Medical equipment in a power outage
If someone at home depends on powered equipment, an outage is more than an inconvenience. This page covers the official help first, then the batteries and small things that fill the gap, with runtimes from this site's calculator. It is general information, not medical advice.
In the UK? See the UK edition.
Know this first
Tell your utility
Most US utilities run a medical baseline or critical care program for customers who rely on powered medical equipment. It does not guarantee your power stays on, but it can mean advance notice of planned shutoffs, including wildfire safety shutoffs, and in some states a lower rate. Search your utility's site for "medical baseline" or "life support".
Oxygen
Oxygen suppliers provide backup tanks for outages; ask yours how many you have and how long they last at your prescribed flow rate. An oxygen concentrator draws a few hundred watts, so a portable power station runs one for hours rather than days: see the table below. Never change a prescribed flow rate to make a battery last longer.
CPAP
A CPAP draws far less than most people expect, especially with the humidifier off and a DC cable instead of the wall plug. That puts a night or two within reach of a station of about 500 Wh, and more with the DC cable. Details in CPAP on battery power.
Insulin
The FDA says insulin in the maker's vial or pen, opened or not, can be left unrefrigerated between 59 °F and 86 °F for up to 28 days and still work. In a summer outage, keep it as cool as you can: an evaporative cooling case helps. Never let it freeze, and ask your pharmacist or doctor about your own insulin.
Official help
The HHS emPOWER program explains how emergency planners support people who rely on electricity-dependent medical equipment, and Ready.gov has a planning guide for people with disabilities and their carers.
Keeping the equipment going
Ask the supplier before connecting anything to medical equipment.
DC power cable for the CPAP
Running a CPAP straight from a 12 V socket skips the inverter and makes any battery last much longer.
Look for: A cable made for your exact machine; ask the equipment supplier which one before buying.
Insulin and medicines
For a summer outage or a long one.
Insulin cooling wallet
Evaporative cooling wallets keep insulin pens below room temperature for days with no fridge and no ice, which matters most in a summer outage.
Look for: A size that fits the pens or vials you actually use, and instructions on how long one soak lasts.
Refrigerator and freezer thermometers
The only way to know whether food stayed cold enough, rather than guessing from the clock.
Look for: One per appliance, readable without holding the door open.
Light and contact
So nobody is fumbling for tubing or pens in the dark.
Plug-in power failure lights
They sit in an outlet as a night light, stay charged, and switch on by themselves the moment the power goes out.
Look for: A removable battery that doubles as a flashlight, so you can carry one to the breaker panel.
Headlamp
Both hands free for the stairs, the breaker panel and the pets.
Look for: USB-C charging or common AA batteries, and a red-light mode.
Mini UPS for the router
If your home phone or internet runs through the router, it stops when the power does. A small battery box keeps the router, and any phone plugged into it, working through a short outage.
Look for: DC outputs that match the voltage printed on your router's power adapter (usually 12 V), enough of them for the modem too, and a capacity in watt-hours.
What a power station keeps running
The kit above keeps people comfortable. A portable power station keeps things running. This is what a 1,056 Wh Anker SOLIX C1000 manages for each load on its own, from full.
| Load | Alone, from full |
|---|---|
| CPAP (no humidifier) | 18 h 43 min |
| CPAP with heated humidifier | 12 h 23 min |
| BiPAP / VPAP | 13 h 42 min |
| Oxygen concentrator (5 L/min) | 2 h 8 min |
| Nebuliser | 5 h 26 min |
| Medication fridge (insulin) | 31 h 19 min |
These are modelled averages from the same catalogue as the rest of the site, not measurements of your machine. Check the watts on your own equipment's label, and use the calculator to size a station for it. Compare stations in the buying guide.
Checklist to print
- Enrolled in your utility's medical baseline or critical care program
- Equipment supplier's outage advice written down by the equipment
- Backup oxygen tanks, if you use oxygen
- Battery or power station charged, and tested on the equipment
- Spare insulin and medications, and a cooling case
- A charged cell phone, and the utility and supplier numbers written down
- Power failure lights by the bed and the equipment
Before storm season
- Enroll in your utility's medical program, and tell your local emergency management office if it keeps a register.
- Ask your equipment supplier what to do in an outage, and whether a DC cable or battery is approved for your machine.
- Test the backup: run the equipment from the battery for a whole night while the power is on.
- Tell a neighbor or relative who can check on you if the power goes.
Sources
Amazon links on this page are affiliate links; the site may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. They are searches for a type of product, not endorsements of a particular model, and nothing here has been tested hands-on. Prices and stock change constantly.
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