HomeWhat size power station you need for a power outage
A full day of outage essentials (a 21 cu ft refrigerator, a Wi-Fi router, one LED light and two phone charges) needs a station rated at 2,077 Wh or more. Add your own appliances in the sizing tool to see which models cover your list.
Battery size you need, rated capacity
2,077Wh
Counts 82% of a battery's rated capacity as usable and adds the inverter's own draw while anything runs on AC: the formula in Jackery's runtime calculator. How the maths works
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It covers 99% of the full essentials day (26 hours of a 21 cu ft refrigerator alone), Anker rates it at 2,400 W continuous with a 10 ms switch to battery, and it expands to 4,096 Wh.
At 2,330 Wh it is the smallest station on this site that covers the full essentials list for a day (1.12 days), and Dabbsson rates it expandable to 8,330 Wh with two DBS3000B batteries.
Its 4,096 Wh runs a 21 cu ft refrigerator for 2.2 days, EcoFlow rates it at 4,000 W continuous with a 10 ms UPS switchover, and two extra batteries take it to 12,000 Wh.
It covers 51% of the essentials day (14 hours of a 21 cu ft refrigerator alone), DJI rates the switch to battery at 10 ms, and up to five expansion batteries take it to 11,264 Wh, so you can start small and add capacity.
These are the figures the calculator uses, each from the appliance maker or its ENERGY STAR listing. The refrigerator averages already include the compressor cycling on and off.
The refrigerator runs around the clock, so it uses most of the energy in a day's list. The furnace blower and sump pump draw far more power, but only while they run.
The sizing tool on this page starts with this list for one outage day:
That list uses 1,703 Wh in a day, including the inverter's own draw (18 W on stations of 1,500 Wh or more, from Jackery's calculator figures, applied to every brand). The runtime formula counts 82% of rated capacity as usable, so you need a station rated at 2,077 Wh or more.
A 2,048 Wh station such as the Anker SOLIX C2000 Gen 2 covers 99% of that day, and a 1,024 Wh station covers 51%. The Dabbsson DBS2300 Plus (2,330 Wh) covers 1.12 days and the EcoFlow DELTA Pro 3 (4,096 Wh) covers 1.97 days.
Add a CPAP for 8 hours and the day rises to 2,152 Wh, which needs 2,624 Wh rated. Of the stations on this site, only the Anker SOLIX F3800 Plus (1.46 days) and the DELTA Pro 3 (1.56 days) cover that. A 1/3 HP sump pump running half an hour a day, in place of the CPAP, brings the need to 2,441 Wh rated.
One appliance at a time, from the makers' own figures, counting 82% of each battery as usable plus the inverter's own draw (method).
| Model | Capacity | Fridge 21 cu ft, 45.5 W46 W | CPAP, 56 W56 W | Wi-Fi router, 4.5 W5 W | Furnace blower, 394 W394 W | Sump pump 1/3 HP, 598 W598 W |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EcoFlow RIVER 3 Plus | 286 Wh | 4.2 hours | 3.5 hours | 16 hours | 35 minutes | 23 minutes |
| Anker SOLIX C300 | 288 Wh | 4.3 hours | 3.6 hours | 16 hours | Too much power | Too much power |
| BLUETTI Elite 30 V2 | 288 Wh | 4.3 hours | 3.6 hours | 16 hours | 35 minutes | Start-up too high |
| Jackery Explorer 300 | 293.8 Wh | 4.3 hours | 3.6 hours | 17 hours | Too much power | Too much power |
| BLUETTI Elite 100 mini | 1,004.8 Wh | 14 hours | 12 hours | 42 hours | 2.0 hours | 1.3 hours |
| EcoFlow DELTA 3 Classic | 1,024 Wh | 14 hours | 12 hours | 43 hours | 2.1 hours | 1.4 hours |
| EcoFlow DELTA 3 | 1,024 Wh | 14 hours | 12 hours | 43 hours | 2.1 hours | 1.4 hours |
| EcoFlow DELTA 3 Plus | 1,024 Wh | 14 hours | 12 hours | 43 hours | 2.1 hours | 1.4 hours |
| Anker SOLIX C1000 Gen 2 | 1,024 Wh | 14 hours | 12 hours | 43 hours | 2.1 hours | 1.4 hours |
| BLUETTI Elite 100 V2 | 1,024 Wh | 14 hours | 12 hours | 43 hours | 2.1 hours | 1.4 hours |
| DJI Power 1000 V2 | 1,024 Wh | 14 hours | 12 hours | 43 hours | 2.1 hours | 1.4 hours |
| FOSSiBOT F1800 | 1,024 Wh | 14 hours | 12 hours | 43 hours | 2.1 hours | 1.4 hours |
| Dabbsson DBS1000 Pro | 1,024 Wh | 14 hours | 12 hours | 43 hours | 2.1 hours | 1.4 hours |
| Jackery Explorer 1000 v2 | 1,070 Wh | 15 hours | 12 hours | 45 hours | 2.1 hours | 1.4 hours |
| BLUETTI AC180 | 1,152 Wh | 16 hours | 13 hours | 2.0 days | 2.3 hours | 1.5 hours |
| Jackery Explorer 1500 v2 | 1,536 Wh | 20 hours | 17 hours | 2.3 days | 3.1 hours | 2.0 hours |
| Jackery Explorer 2000 v2 | 2,042 Wh | 26 hours | 23 hours | 3.1 days | 4.1 hours | 2.7 hours |
| EcoFlow DELTA 3 Max | 2,048 Wh | 26 hours | 23 hours | 3.1 days | 4.1 hours | 2.7 hours |
| Anker SOLIX C2000 Gen 2 | 2,048 Wh | 26 hours | 23 hours | 3.1 days | 4.1 hours | 2.7 hours |
| DJI Power 2000 | 2,048 Wh | 26 hours | 23 hours | 3.1 days | 4.1 hours | 2.7 hours |
| FOSSiBOT F2400 | 2,048 Wh | 26 hours | 23 hours | 3.1 days | 4.1 hours | 2.7 hours |
| BLUETTI Elite 200 V2 | 2,073.6 Wh | 27 hours | 23 hours | 3.1 days | 4.1 hours | 2.8 hours |
| Dabbsson DBS2300 Plus | 2,330 Wh | 30 hours | 26 hours | 3.5 days | 4.6 hours | 3.1 hours |
| Anker SOLIX F3800 Plus | 3,840 Wh | 2.1 days | 42 hours | 5.8 days | 7.6 hours | 5.1 hours |
| EcoFlow DELTA Pro 3 | 4,096 Wh | 2.2 days | 45 hours | 6.2 days | 8.2 hours | 5.5 hours |
For the 21 cu ft top-freezer model at 45.5 W, a full day takes a station rated at 1,859 Wh. Runtimes on the refrigerator alone:
A 25 cu ft French-door model with an ice maker, at 70.2 W, gets 9.9 hours from 1,024 Wh, 19 hours from 2,048 Wh and 38 hours from the DELTA Pro 3.
The compressor also needs a moment of extra power to start. Whirlpool's service sheet for a 27 cu ft model gives a locked-rotor current of 11.3 A at 115 V, about 1,300 W, and every station on this site from 1,024 Wh up covers it. There is more on sizing a power station for a refrigerator.
With the station plugged into the wall and your device plugged into the station, a station with a UPS spec switches the device to its battery when the grid fails. The maker's figure is how long that switch takes. For the 1 kWh class and up:
Jackery says the 2000 v2 switches "in under 20ms so your router, computer, and NAS stay online." For a CPAP, ask your doctor or equipment supplier whether your machine can run on battery power and through a switch of that length.
On battery, a 1,024 Wh station runs a ResMed AirSense 11 for 12 hours and a 2,048 Wh station runs it for 23 hours. See power stations for a CPAP for more.
A station runs only what you plug into it, and only up to the continuous output its maker rates. Jackery rates the Explorer 1000 v2 at 1,500 W continuous, so it cannot run a 1,875 W Conair hair dryer. A hard-wired appliance needs the electrician's work described in the next section.
Electric heat empties a battery fast. A 1,500 W space heater (Lasko 754200 on high) runs:
A 5,000 BTU window air conditioner, which Frigidaire rates at 450 W cooling, gets 3.6 hours from a 2,048 Wh station. For heat, the blower on a gas furnace is a smaller load: 394 W, or 4.1 hours from a 2,048 Wh station, but a furnace is hard-wired, so it needs the electrician's work below first. See power stations for a gas furnace.
Plug-in appliances are the simple case. Unplug the refrigerator, router or lamp from the wall and plug it into the station, with an extension cord if the station sits somewhere else. Nothing in your home's wiring changes.
Check the outlet count before you plan the cords. Jackery lists 3 AC outlets on the Explorer 2000 v2, DJI 4 on the Power 2000 and EcoFlow 6 on the DELTA 3.
A hard-wired appliance, such as a gas furnace or a well pump, has no plug to move. It needs a transfer switch or a power inlet installed by a licensed electrician, so the station can feed that circuit. A sump pump with a plug can go straight into the station.
Never back-feed a house by plugging a station into a wall outlet. Until an electrician has installed a transfer switch or inlet, keep to plug-in appliances and cords.
Some stations take add-on batteries, so you can buy one unit now and add capacity for longer outages later. The makers' maximums:
Compare those with what a day takes. The essentials list above needs 2,077 Wh rated per day, and adding a furnace blower for 8 hours raises that to 5,920 Wh, more than a single DELTA Pro 3 holds (it covers 69% of that day). Put your own list in the sizing tool to get your daily figure.
Yes. A 1,024 Wh station runs a 21 cu ft Whirlpool top-freezer refrigerator (45.5 W average on its ENERGY STAR listing) for 14 hours, and a 2,048 Wh station runs it for 26 hours. Every station on this site from 1,024 Wh up covers the compressor start-up figure of about 1,300 W that Whirlpool's service sheet gives for a 27 cu ft model.
A 2,048 Wh station such as the Anker SOLIX C2000 Gen 2 or DJI Power 2000 runs a 21 cu ft top-freezer refrigerator for 26 hours and a 25 cu ft French-door model with an ice maker for 19 hours. Those figures count 82% of rated capacity as usable and include the inverter's own 18 W draw.
A 21 cu ft refrigerator, a Wi-Fi router, one LED light and two phone charges need a station rated at 2,077 Wh for a full day. Add a CPAP for 8 hours and the figure rises to 2,624 Wh.
No, it runs what you plug into it. The EcoFlow DELTA Pro 3 (4,096 Wh) covers the essentials list on this page for 1.97 days, but a 1,500 W space heater empties it in 2.2 hours. A hard-wired appliance, such as a furnace or well pump, needs a transfer switch or power inlet installed by a licensed electrician.
Used as a UPS, a station switches the CPAP to battery when the grid fails: Anker, DJI and EcoFlow list 10 ms or under on their 1 kWh and 2 kWh models, and Jackery lists 20 ms on the Explorer 1000 v2 and 2000 v2. A 1,024 Wh station runs a ResMed AirSense 11 for 12 hours. Ask your doctor or equipment supplier whether your machine can run on battery power.
No. Never back-feed a house through an outlet. For hard-wired appliances such as a furnace or well pump, have a licensed electrician install a transfer switch or power inlet.
Specifications are the makers' own published figures, read from these pages. Prices are fetched from the stores at build time and dated where they appear.