Do you have a plan for when the electric grid goes down? If you plan on staying put you need electricity. Currently the most common form of home backup equipment is the fuel generator. Although they do provide emergency electricity, there are drawbacks that are often overlooked. First, they require fuel. Gasoline generator owners often hoard fuel in small containers without knowledge that gasoline will eventually separate, gel or go bad in some way. This bad fuel will do you no good when the power goes out and you are relying on a fuel generator. Second, gasoline generators are also notorious for not starting when you need them most, commonly due to neglect of routine maintenance or regular running on the owners’ part. Generators need to be exercised regularly, have their fluids changed and require regular maintenance. How one maintains their generator will ultimately lead to its performance during a time in need. If you are not willing to keep up with the maintenance required, a traditional fuel generator is just not right for you. Don’t worry. There are better options!
We have all seen portable solar kits: small, fairly inexpensive systems that can power a cell phone or perhaps, a small refrigerator. If you aren't familiar, check out our Product Review of such a kit here. For larger applications like backing up a portion of your home, small kits just won't do. However, there is a cleaner, quieter and more comprehensive approach: a battery based Home Backup System. We have all seen uninterruptible power supply (UPS) systems for computers. These backup system work in much the same way. Think of them as UPS systems for your entire house. The most important difference between these battery based systems and generators is run time. Generators can’t run 24/7. They generally need a break every 8 or so hours. Home Backup Systems are designed to run 24/7 and without the noise and pollution or a generator.
Our battery based Home Backup Systems are a great alternative to generators for a variety of reasons. They require no maintenance, are whisper quiet, and provide instantaneous backup when the grid goes down. You wont even notice a light bulb flicker. These systems work by coupling batteries, inverters, auto transfer switch, relays and other components into a system that senses the status of your homes electrical grid and provides instant power when the grid fails. It may sound complicated but these systems are easy to install. They come prewired and ready for a quick hook up. All system components are housed in a clean looking electrical enclosure, blending in to any homes garage or utility room and providing power without pollution or noise.
The way the system works is simple. When the grid is up, the backup system sits idle, trickle charging its batteries and monitoring the status of the grid. As soon as the power goes out the system senses this and turns on, sending power to either your entire house or preselected circuits. Most homeowners will choose to only backup a few circuits or zones of their home to save on system cost and only provide power for what they really need. If you feel you need total house backup, these Home Backup Systems can be expanded to power even the largest homes, but as single units they are designed to provide instant battery backup to only a portion of your home at one time.
But what happens when the batteries run out? Is there an option if you have used all your battery reserve and the grid still isn’t back on? These systems are designed to work as a backup system as well as an off the grid power system. You can quickly connect solar panels or recharge the batteries from an AC source like a portable generator. If you decide you need a larger battery bank, additional batteries can be added to the system from the initial purchase or at a later date. It is important to know that with batteries, you never want to add new batteries to an old battery bank. If you feel that you need more battery capacity than what these backup systems come with it is best to upgrade the battery bank from the beginning or within six months of installation.
Enjoy peace and quiet power, ready when you need it and smart enough to work without you doing anything. Power your Prep with a Home Backup System from Off Grid Depot and see why so many people are choosing these systems. We can advise you on how to choose the wiser alternative to the fuel generator, a Home Backup System.