POWER STATIONS

For some folks, the advantages of portable power stations make them an ideal choice.

- BRADLEY FORD

WITH WEATHER-RELATED POWER outages on the rise, more people are looking for ways to survive blackouts. Whether it's saving the food in the freezer, keeping connected to the rest of the world, or surviving intense heat or biting cold, finding a way to keep devices and equipment on when the power grid goes down has become a major concern. According to Climate Central.org, weather-related power outages increased 78 percent during the period from 2011 to 2021, over the previous 10 years. Portable generators have typically been the answer when it comes to disaster preparedness. However, in the past few years, portable power stations have quietly, both figuratively and literally, become a popular solution when the lights go out.

While generators may be an economical way to get through power outages, they're often not a viable option for apartment and condominium dwellers in an urban environment. For safety, generators should be set at least 20 feet from a house-that's hard to do if you don't have a yard. Portable power stations can be charged up and stored inside your home to run essential devices.

The advantages of power stations are significant. Being able to use one inside your home is a big one. That's because they don't burn fuel to operate, so they also don't create noise or exhaust gases. And, since they don't use gasoline, all the issues that go along with stale fuel won't pop up when you eventually need emergency power. Plus, being portable, they can be used for a lot of other things like camping and tailgating-you don't need to be an apartment dweller to find power stations useful.