Honestly the real problem with Zinsco panels was/is the aluminum buss bars. We used to retro-fit copper bus bars. I still have a box of them somewhere.
While the Connecticut Electric replacement for Zinsco breakers meet all modern UL standards and should be safe in of themselves, the bus bar needs to be in good condition as well, the problem with these older Zinsco panels from the 60s and 70s was the connection between the aluminum bus bar and the breaker often over time failed and arced, damaging the breaker and bus bar and once this occurs the breaker can seize up and fail to trip under an overload or short circuit creating a severe fire hazard. This was the case when I helped my stepfather rewire his 1973 rambler in 2006, 70 amp Zinsco panel and single strand aluminum wiring for all the 120 volt receptacle and lighting circuits, wiring was burned at several receptacles and too far gone to pigtail with copper or use CO/ALR devices, so we ended up fishing new copper NM and left the old aluminum cable abandoned in the walls and ceilings but cut it out under the crawl space and wherever accessible to prevent someone in the future from re-energizing it. We had to relocate the new panel in the laundry/utility room because the old Zinsco panel was in a bedroom closet and that's no longer permitted although it was a common practice in the 70s and before. Used square D 200 amp panel, 4/0 aluminum SER with 100 amp main breaker outside at the meter because we were unable to locate the new panel back to back without moving the service to the other side of the house, line from the pole to meter base and meter base was good for 100 amp and didn't have the funds to fully upgrade to 200 amp, house still has 100 amp service with the ability to upgrade to 200 if and when the need arises
Thank you for the vidoe. The connecticut breakers comes with either thin or standard size for the 50 amp 2 pole. How do I know which one to use for the replacement?
I'm not a certified electrician, but I would think that it would be the same as changing any other Zinsco breaker, except that I might get the utility company to unplug the meter first.
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Honestly the real problem with Zinsco panels was/is the aluminum buss bars. We used to retro-fit copper bus bars. I still have a box of them somewhere.
I looked at retrofit kits, but they were all too big for my box. It seems like it would be easy to replace that aluminum with copper.
@@adkisojk Many people cut the replacement copper bus bar to fit.
While the Connecticut Electric replacement for Zinsco breakers meet all modern UL standards and should be safe in of themselves, the bus bar needs to be in good condition as well, the problem with these older Zinsco panels from the 60s and 70s was the connection between the aluminum bus bar and the breaker often over time failed and arced, damaging the breaker and bus bar and once this occurs the breaker can seize up and fail to trip under an overload or short circuit creating a severe fire hazard. This was the case when I helped my stepfather rewire his 1973 rambler in 2006, 70 amp Zinsco panel and single strand aluminum wiring for all the 120 volt receptacle and lighting circuits, wiring was burned at several receptacles and too far gone to pigtail with copper or use CO/ALR devices, so we ended up fishing new copper NM and left the old aluminum cable abandoned in the walls and ceilings but cut it out under the crawl space and wherever accessible to prevent someone in the future from re-energizing it. We had to relocate the new panel in the laundry/utility room because the old Zinsco panel was in a bedroom closet and that's no longer permitted although it was a common practice in the 70s and before. Used square D 200 amp panel, 4/0 aluminum SER with 100 amp main breaker outside at the meter because we were unable to locate the new panel back to back without moving the service to the other side of the house, line from the pole to meter base and meter base was good for 100 amp and didn't have the funds to fully upgrade to 200 amp, house still has 100 amp service with the ability to upgrade to 200 if and when the need arises
Wow! Thanks for sharing! Definitely on my list to replace my panel.
Thank you for the vidoe. The connecticut breakers comes with either thin or standard size for the 50 amp 2 pole. How do I know which one to use for the replacement?
I don't know.
Hello can you tell me how to change a main 100 amp zinsco breaker
I'm not a certified electrician, but I would think that it would be the same as changing any other Zinsco breaker, except that I might get the utility company to unplug the meter first.