What Appliances Can a Home Battery Power During an Outage?

Welcome back to Powering the Future, our series on the vital importance of home solar batteries in powering homes and communities. In part one, we went over some basics on how long you can expect your battery to power your home in the case of a power outage, plus the key factors to consider to maximize this number.

At Intermountain Wind & Solar, we're happy to offer not just a wide range of solar panel products and solutions to clients around Salt Lake City, Utah and Boise, Idaho, but also to provide home battery installation services and related programs to help you save on power and stay connected even when the traditional grid goes down. Another common question from clients surrounding solar home batteries: What appliances can a home battery power during an outage? Let's dive in and answer this question thoroughly.

All Depends on Capacity

In a vacuum, the answer to the question of which appliances a home battery can power during a power outage is simple: All of them. With the right capacity, a home battery has enough stored energy to power all of your home's appliances and devices during an outage.

Now, this isn't always the case for every home and every battery. The capacity of a battery is typically measured in kilowatt-hours (kWh), with the average solar home battery having a capacity between 5-13 kWh. This means that a larger capacity battery will be able to power more appliances for a longer period of time than a smaller capacity one.

Smaller Appliances Are Rarely an Issue

Because they use less energy, smaller appliances like lamps, phones, and laptops are rarely an issue when it comes to powering them during an outage. Even a smaller capacity home battery should be able to keep these items running for quite some time.

This usually even extends to most of your medium-power appliances, the kinds you use on a regular basis. Things like Wi-Fi routers, for instance, often use a minimal amount of energy, and should be easy for a home battery to keep running. Even things like lights, fans, TVs and others should all be fine with most batteries.

It's only when you get to certain high-powered appliances that some nuances sometimes tend to appear, which we'll go over below.

HVAC Equipment

Perhaps the best example of this is your home's HVAC equipment, which can consume a lot of energy during normal operation. Depending on the type and size of your battery, it may not be able to fully power your HVAC system for an extended period of time. It's always a good idea to consult with a professional solar installer about the specific capacity needed for powering your HVAC during an outage.

High-Powered Fridges or Freezers

While most standard fridges and freezers will be fine with a home battery during an outage, larger commercial models or those with additional features like ice makers may require more energy to run. It's important to consider the size and power consumption of your fridge or freezer when selecting a home battery.

Powerful Inverter

For certain of these high-powered appliances, such as your air conditioner for instance, the key power draw actually comes during the start-up process. While we don't have the space to run through the science behind this, this is one issue where a powerful inverter in your solar battery system can make all the difference in powering these appliances during an outage.

A more powerful inverter will allow for a higher surge capacity, meaning it can handle the initial power draw needed to start up these appliances. If powering high-powered appliances during an outage is a priority for you, make sure to discuss this with your solar installer when selecting a home battery.

Now, a more powerful inverter tends to cost more, so it's important to balance your needs and budget when making this decision. For most homes, a standard inverter should be able to handle the majority of appliances without any issues.

With enough capacity and the right setup including a powerful inverter, a home battery can power all of your household appliances during an outage. However, it's important to consider the size and power consumption of individual appliances before selecting a home battery. Consulting with a professional solar installer is always recommended to ensure you have the right system in place for your specific needs.

Stay tuned for part three of our Powering the Future series on home batteries, which will cover how your battery interacts with the standard power grid during both normal operations and blackout scenarios. At Intermountain Wind & Solar, we're proud to offer top-tier solar panel and battery options for all our clients around SLC, Utah and Boise, Idaho - contact us today for assistance!