OUTAGE ATLAS / FIELD NOTES
Watts vs. Watt-hours for Portable Power Stations
A power station’s capacity and output describe different limits. You need both checks before you compare prices.
| Specification | What it answers |
|---|---|
| Capacity, Wh | How much energy does the battery store? |
| Continuous output, W | How much running load can it power at once? |
| Surge / startup, W | What brief demand can it support, and for how long? |
A battery can be big enough but too weak
An imaginary 2,000 Wh battery with a 500 W inverter cannot continuously power a 1,000 W appliance just because its energy capacity is large. Conversely, a high-output inverter paired with a small battery may run a powerful appliance only briefly.
Keep the units straight
Energy (Wh) = average power (W) × time (hours) 1 kilowatt-hour (kWh) = 1,000 watt-hours (Wh)
Outage Atlas adds conversion losses and inverter idle consumption, then leaves your selected battery reserve unused. You can see and change those assumptions.
Be careful with advertised boost modes
We compare normal continuous output separately from advertised surge output. We do not substitute boost-mode claims for rated continuous output. Check the manufacturer’s explanation, supported load types and exact model manual.
Look beyond the three headline numbers
Confirm voltage, frequency, outlet type, per-port current limits, waveform, startup duration and charging behavior. The calculator does not verify those details. Expansion batteries also need an explicitly compatible base unit; capacity figures alone cannot confirm compatibility.
Examples of separately published specifications: EcoFlow DELTA 3 Plus and Jackery Explorer 1000 v2. We have not physically tested these models.
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