Points to remember:
The average life of an electrical service is 30 to 40 years. Wear and tear caused by abuse and excessive loads may vary this time greatly.
Ageing your Service:
A few brands or styles of breaker boxes have become obsolete over the last 50 years making their replacement breakers expensive.
ITE Bull Dog Pushmatic, and Square D type XO panels have not been manufactured since the 1950s. Both of these brands are very expensive if you can find the breakers at all.Zinsco breaker panels have not been in production since 1972, however Sylvania did make panels under that design for about 8 years later. I have found Zinsco panels to be relyable though expensive to maintain.Federal Pacific Electric (FPE) manufactured their Stab-Loc panel from in the 1940s to 1978 without improving their design to keep up with the times. In 1978 they lost their UL listing and went out of manufacture. It has been my experence that FPE panels are a dangerous fire hazard that should be replaced.Before 1972 their was no limit on the number of disconnects in a electrical service so if there are no main breakers then the service was built before 1972. In 1972 the National Electrical Code (NEC) required that power to a service must be "disconnected with no more than 6 movments of the hand". From 1972 to 1978 spit buss panels were manufactured to meet this code. Split buss panels had room for 6, 220 volt breakers at the top with one subfeeding the lighting section at the bottom. In 1978 one main breaker to disconnect the whole panel became the rule.
In the Texas Electric Service area before 1960 the NEC only required a 60 amp minimum service these services had a round 60 amp base that the meter pluged in to. From 1960 to 1978 a rectangular 100 amp or larger base with an aluminum housing was used. After 1978 a steel housed base was supplied. With this information you should be able to determine the approximate age of your service. Once you have determined the approximate age of your service and concidered it's estimated life, then factoring in the expence of maintaining an obsolete panel, you can make an educated decision on when you need to upgrade your electrical service.
The wear and tear factor,
repair or replace?
The first signs of wear are loose connections or "hot spots", these usually show up first with lights flickering or dimming, another sign is low power or no power to appliances or a section of the house. These "hot spots" are a dangerous fire hazard and should be checked out by a trained professional as soon as possible.
The Cost
The cost of a service upgrade starts at around $1200 for a small home and can go up to 2 or 3 thousand in the larger homes. The major factors being the loads involved, new city and national code requirements and room for future expansion. For an accessment of your electrical system and a closer estimate contact us below.
