FP panel

[nbhi]

Yesterdays inspection had a FP. Several breakers where turned off. one feeding the heat pump. When I tried resetting it tripped and sparked. I told the buyer that it was a safety issue and that I was not going to try again. He was ok with that, he heard the pop also. Just wondering what others would do in this situation.

[mnahrgang]

I would defer it to the HVAC professionals to deal with, along with a caveat that an electrician may need to get involved as well.

[Dale Duffy]

Hi Gary,

For starters I would not turn on a circuit breaker that was off when I arrived at the property, this is the responsibility of the homeowner (or whoever owns the home) to have the building ready for inspection.

When I receive a call for an inspection I make it very clear Everything must be on or tell me why something isn't if they know a problem exists. I also explain if something is not on, it will require me to return to the property and re-inspect any items that were off for Unknown Reasons if they want to turn anything on after I leave.

Besides circuit breakers, I don't turn any valves on, or plug something in that is unplugged as other examples.

I could just see myself now turning on a 240V breaker to a HVAC unit, the breaker stays on and I smell something burning while waiting for the the equipment to start.....oh oh......

[Mathew Hawley]

Gary,

I would have done the same thing and recommended the owner get an electrician to evaluate the system.

Here's what I use for FPE panels, feel free to use it:

The house has a Federal Pacific brand electric panel. This panel and the circuit breakers are considered by many experts to pose a latent fire hazard. At the present time there is no specific re-call for the equipment, nor is there a government warning regarding the hazard. Additional anecdotal data is available on the world wide web by searching "Federal Pacific Electric Panels".

[nbhi]

Good point Dale. We don't turn valves on either, but I thought I could very easily turn the breaker on. No more of that in the future.

[Bruce M. Graham]

I had a similar issue were the realtor got all huffy and said show me which breaker I will do it myself. Well there was a missing knock out oppisite the breaker and she stuck her finger in to get some leverage to turn the breaker on. My heart skipped a beat, thought I was going to have to call a bambalance. Some people just don't get it.
Then there was the realtor that turn the water vavle at the water heater on after I told him not to... the stem and packing nut broke off in his hand, water everwhere, I went out front and turn the main off very slowly, I have seen theses brake as well.
Happy Inspecting

[Frank Newman]

Originally Posted by dduffy

Hi Gary,

For starters I would not turn on a circuit breaker that was off when I arrived at the property, this is the responsibility of the homeowner (or whoever owns the home) to have the building ready for inspection.

Absolutely - I believe this very item is covered in the SOPs. This is especially true if the breaker is found in the tripped position. I would just write it up as needing qualified investigation.....

[Charles Hellickson]

Here is what I use

You have a Federal Pacific panel which is legal, but there is a possibility that the circuit breakers may not trip when shorted possibly causing an electrical hazard. Opinions by licensed electricians on this panel varies between safe and unsafe. I recommend you consult a licensed electrician for an opinion and correct if necessary