Guide
Power station or petrol generator for a power cut?
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For most UK power cuts, which last hours rather than days, a power station is the simpler choice. It is silent, can be used indoors and needs no fuel. A petrol generator gives more energy for longer, but must stay outside.
| Power station | Petrol generator | |
|---|---|---|
| Use indoors | Yes | Never: exhaust fumes contain carbon monoxide |
| Noise | Quiet; fan only when working hard | Loud enough to bother neighbours at night |
| How long it runs | Until the battery is empty, then recharge from mains or solar | As long as you have fuel |
| Takes over by itself | Many switch over in milliseconds () | No: you start it and plug in |
| Upkeep | Top up the charge every few months | Fresh fuel, oil changes, run it regularly |
| Storage | A cupboard | A shed, plus petrol: the HSE's limit is 30 litres at home in approved containers |
When a generator makes sense
If you lose power for days at a time, such as rural homes after storms, or need to run heavy tools all day. Some owners pair the two: the power station runs the house overnight, the generator recharges it in the day.
What size power station?
Keeping a fridge-freezer, router, lights and phones going through an evening takes about 1 kWh. A whole day needs 2 kWh or more. Size it properly, or use What will it run?
Power stations worth a look
3,072 · 3,600 W · 37 h power-cut cover
From £1,499
2,042 Wh · 2,200 W · 24 h power-cut cover
From £807
Questions buyers ask before buying
It's a lot of money for something I'll hardly use.
Price it against what it protects: a freezer full of food, a working router when you work from home, a CPAP machine through the night. A 1 kWh station that covers fridge, router, lights and phones for about half a day starts at £419. It also earns its keep outside power cuts: camping, the garden or a van. Who gets value.
Power cuts hardly ever happen where I live.
Most are short. The ones that matter come with winter storms and can last a night or more, and they are hard to plan for. A station sits in a cupboard charged and ready, needs a top-up every few months, and doubles as a camping or garden battery the rest of the year.
Will it actually run my things?
That is the right question, and the box rarely answers it. Pick your appliances in What will it run? and you will only see stations with enough output and battery for them, with the hours each one lasts.
Aren't lithium batteries a fire risk?
Almost every current model uses (lithium iron phosphate) cells, which are far more stable than the lithium-ion in older gadgets. Buy from the maker's UK store or a big UK retailer, keep the vents clear and charge it indoors. Fire risk explained.
Won't the battery be dead in a few years?
LFP stations are rated for 3,000 to 10,000 charge cycles. Used once a week, even 3,000 cycles is over 50 years, and five-year warranties are now common. How long they last.
I'm not technical. Is it complicated?
No wiring and no fuel. You charge it from a wall socket, then plug things into it like a normal socket. Many switch on by themselves when the mains drops. If weight worries you, filter by it: some 1 kWh models are about 11 kg and smaller ones under 6 kg.
Ready to choose?