What do you need? How little can you get by with?
Energy is a part of our everyday lives, but it’s expensive. From CPAP machines to water pumping stations to cooking, keeping cool, refrigeration, or communications, most of us won’t exactly thrive without energy. For some people, that may mean they function with less, like batteries or small solar batteries operating only small devices. For others, that may mean a generator giving them hours or weeks of carefully rationed electricity and replenishment through alternate energy sources. For 1.3% of Americans, emergency energy means whole home battery systems. The cost of whole home batteries, along with the complexity of installation, are some of the barriers to wider adoption. To put that small number further into perspective, only 6% of American households have solar power systems. That also means that most people’s solar will automatically shut off after a disaster. This is to protect downline repairmen.
Whatever solution you select for electricity is going to depend on your funds and your absolute needs. To do that, you’ll want to take a look at our calculator later in this module. Large solar-recharged batteries drop in price every year, and I’m a big fan of even the small ones, which is why I do a review of about two dozen of the best ones every year. Even if you don’t get one right away, you will want to use the calculator to understand your energy needs and consumption. If your electricity bill has recently gone through the roof, you can thank me later for the calculator which will help you understand why that is.
Use the capacity calculator found here https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1E3McBfU9KpsnVJcwEE5VLzMoTUrEUetGAxUVrX3K3M8/edit?gid=1034043500#gid=1034043500 to determine where your power is going.
Ask yourself what you could live without and what’s absolutely essential to you. With this knowledge, determine your minimum energy needs, what alternatives you might use, or what battery power system or generator might meet your needs if you need power for 3-weeks.