Vancouver Electrical Panel Changes

Electrical Panel Safety

Bullseye Electric Vancouver knows overloaded and substandard electrical panels lead to fires and damage electronic equipment. If your panel is suspect, call us today.

Our certified electrical technicians will inspect your electrical panel, breakers, and meter for damage or improper wiring and repair or replace any electrical hazards.

Electrical Panel Changes

There are certain types of electrical panels that should be replaced when certain factors apply. When age, unreliable circuit protection, recall or other safety issue arise we generally recommend replacing these panels whenever we see them.

These panels as a general rule are not up to modern circuit protection standards and continually present other hazards such as not disconnecting the power when the breaker is turned off or not tripping the circuit to “off” in the event of an overload.

If any of these panels were in my house, I would make it a priority to have them replaced.

Watch for the following types of problematic panels:

• Federal Pacific Electric (Bulldog).  Federal Pacific panels contain Federal Pacific breakers, which are primary safety devices of questionable operating reliability. There are countless studies which show that FPE breakers fail to trip in the presence of an overload somewhere between 25% to 81% of the time, depending on whether or not they have been tripped before. In the event of a short or an overload, a breaker is supposed to trip to prevent the wire from overheating and perhaps igniting conbustable materials inside the walls of the home. If the breaker does not trip in the event of an overload or a short circuit, a fire is more likely to result. The opinion of experts in the electrical field is that an FPE panel should be classified as a “Latent Safety Defect”, meaning it in and of itself is not a hazard, but having an FPE panel would not provide the same safety and protection a modern panel would, and should not be thought of as sufficient protection against overheating and possible fire.

• Zinsco Panels.  The Zinsco Breakers are subject to a poor clip and buss design which allows the breaker clips to relax their hold on the buss bar over time. This condition results in arcing and poor contact between the buss and the breaker. Any electrician will tell you that poor contact results in heat which results in more damage, which results in even worse contact, and, well, you get the picture. There are no UL listed breakers that fit in a Zinsco panel, so the only practical and safe alternative is to replace the panel with a new panel and all new breakers. When we do a panel change, we also make sure that we use copper busses to avoid the same dissimilar metal expansion and contractions that lead to poor breaker contact.
• Pushmatic
• Wadsworth

Sub-Panel Installation

Need more space in your existing panel? Let Bullseye Electric in Vancouver install a new electrical sub panel. A new sub panel creates extra space for additional items and lowers the risk of overloading your main panel. We can install sub panels in basements, garages, workshops, sheds, and additions. “Don’t Wait for Your Panel to Burn. Get it Inspected today. Humming, Buzzing, Sizzling, or Overheating are signs that your panel may be in danger.”

If you are looking for a Licensed Electrical Contractor and professional Electrician in the Vancouver WA, Camas WA, Washougal WA,  Battleground WA, or Portland OR area, please call us today at 360-260-4814 or complete our online service request.