Be ready before the lights go out.
Find out how much backup power your home really needs, decide which appliances matter most, and make a calm plan now, while the lights are still on.
Looking for a current outage? Check your electric utility’s official outage map.
Start with what matters
Good outage plans begin with a short list: keep food cold, stay in touch, see after dark, protect the house, and care for anyone who depends on powered equipment.
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Refrigerator and freezer
Compressors switch on and off, so they use far less than the label suggests. Federal food-safety guidance says a closed refrigerator keeps food cold for about 4 hours, and a full freezer for about 48.
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Internet and phone charging
A modem, router, and phone chargers use very little power, yet they keep you connected to family, weather alerts, and your utility’s updates. They are the easiest loads to cover.
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Lighting
LED bulbs and battery lanterns need only a few watts. Plan light for every room you use after dark, plus one hands-free light for cooking or caregiving.
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Sump pump
Storms and outages often arrive together. Pumps need a burst of extra power to start, which changes what a backup source can handle.
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Gas furnace blower
Many gas furnaces still need electricity for the blower, controls, and ignition. No power can mean no heat, even with the gas still on.
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Medical devices
CPAP machines, oxygen concentrators, and other powered equipment need a plan built with the device maker and your healthcare provider, not a guess.
What a simple plan looks like
Here is a basic 24-hour plan for a refrigerator, internet, two phones, and three LED bulbs, worked out with the same method the calculator uses.
Notice that the refrigerator does most of the work, and that the plan includes headroom for energy lost in the inverter and a reserve so you are not counting on the last drop.
Example: 24-hour plan, calculator default values
2,443Wh
About 2.44 kWh. Category: several essential loads (2 to 4 kWh).
Battery, generator, or both?
There is no single right answer. It depends on what you need to run, for how long, and whether you can safely store fuel.
Battery power station
- Quiet, no exhaust, and safe indoors when used as the manufacturer directs.
- Good for phones, internet, lights, and a refrigerator for a limited time.
- Runs until the stored energy is used up. Recharging needs grid power, solar panels, a vehicle, or a generator.
- Check both output (watts) and capacity (watt-hours).
Generator
- Can run larger loads or longer outages while fuel is available and safely stored.
- Produces carbon monoxide. Outdoors only, well away from the home.
- Needs fuel, maintenance, and protection from rain and snow.
- Connecting to home circuits requires a transfer switch or interlock installed by a licensed electrician.
Both
- A battery covers quiet overnight hours and sensitive electronics; a generator handles heavier loads or recharges the battery.
- Worth considering for long outages, sump or well pumps, or medical needs.
- More cost and planning, so size each part for a specific job.
Generator safety is not optional
Never run a generator indoors, in a garage, basement, crawl space, or shed, or near doors, windows, or vents. Opening doors or windows does not provide enough ventilation. The CDC and CPSC advise keeping portable generators at least 20 feet from the home and installing battery-powered or battery-backup carbon monoxide alarms. Never plug a generator into a wall outlet.
CDC: Avoiding carbon monoxide poisoning (external) · CPSC safety tips (external)
How it works
Three steps. It runs entirely in your browser, and nothing you enter is sent anywhere.
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Add essential loads
Pick common appliances or type in your own. Use the wattage on your appliance labels whenever you can.
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Estimate runtime
Set how many hours each one runs and how often it cycles, then choose 12, 24, 48, or 72 hours.
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Build a realistic plan
See the energy you need with sensible buffers, plus safety notes for pumps, medical devices, and heat.
Planning guides
Plain-English guides for the situations that most often need more than a flashlight.
- Staying warm safelyHold onto heat, use heaters safely, and avoid carbon monoxide.
- How long food lasts without powerWhat to keep, what to toss, and how to buy more time.
- CPAP and medical devicesPlan backup power and a fallback with the people who know your device.
- Apartment backup powerQuiet, indoor-safe planning when a generator is not an option.
- Sump pump backupWhy pumps need special planning, and when to call a professional.
- Gas furnace in an outageWhy many gas furnaces stop, and how to find what yours needs.
Is the power out right now?
Outage.info is a planning site. It does not show live outage data, maps, or restoration times. For a current outage, go to the source:
- Your electric utility’s website or mobile app, which usually has an official outage map and a way to report an outage.
- The outage phone number printed on your electric bill.
- If you see a downed power line, stay away from it and anything touching it, and call 911 and your utility.
Not sure which company provides your electricity? Check a recent bill or your account statement.
Get the 72-hour household outage checklist
Six printable pages to fill in while the lights are on and keep where everyone can find them:
- Important numbers for your utility, doctor, pharmacy, and family
- Supplies to gather before storm season
- Your essential loads, ranked, with space for your own appliance wattages
- An hour-by-hour plan for the first three days, with food timing from USDA guidance
- A medical device page to complete with your provider
- Generator and carbon monoxide safety, and what to check when power returns
PDF, 6 pages, letter size. No sign-up required.
Free, no email needed
The checklist is free to print and share for personal use. Nothing is collected when you download it.
It pairs with the calculator: fill in your loads on page 3, then turn them into numbers and print your plan to keep alongside it.