A portable power station for your fridge can help avoid food spoilage during power outages or other home emergencies.
I’ve owned several large power stations for a variety of uses, including power outages.
A top portable power station can also help keep food cold on the road by powering a camping fridge on long trips (my primary use).
Losing power to your fridge is not just about your ice cream melting or your beer getting warm. It’s about meat and expensive food spoiling. When I was growing up, we had a second fridge and freezer that kept all of our meat from hunting and other food items. It would have been tragic (and expensive) to lose/replace all that hard-earned meat.
Learn how to determine your fridge power needs, which power station is best for power outages, and other useful information. You’ll also learn why you should not buy these on Amazon.
Note: even though I don’t recommend buying these on Amazon, I still may earn a small amount depending on where you purchase (including Amazon). I have never accepted free or discounted gear or sponsored reviews.
Best Power Station for Fridge
The best power station for a fridge is the Ecoflow Delta 2000W. It can be expanded up to 4000W or 6000W with extra batteries.
Many factors impact the size, including your family’s size, risk tolerance, and if you will be using solar panels.
[Related: Read about the best LiFePO4 power stations in 2023]
Power stations are a major purchase, and you should buy from a reputable brand, like EcoFlow, Anker, Jackery, or Bluetti.
Before I provide a list of additional fridge power stations from other reputable brands (jump to that section), I wanted to provide more context so you can make the best decision, including how a refrigerator can run on a power station.
Will a Power Station Run a Refrigerator?
Yes, a portable power station, referred to as a solar generator, can run a refrigerator.
However, you must have a large power station to handle your fridge. Typically, anything above a 1000W power station can handle a standard fridge, but you will want to verify it with your exact fridge and power station.
Fridges often have a surge of power used when first plugging them. A fridge that typically runs at 70W on average could spike up to 300W when powering it.
How a Fridge Consumes Power
Your fridge operates on a cycle driven by a compressor. The compressor runs to cool the fridge and then relaxes until a sensor determines it should run again.
When the compressor turns on, it will increase power usage. Your power station must handle that surge (any power station in the 2000W and above range can, just don’t try to use a small Jackery 240 or something similar).
Once the fridge reaches its desired temperature, the compressor turns off and consumes less power.
This calculates how much power you need for your fridge, an estimate more than an exact science unless you have the gear to measure it.
Other Factors in Determining the Right Power Station
All measurements given by manufacturers of fridge power consumption are based on estimates. However, given your specific situation, power consumption could be meaningfully different.
Temperature
The ambient temperature around the fridge will impact how often the compressor turns on to cool it.
If you lose power on a 105-degree Fahrenheit day, your fridge will be drawing more power if you lost power during a winter snowstorm. Think about the most likely time you’ll lose power and plan for that.
The Size and Model of Your Fridge Impacts Power
The larger your fridge (and freezer), the larger the power station you’ll need to power it for a meaningful time.
You can Google your refrigerator online and look for the energy usage. It’s likely given in a per kWh/yr.
An old school top-freezer refrigerator design will consume less than side-by-side.
Most refrigerators will consume between 350 kWh/yr to 800 kWh/yr.
For reference, most power stations for refrigerators have a capacity of 2kW (2,000W) to 4kW (4,000W). And I know I’m simplifying it, but that would mean a fridge typically consumes 40 to 90 watts per hour on average. In reality, the usage will be 120 to 270 while the compressor runs and then a small amount when idle.
So, if you want to run your fridge for 24 hours, you’ll want a power station battery with 960 to 2,160 watts.
Note: these power stations use an inverter for the AC wall plug, so they are about 85% efficient (ie: a 2000W battery is really ~1,700W of useable power.
How Long Do You Need?
According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, a fridge can keep food cold for 4 hours unopened, and a full freezer can keep food cold for 48 hours (less if half empty).
In emergencies, I would not count on power being restored that quickly. In the Midwest, being without power for more than 24 hours was rare. However, if our power did go out, it seemed to take at least 4 to 8 hours to get back online depending on the storm.
I also lived in California and really hot summers can cause blackouts along with storms and other issues. If any natural disaster happens in the summer, you’ll want a power station backup system not only for your fridge, but other essentials.
If you are anticipating storms, you can buy dry ice and fill a cooler for backup if you are without power for longer than your power station lasts.
Frequency of Use and Fullness of Fridge
To consume less power and rely on a smaller power station, you will want to keep the doors of the fridge closed as often as possible. Anytime you open the door to grab something, it will require more power to cool down.
In addition, if your freezer is half-empty, it will require more power to cool.
Power Stations for Refrigerators: Buyers Guide
A power station is a huge investment in peace of mind and potentially safety. You should purchase from a reputable brand.
A brand that has a real website, a real return policy, and real support.
Do NOT buy a power station of this size on Amazon.
Because these are large lithium batteries, Amazon does not allow them to be returned through Amazon.
In addition, anyone can import these from Alibaba, throw a new brand name on the listing, and sell them to you without any testing or regulation. If the price is too good to be true, it probably is doing something to cut corners.
Frequently Asked Questions
I scanned reddit for some of the most common questions on power stations and refrigerators.
What size power station do I need for a refrigerator?
A 2000W power station is a great size for a refrigerator. Some will opt with smaller, and some will go up to a 3000W or even 4000W power station for full home backups.
Can a battery pack run a fridge?
Large battery packs can run a fridge, but you will want one that is at least 1000W or larger in most circumstances.
This question comes up a lot, and I’m never certain if “battery pack” means a small power bank or a large portable power station. If you got here from Google, scroll above and read 🙂
Can a Bluetti Run a Refrigerator?
Yes, a Bluetti can run a refrigerator. I recommend the Bluetti AC200Max or larger.
