Pushmatic panels
Not in the same safety category as the others, but a dead end for anything modern.
Installed roughly 1950 to 1980. Labelled Pushmatic, Bulldog Pushmatic, ITE Pushmatic.
What actually goes wrong
Pushmatic equipment does not carry the failure-to-trip record the others do, and it is worth saying so plainly rather than lumping it in. The real problems are ageing and obsolescence: the push-button mechanism stiffens with age and can become unreliable, there is no main breaker in many installations, and no AFCI or GFCI breakers are made for these panels at all.
Is there a recall?
No recall. This is an obsolescence problem, not a defect problem.
How to tell if this is what you have
- Breakers are square push-buttons rather than toggle switches, which is unmistakable.
- The panel reads "Pushmatic", "Bulldog" or "ITE".
- Usually 60 A or 100 A service in homes from the 1950s to 1970s.
All of that is readable from the panel door or the label inside it. Do not remove the cover. The service conductors behind it stay live with the main breaker off, and an electrician can confirm the brand in minutes.
What usually forces the decision
Adding any circuit that current code requires to be AFCI or GFCI protected, which includes most of a modern kitchen, bathroom and bedroom, and increasingly an EV charger. There is no compliant breaker to install, so the panel goes.
What replacement costs
Generally $1,500 to $4,500, and almost always combined with a service upsize, since these panels are typically 60 A or 100 A.
There is no federal tax credit to offset this. The 25C credit covered up to $600 of a panelboard, but only alongside other qualifying work rather than for a standalone replacement, and it expired for property placed in service after 31 December 2025. State and utility programmes may still help, particularly for income-qualified households, and those vary by where you live.
Work out what size service you should replace it with →Sources
We are not electricians and nothing here is a substitute for an inspection by someone who is. What this page is for is making sure that when you have that conversation, you already know what the actual documented issue is and what it is not. How we source this.