as the problems and costs of replacing the entire

panel. Keep in mind your 'future needs' when making this

determination.