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Zinsco electrical panels safety hazard in your home

Zinsco electrical panels safety hazard in your homeZinsco electrical panels safety hazard in your home?

Zinsco electrical panels are known and documented to be unsafe to use because of problems with their breakers. One of the most commonly reported issues with these panels is that their breakers do not trip during over-current or short-circuit situations, which can pose a severe risk.

This is because the breakers are made from a specific type of aluminum that can melt and fuse with the bus bar. A more common panel that experiences a similar issue is FPE or Federal Pacific Stab-Lok electrical panels (see our article on those)

If you have Zinsco electrical panels in your home or building, you should contact a licensed electrician to update the panel to a modern and safe panel as soon as possible. Many times there is a compounding issue with these panels, and that is they were used with single-strand aluminum wiring, which has its history of failure resulting in fire.


Stephen Lee Showalter, NACHI® CMI, ASHI ACI
Home Inspector, Environmental Consultant
Maryland State Home Inspector License #29634 
ASHI ACI Certified Membership
NACHI® CMI Certified Master Inspector
InterNACHI® CPI Certified Membership
Certified Commercial Property Inspector Association
FAA Certified UAS Pilot #3987636
CRT Certified Residential Thermographer

Showalter Property Consultants providing quality home inspections and environmental testing throughout Maryland since 1988. For a quality home inspection contact us on schedule online.

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