Guides and explainers

Watt-hours, transfer switches, cold weather, storage. The stuff nobody explains before you spend money.

Run This Appliance

Battery Backup for a Router and Modem: How Long Can You Stay Online?

Your internet gear sips power — days of uptime from a small battery. The catch is whether your ISP still has power at their end.

3 min read

Run This Appliance

Can a Power Station Run a Window AC Unit?

Yes, for a few hours, and only on a big unit. Here is the honest math, the surge that trips most batteries, and what to do instead.

4 min read

Run This Appliance

Can You Run a Well Pump on a Solar Generator?

Mostly no, and the reason is one number nobody checks. Here is what it actually takes, and the cheaper trick that saves most people.

3 min read

Run This Appliance

Can a Solar Generator Run a Refrigerator?

Yes, and it takes less battery than you have been told. Here is the math, the surge trap, and the size that actually saves your food.

3 min read

Your State's Grid

California PSPS Backup Power: What to Buy Before the Next Shutoff

PSPS events are scheduled, not random. That changes everything about what you should buy — and it makes solar panels far more useful here than elsewhere.

3 min read

Your State's Grid

Florida Hurricane Power Backup: What Works After the Storm

The heat after a hurricane is the real danger, not the storm. Here is what actually runs, why solar panels disappoint, and the mistake that kills people every season.

4 min read

Your State's Grid

Midwest Ice Storm Backup Power: Staying Warm When the Lines Come Down

If you have gas heat, one 400-watt load keeps your whole house warm. That single fact is worth more than any battery comparison.

4 min read

Your State's Grid

Backup Power for Texas Outages: What Actually Works Here

ERCOT is its own grid with its own failure modes, and Texas outages hit in heat as often as ice. Here is what to buy for both.

4 min read

Battery & Tech Basics

How Long Do Solar Generators Actually Last?

The cells will outlive you. Something else will break first. Here is what actually fails, and the one habit that shortens a battery's life fastest.

4 min read

Battery & Tech Basics

Is It Safe to Use a Power Station Indoors?

Yes, and that is the entire reason they beat gas generators. Here are the four real risks, and the one that actually kills people.

3 min read

Battery & Tech Basics

LiFePO4 vs Lithium-Ion: Which Battery Lasts Longer?

One chemistry lasts six times longer and does not catch fire. The other is lighter. Here is why almost every good power station now uses the first one.

3 min read

Sizing & Calculators

How Many Watts to Run a House During an Outage?

The honest number is far smaller than the internet says — because you are not running a house, you are running four things in it.

3 min read

Sizing & Calculators

Surge Watts vs Running Watts: What Actually Trips Your Unit

Your battery is big enough and it still shut off. This is why, and it is the spec almost nobody checks before buying.

3 min read

Sizing & Calculators

Watt-Hours Explained: Wh, Ah and kWh Made Simple

Watts is how fast. Watt-hours is how much. Get those two straight and every spec sheet in this category stops being confusing.

3 min read

Home Outage & Backup

Do You Need a Transfer Switch for a Solar Generator?

Extension cords work fine for most people. Here is exactly when they stop working, what a transfer switch costs, and the shortcut that kills lineworkers.

4 min read

Home Outage & Backup

Hurricane Prep Checklist: The Power Backup Edition

Everything to do before the storm, in the order that matters. Written for the week you actually have, not the year you should have had.

3 min read

Home Outage & Backup

How to Keep Food Cold During a Power Outage

Your fridge holds cold for four hours. Your freezer holds it for two days. Here is how to stretch both, and exactly when to throw things out.

3 min read