By Jared White
In the Pacific Northwest, the lights usually go out in winter. A windstorm drops a tree across a line or an ice event takes out a feeder, and a neighborhood is dark for anything from a few hours to a few days. Backup power is how you keep the refrigerator cold, the phones charged, the medical devices running, and, increasingly, the heat or cooling and air filtration working through that gap. This guide is the decision: how to size what you need, how generators, batteries, and solar actually compare, the safety rules that are not optional, and a simple framework to land on the right choice. When you are ready for specific models, the best portable power stations and home batteries guide has the picks.
First, Size Your Needs
Every good backup decision starts with two numbers: how much power your loads draw, and how long you need them. Power is measured in watts. Energy, which is power over time, is measured in watt-hours. A battery's capacity in watt-hours tells you roughly how long it can run a load: divide the capacity by the load in watts for an ideal runtime, then knock it down, because inverter losses and not fully draining a battery cost you maybe twenty percent in practice.
The other wrinkle is surge. Anything with a motor, like a refrigerator or a well pump, briefly draws far more on startup than it does while running, and your power source has to handle that surge spike or it will trip. The table below gives rough figures; the real numbers are on each appliance's nameplate, so check those before you buy.
| Appliance / load | Running watts | Starting / surge watts | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Refrigerator (modern) | 100-200 | 600-800 | Compressor cycles; surges on start. |
| Freezer (chest or upright) | 150-300 | 700-900 | Chest freezers are often more efficient. |
| Modem + Wi-Fi router | 15-30 | ~same | Low and continuous. |
| LED lights (per room) | 20-100 | ~same | Depends on fixtures. |
| Laptop | 50-100 | ~same | Charging draw. |
| CPAP machine | 30-60 | ~same | Critical medical load. |
| Window AC (small) | 500-1,000 | 1,500-2,000 | Big swing by size and efficiency. |
| Space heater (portable) | 1,000-1,500 | ~same | High draw; drains batteries fast. |
| Well pump (3/4-1 hp) | 700-1,200 | 2,000-4,000 | Large surge; often dictates generator size. |
A couple of worked examples make the math real. A 1,000 watt-hour power station running a 150 watt refrigerator works out to about 6.7 hours on paper, and realistically five to six once you account for losses and the fact that a fridge cycles on and off. A 2,000 watt-hour station running a fridge plus lights and internet, call it 250 watts together, lasts about eight hours ideally and six to seven in practice. That is the kind of estimate to run for your own must-have loads before deciding what to buy.
The Four Options
Portable power stations are large batteries with a built-in inverter, almost always lithium-ion or the more durable LiFePO4 chemistry. They are quiet, indoor-safe, and maintenance-free, with capacity rated in watt-hours and output rated in watts, and they recharge from a wall outlet, solar panels, or a car. They are ideal for short and day-scale outages powering electronics, a CPAP, the modem, lights, and a fridge, and they are often the only practical choice in an apartment or condo where you cannot store fuel or place a generator. Their limit is capacity and output: running a resistive space heater or a big well pump off one is usually impractical.
Inverter generators burn gasoline but produce clean, electronics-safe power, and they are quieter and more efficient than old open-frame generators, typically in the 1,000 to 3,000 watt range. They are a good fit for running a fridge and freezer, lights, electronics, and sometimes a small AC unit through outages lasting hours to a couple of days. The non-negotiable catch is that they burn fuel and must run outdoors, well away from the house, because of carbon monoxide.
Dual-fuel and conventional generators are the high-output workhorses, from 3,000 to 10,000-plus watts, often able to run on either gasoline or propane. They are louder and less efficient at low loads, but they can power higher-draw loads like a well pump or larger AC and feed multiple circuits through a transfer switch. Propane stores far longer than gasoline, which is a real advantage for infrequent use, though fuel storage and safe handling become your responsibility.
Home batteries with solar are the permanently installed, automatic option: systems like the Tesla Powerwall, Generac PWRcell, or whole-home EcoFlow setups, usually 10 to 20-plus kilowatt-hours, wired into your panel to back up selected circuits the instant the grid drops. Paired with rooftop solar, they recharge during the day and can also shave your everyday bill through time-of-use management. They are quiet, hands-off, and can sometimes run a heat pump or mini-split depending on sizing. The downsides are the high upfront cost, the need for professional installation and careful design, and the reality that a long, dark, sun-poor stretch may still call for a generator as backup. Battery and solar systems may qualify for meaningful incentives, which the rebates guide covers.
Backup Options at a Glance
| Type | Capacity / output | Indoor-safe? | Noise | Price (approx) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Power station (small) | ~300-600 Wh; 300-600 W | Yes | Silent | ~$300-800 |
| Power station (mid/large) | ~1,000-3,000 Wh; 1,000-3,000 W | Yes | Silent | ~$800-3,000 |
| Inverter generator (small) | ~1,000-2,000 W | No (outdoor only) | Moderate | ~$500-1,200 |
| Dual-fuel / conventional | ~3,000-10,000+ W | No (outdoor only) | Loud | ~$700-3,000+ |
| Home battery (single unit) | ~10-15 kWh; 5-10 kW | Yes | Silent | ~$10,000-20,000+ installed |
| Battery + solar + generator | 20+ kWh plus array | Battery yes; generator outdoor | Mostly silent | $25,000+, highly variable |
Prices are approximate as of mid-2026 and move with equipment, installation, and incentives. Verify before buying.
Carbon Monoxide Safety (Read This)
Fuel-burning generators kill people every year, almost always the same way: someone runs one indoors or too close to the house during a storm. Gasoline, propane, and diesel generators all produce carbon monoxide, an odorless gas that is fatal in minutes at high concentration. The rules are simple and not flexible. Never run a generator inside the home, the basement, an enclosed porch, or an attached garage, even with the door open. Place it outdoors, at least 20 feet from any door, window, or vent, with the exhaust pointed away from the house. Install battery-powered or battery-backup carbon monoxide alarms on each level and near sleeping areas, and test them, because a CO alarm is the thing that wakes you when something goes wrong. Battery power stations carry none of this risk, which is a large part of their appeal indoors.
Transfer Switches and Backfeeding
If you want a generator to power your home's wired circuits rather than just extension-corded appliances, you need a way to do it safely. A transfer switch or a panel interlock connects the generator to selected circuits while isolating your home from the grid. That isolation is the entire point. Connecting a generator directly to a circuit without it, the classic and dangerous trick of backfeeding through a dryer outlet, can push power back onto the utility lines and electrocute a lineworker who believes the circuit is dead, besides risking your own equipment. Do not do it. Transfer switches and interlocks should be installed by a licensed electrician, and most jurisdictions require a permit and inspection. This is the one part of a backup plan where doing it yourself is not worth it.
PNW-Specific Notes
A few regional realities shape the right choice here. Most PNW outages come from winter windstorms and ice, last hours to days, and arrive when you most need refrigeration, communications, and heat, so a cold-weather plan matters more than a summer one. Cold also works against batteries: capacity and charging both decline in low temperatures, and LiFePO4 packs in particular often will not charge below freezing without warming, so where you store a power station matters. Fuel storage is its own discipline, with proper containers, rotation so gasoline does not go stale, and attention to local code. And do not forget the summer case: smoke and heat events can coincide with grid stress, and backup power is what lets you keep cooling and filtration running with the windows shut.
A Simple Decision Framework
Work through four questions and the answer usually falls out.
How long are your outages? Mostly a few hours points to a battery power station or a small inverter generator. Frequent or multi-day outages point to a mid-size generator, a larger battery and solar system, or a combination of the two.
What must stay on? Sort your loads into tiers. Tier one is the must-haves: fridge or freezer, modem and router, some lights, and any medical device like a CPAP. Tier two is comfort: a window AC or mini-split in one room, a fan, devices, maybe a small heater. Tier three is whole-home: a well pump, multiple circuits, a full heat pump. The higher the tier you want to cover, the more output and capacity, or the bigger the generator, you need.
Where do you live? An apartment, condo, or tight urban lot pushes you toward power stations and smaller loads, because fuel storage and generator placement are constrained. A detached house with a yard opens up generators with a transfer switch and, potentially, rooftop solar with a battery.
What is your budget and tolerance? On a lower budget and willing to manage fuel and noise, an inverter or conventional generator delivers the most backup per dollar. With a higher budget and a preference for quiet, automatic operation, a battery and solar system is the better experience, sometimes with a generator kept as the long-outage backstop.
There is no universal recipe, and the trickiest case, mixing a battery for short events with a generator for long ones, is genuinely scenario-dependent, which is why installers design those rather than sell them off a chart. Use the Resilient Home Stack Builder to walk your own loads and constraints through it.
Frequently Asked Questions
What size do I need to run my fridge and Wi-Fi during an outage?
For a fridge plus modem and router and a few lights, you are looking at roughly 250 to 350 running watts, with a surge allowance for the fridge compressor. A 1,000 to 1,500 watt-hour power station or a small inverter generator covers that comfortably; the power station runs silently indoors, the generator runs as long as you have fuel.
Can a portable power station really run a refrigerator for a full day?
A larger one can. A modern fridge averages well under its running watts because it cycles, so a 2,000 to 3,000 watt-hour station, ideally recharged by solar during the day, can keep a fridge going for a full day or more. Smaller stations will run it for hours, not a day.
Battery or generator for PNW backup?
Batteries win on quiet, clean, indoor-safe operation and are perfect for short outages and electronics. Generators win on sustained output and cost per watt for long or whole-home outages. Many PNW homes end up with a power station for the common short outage and a generator for the rare multi-day one.
Can I run a generator during a windstorm, and where?
Yes, but only outdoors, at least 20 feet from any door, window, or vent, with exhaust pointed away and under a proper open-sided cover that keeps rain off without enclosing it. Never in a garage or on a porch. Pair it with working carbon monoxide alarms inside.
Do I need a transfer switch to use a generator for my home circuits?
Yes. To power wired circuits safely you need a transfer switch or interlock installed by a licensed electrician, which isolates your home from the grid and prevents dangerous backfeeding. Without one, stick to running appliances directly off the generator with cords.
Size your must-have loads first, respect the carbon monoxide and backfeeding rules without exception, and match the option to your outage length and budget. When you are ready to choose hardware, see the best portable power stations and home batteries, check incentives for battery and solar, see how backup fits the whole stack, or get a tailored plan from the Resilient Home Stack Builder.