Power inverters for power outages
As our VEVC president, Manfred Wissemann has demonstrated, using an electric vehicle to power household appliances and lights during a power outage with the help of a power inverter can be quite helpful during an emergency.
There are two basic types of power inverters, pure sine wave power inverters and modified sine wave power inverters. A short video on the subject can be found below.
|
Appliance
|
Watts
|
Amanppliance
|
Watts
|
Appliance
|
Watts
|
|
Central Air Conditioner NA
|
5,000
|
Electric blanket
|
200
|
Hedge trimmer |
450
|
|
Electric Clothes Dryer NA
|
3,400
|
Shaver |
15
|
Weed eater |
500
|
|
Oven
|
3,000
|
Waterpik
|
100
|
1/4” drill |
250
|
|
Hair Dryer
|
1,538
|
Well Pump (1/3-1 HP) |
480-1200
|
1/2” drill |
750
|
|
Dishwasher
|
1200-1500
|
Laptop
|
60-250
|
1” drill |
1000
|
|
Coffee Machine
|
1,500
|
Plasma TV
|
339
|
9” disc sander |
1200
|
|
Microwave
|
1,500
|
LCD TV
|
213
|
3” belt sander |
1000
|
|
Popcorn Popper
|
1,400
|
25” color TV |
150
|
12” chain saw |
1100
|
|
Toaster oven
|
1,200
|
19” color TV
|
70
|
14” band saw |
1100
|
|
Hot Plate
|
1200
|
12” black and white TV
|
20
|
7-1/4” circular saw |
900
|
| Iron |
1,100
|
Stereo
|
10-30
|
8-1/4” circular saw |
1400
|
|
Toaster
|
1,100
|
Satellite dish
|
30
|
Refrigerator/ Freezer** | |
|
Microwave
|
500-1500
|
Radiotelephone – Receive
|
5
|
20 cu. ft. (AC) |
1411 watt-hours/day*
|
| Room Air Conditioner NA |
1,100
|
Radiotelephone – Transmit
|
40-150
|
16 cu. ft. (AC) |
1200 watt-hours /day*
|
|
Vacuum Cleaner
|
500
|
Lights
|
Freezer | ||
| Water heater |
479
|
100 watt incandescent bulb
|
100
|
15 cu. ft. (Upright) |
1240 watt-hours /day*
|
| Sink Waste Disposal |
450
|
25 watt compact fluor. bulb
|
28
|
15 cu. ft. (Chest) |
1080 watt-hours /day*
|
|
Espresso Machine
|
360
|
50 watt DC incandescent
|
50
|
Cell Phone – recharge |
2-4 watts
|
|
Dehumidifier
|
350
|
40 watt DC halogen |
40
|
MP3 Player – recharge | .25-.40 watts |
|
Blender
|
300
|
20 watt DC compact fluor. |
22
|
* TV’s,VCR’s and other devices left plugged in, but not turned on, still draw power.
**To estimate the number of hours that a refrigerator actually operates at its maximum wattage, divide the total time the refrigerator is plugged in by three. Refrigerators, although turned “on” all the time, actually cycle on and off as needed to maintain interior temperatures. |
|
|
Humidifier
|
300-1000
|
CFL Bulb (60-watt equivalent)
|
18
|
||
|
Video Game Player
|
195
|
CFL Bulb (40-watt equivalent)
|
11
|
||
|
Standard TV
|
188
|
CFL Bulb (75-watt equivalent) |
20
|
||
|
LCD Monitor
|
80-150
|
CFL Bulb (100-watt equivalent) |
30
|
||
|
Desktop Computer (Standard home/business)
|
80-120
|
Heaters***
|
|||
| Desktop Computer (Gaming) | 400-1000+ | ||||
| Laptop Computer | 40-120 | ||||
|
Portable Fan
|
100
|
Engine Block Heater NA
|
150-1000
|
||
|
Ceiling Fan
|
100
|
Portable Heater NA
|
1500
|
||
|
Can Opener
|
100
|
Waterbed Heater NA |
400
|
||
|
Curling Iron
|
90
|
Stock Tank Heater NA |
100
|
||
|
Stereo
|
60
|
Furnace Blower
|
300-1000
|
||
|
Cable Box
|
20
|
Clothes Dryer – Gas Heated |
300-400
|
||
| Clock Radio |
7
|
Well Pump (1/3-1HP) |
480-1200
|
||
* The daily energy values listed here are for the most efficient units in their class and the information was obtained from Consumer Guide to Home and the General Electric website. Chart source
So when purchasing a power inverter, you should take into account what you are trying to charge and how many watts you need to charge.
