Free to link, print or cite
Outage Power Planner publishes free calculators, a sourced appliance wattage chart and plain-English outage guides. This page gathers what you can link to, print, cite or download, and who to contact. There is no email sign-up and no paywall.
In short: link to anything on the site, print the checklists and worksheets for your group, and cite the wattage chart with attribution. If you want to change or sell our material, ask first.
Free to share. The printables and the wattage data are free for you to print, hand out, link to and post in a newsletter, club page or classroom, as long as the site name and web address stay on them. No sign-up and no permission needed. Please don't edit the safety lines, and please ask before using them in anything you sell.
What you can do
| You want to | What to do |
|---|---|
| Link to us | Link to any page. A few good targets are listed below. No permission needed. |
| Print and hand out | Print the PDFs below or any page for your group, class, congregation or neighborhood. Keep the site name and web address on the printout. |
| Cite our data | Use the citation format below. The wattage figures are published by Honda, Champion and others; we collect them with sources, so cite us and the original source. |
| Quote in an article | Quote briefly with a link and the date you accessed the page. |
| Reuse in a product, course or paid material | Email us first. |
| Alter safety instructions | Please don't. If you adapt a checklist, keep the safety lines (generator outdoors, more than 20 feet from openings, CO detectors) intact, and remove our name from the adapted version. |
Good pages to link
| Need | Page |
|---|---|
| A sourced list of what appliances draw | Appliance wattage chart |
| "What generator do I need?" | Generator size calculator |
| "How long will a battery last?" | Power station runtime calculator |
| Alabama preparedness | Alabama Power outage checklist |
| Generator safety | Generator carbon monoxide safety |
| Who to call in Alabama | Outage reporting by utility |
| Sleep-apnea machines | CPAP backup power |
Link code
<a href="https://poweroutageplan.com/appliance-wattage-chart/">Appliance wattage chart from Outage Power Planner</a>
How to cite
Wattage chart (web): Outage Power Planner. "Appliance Wattage Chart: Running & Starting Watts." poweroutageplan.com/appliance-wattage-chart/. Accessed [date].
Guide (web): Outage Power Planner. "[Page title]." poweroutageplan.com/guides/[page]/. Last updated [date on page]. Accessed [date].
Note the "last updated" date on the page you cite. Utility phone numbers and similar details change.
Download the data
The wattage chart is available as a spreadsheet file:
- wattage-table.csv: 49 appliances with category, running watts, starting watts, basis, source name, notes and source URL, as of October 31, 2026.
Please keep the source columns and credit Outage Power Planner when you reuse it. Understand these points before you rely on it:
- Values are approximate. The chart says so on its face. A published range is shown in full, and our calculators use the upper end so you don't undersize.
- 43 rows come from manufacturer charts (Honda and Champion). 6 rows, tagged "estimate," come from third-party sites for home-lab equipment. None of the rows are our own measurements.
- Starting watts are the brief surge a motor needs to start, as the manufacturers define them. Our generator calculator offers two methods, standard (running total plus the largest start-minus-run difference) and conservative (running total plus the largest listed starting figure).
- Your appliance's nameplate beats any table.
Offline and no-JavaScript use
The calculators need JavaScript, but the appliance wattage chart is a plain HTML table, so it works in any browser and prints cleanly. The CSV opens in any spreadsheet program, and the PDFs below don't need a connection at all. If you're building a handout for a place with poor internet, use those three.
Printables
These one-page PDFs are made for emergency managers, HOAs, churches, libraries and families. No email is required.
| File | Use |
|---|---|
| Alabama outage checklist (PDF) | Before, during and after an outage; keep it on the fridge |
| Wattage cheat sheet (PDF) | Common appliance watts at a glance |
| Must-run loads worksheet (PDF) | Total your essentials and size a generator or battery |
Each PDF has the web address and the date it was generated. Check the web version for updates before reprinting in bulk.
Embed a printable on your site or newsletter
Copy one of these into your page. Each shows a preview and links to the free PDF. Hosting the preview image yourself is fine too: save the image, upload it, and change the src. Please keep the "Free printable from Outage Power Planner" line so readers know where to get updates.
Alabama outage checklist
<figure style="max-width:306px;margin:0">
<a href="https://poweroutageplan.com/downloads/alabama-outage-checklist.pdf"><img src="https://poweroutageplan.com/assets/img/printables/alabama-outage-checklist.png" width="306" height="396" alt="One-page Alabama power outage checklist: before, during and after an outage"></a>
<figcaption>Free printable from <a href="https://poweroutageplan.com/guides/alabama-power-outage-checklist/">Outage Power Planner</a></figcaption>
</figure>
Appliance wattage cheat sheet
<figure style="max-width:306px;margin:0">
<a href="https://poweroutageplan.com/downloads/wattage-cheat-sheet.pdf"><img src="https://poweroutageplan.com/assets/img/printables/wattage-cheat-sheet.png" width="306" height="396" alt="One-page appliance wattage cheat sheet with running and starting watts"></a>
<figcaption>Free printable from <a href="https://poweroutageplan.com/appliance-wattage-chart/">Outage Power Planner</a></figcaption>
</figure>
Must-run loads worksheet
<figure style="max-width:306px;margin:0">
<a href="https://poweroutageplan.com/downloads/must-run-loads-worksheet.pdf"><img src="https://poweroutageplan.com/assets/img/printables/must-run-loads-worksheet.png" width="306" height="396" alt="One-page worksheet for totaling must-run loads and sizing a generator or battery"></a>
<figcaption>Free printable from <a href="https://poweroutageplan.com/tools/generator-size-calculator/">Outage Power Planner</a></figcaption>
</figure>
Plain-text version for a newsletter: "Free printable outage checklist from Outage Power Planner: https://poweroutageplan.com/guides/alabama-power-outage-checklist/"
Printed copies carry a "generated" date. If you reprint in bulk, check the web version first for updates.
Who writes this
Outage Power Planner is written and maintained by Lawson, an IT professional. He is not a licensed electrician. Nothing here replaces a qualified electrician, the manufacturer's instructions, a medical provider's advice or your utility's guidance. See the About page for background.
How content is checked
Our editorial policy explains the rules. In summary:
- Wattages come from published manufacturer charts and are marked approximate.
- Safety and food-safety statements cite the CDC, FoodSafety.gov, CPSC, Ready.gov, the U.S. Fire Administration or the manufacturer.
- We label estimates and assumptions on the page.
- Content is drafted with AI assistance and checked against the cited sources before publication. The guides are research summaries; we haven't bench-tested the generators, power stations or other equipment they mention.
- The site does not currently carry ads or affiliate links. If that changes, the disclosure page is updated first.
For journalists and reporters
We can speak to how to size a generator or battery for a home outage, the difference between running, starting and average watts, how to read a wattage chart, and how the calculators work. We can't give personalized electrical, medical or safety advice, approve a specific installation, or plan power for life-support equipment.
For interviews, data questions or a quick fact check, email [email protected] with your outlet, topic and deadline. We answer by email.
Quick facts you can use
- Standard generator sizing: total running watts plus the largest single start surge. Conservative: total running watts plus the largest listed starting figure.
- Battery runtime: watt-hours × 0.85 ÷ load in watts (the 85% is a planning assumption).
- A closed refrigerator keeps food safe about 4 hours; a full freezer about 48 hours (FoodSafety.gov).
- Run generators outdoors, more than 20 feet from windows, doors and vents (CDC).
Report an error or suggest a source
If a number, phone number or safety statement is wrong or out of date, email [email protected] with the page, what's wrong and a source. We correct confirmed errors and update the page's modified date. Better sources for a figure in our tables are welcome too.
Ideas for groups that use these materials
- Emergency management and fire departments: link the generator carbon monoxide safety guide in storm-season posts. It cites the CDC and CPSC and doesn't include wiring instructions.
- HOAs and neighborhood groups: print the Alabama checklist for a community board, and share the outage reporting guide so neighbors know which utility to call.
- Churches, senior centers and libraries: hand out the must-run loads worksheet at a preparedness event. People can fill it out in ten minutes, and it works with or without a computer.
- Schools and clubs (including amateur radio and CERT groups): use the calculators for a classroom or club exercise on watts, watt-hours and efficiency.
- Bloggers and newsletters: link the wattage chart whenever a post mentions generator size. Use the citation format above.
If your group wants a version for a specific county or utility, tell us which sources to use.
Short descriptions you can copy
One line: Outage Power Planner offers free calculators, a sourced appliance wattage chart and plain-English guides for planning backup power for home outages.
Short paragraph: Outage Power Planner is an independent, free site that helps households size generators and batteries for power outages. Every wattage in its chart links to a manufacturer source, estimates are labeled, and calculators show their assumptions. It is written by an IT professional who is not an electrician and who has not bench-tested the equipment it discusses, and it points readers to licensed electricians and manufacturer instructions for wiring and medical-device questions.
Corrections log
We list substantive corrections here with the date. No corrections have been logged yet.
Not affiliated
Brand names such as Honda, Champion, EcoFlow and Bluetti appear only to cite published specifications. This site is not affiliated with any manufacturer, with Alabama Power or with any utility.