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Battery to run concentrator during power outage
My wife and I are looking for options to plug my home concentrator into overnight in the event of a power outage. We don’t need/want a fuel driven generator. I have POC but batteries don’t last long enough for continuous flow while sleeping. Outages don’t usually last long here – just some insurance for the overnight hours
Not sure how much “power” battery should have. We’ve been looking at lithium batteries, just not sure what would be best. Any suggestions, advice, etc., are welcome.
Thanks, Allan
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7 Replies
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After Hurricane Ida when we were without power for weeks and for much of that time gas for the generator was not available and Lincare was closed we bought a solar generator.
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Solar chargers keep their internal battery charged for longer periods.Nice,but probably overkill for you. A lithium battery will certainly power for longer at a much higher cost. I use group 27 lead/acid deep cycle batteries on my boat, and one of those would probably be enough. You definitely want a deep cycle battery, they’re designed for long, slow discharge regardless of chemistry. You can probably find a power unit what will have a deep cycle battery and demand charging system and 12 volt outlets..It will probably have an inverter and 110V outlets too, but use the 12 V because inverters are only 70% efficient and drain you battery faster. There is no point in stepping up the voltage so the circuitry in your concentrator will step it down again. You could also just by the battery and a good automatic charger and add a 12V outlet for less. Specs on your concentrator should tell you its current draw at 12V, multiply amps x hours of run time desired and double it for the amp hour rating of the battery you’ll need. Amps at 120V x 10 is equivalent to amps at 12 V.
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EcoFlow DELTA Max 2000 Portable Power Station with 2 160W Solar Panels; This item is available at Costco online. They have others that are larger and claim to be able to run large appliances for several days. Can be recharged via AC or Solar panels. I don’t have one yet so I can’t personally vouch for them, but the customer reviews seem fairly positive. I just discovered these myself a few weeks ago, so I thought that I would pass along the reference FYI. Cheers.
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Why not get some E tanks?
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I just purchased a Jackery power source for my portable concentrator.
Go to Jackery.com and check it out. Can be used indoors or outdoors and can also be charged with solar panels.
Investigate on your own and I think you will be pleased.
Bill Peters
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You need something in the 1800watt or 2000watt minimum. Oxygen Concentrators ( room units) require anywhere from 400watts to 700watts so you can get anywhere from 3 hours to 5 hours off the battery backup based on your units wattage requirements. They are able to do automatic backup if you buy a good battery backup device and have it plugged in, fully charging and inline when needed to activate. A lifesaver for me since I’m on oxygen 24/7 from IPF.
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Since I’m from the IT world I rebuilt an APC 2200 VA unit I bought cheaply. It keeps my 10 liter concentrator running for about 45 minutes.
Anything over 15 minutes, and I’m connecting the generator. I have a whole house GenerTek transfer switch, and store the generator in a small “hut” close to the connection point so it’s a pretty quick operation. I’ve had to rely on the battery more often than I would like, and the generator has gotten about 8 hours of exercise between 2 incidents this year.
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