Information

Federal Pacific Electric

Federal Pacific Electric (FPE) circuit breakers and panelboxes were extremely popular in homes built in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, and while many still exist today, there is some debate over their use in private residences. There have been a few issues raised over the safety of these items, and we wish to state only the facts:

In the 1980s, the company lost its UL listing
The design of these circuit breakers, when compared with today's standards, makes for a poor electrical connection.
There is very limited space for heat dissipation in the breakers which can cause early breakdown of electrical connections.
These circuit breakers have shown in Consumer Product Safety Commission testing to fail to trip when they were supposed to.

We strongly suggest replacing all Federal Pacific Electric Panelboxes and upgrading to a new circuit breaker panelbox. If you wish to learn more, please review the following websites. There is a lot of great information to help you decide if it is time to replace your FPE panelbox.

GFCI Protection

Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter Protection is shock-hazard protection for you and your family. These devices became required in homes in the early 1970s. A GFCI receptacle is an outlet with a sensing device that monitors the amount of current flowing through the conductors (wires) of a circuit. It ensures that there is a proper balance of power on the electrical wires that bring power to that outlet. If there is a "fault", or a difference in the amount of current on those wires of more than 5 milliamps (just enough to give you a small tingle), then the device shuts itself off, thus preventing this "fault" current to go elsewhere, possibly through your body!

The National Electrical Code currently requires GFCI protection for private residences in the following locations:

Bathrooms
Kitchen countertop outlets
Unfinished Basements
Garages
Outdoors
Swimming Pools
Wet Bar Sinks

For more information on this topic, please go here.

Grounding

Most homeowners know grounding as the third prong on your electrical devices and outlets designed to protect your electric appliances and electronics. Grounding is a topic that is much more simple than it appears to be. Electrical "ground" refers to the ground that we walk on, the soil, the earth. In fact, European countries refer to "electrical grounding" as "electrical earthing." The earth makes a fantastic reference point for our electrical system, because of its constant electrical potential. The following websites can explain the science behind electrical grounding:

For homeowners, electrical grounding is very important to ensure that you do not receive stray voltage spikes in your home which can harm your sensitive electronic equipment. As electricians, we will install a proper grounding system as part of your electrical service to protect your home and your electronics from electrical hazards. For more information on this topic, please check the following website:

Earthing System (Wiki)