Buyer's guide · Power
Storm outages in Britain usually last hours, not weeks. These are the three levels of backup power that actually match that reality — from a pocket bank to a station that runs the fridge.
UK guidance · Last reviewed September 2026
Independently selected for UK households. We may earn a commission if you buy through our links — it never changes what we recommend.
The sensible household default. 20,000mAh covers four to five phone charges, so one bank keeps a family of four contactable through a full-day outage without rationing.
Every option below is one we'd genuinely put in a UK household kit — the difference is budget and how long you need it to last.
The sensible household default. 20,000mAh covers four to five phone charges, so one bank keeps a family of four contactable through a full-day outage without rationing.
The cheapest way to stop being one dead phone away from a problem. Slim enough to live in a grab bag permanently, and about the price of a takeaway.
A mains socket in a box. Runs a router, lamps, a CPAP machine or a fridge for hours, recharges in about an hour, and is safe to use indoors — unlike a generator.
Not sure how much you actually need? Get a readiness score in three minutes.
Work out my kitWork out how many phones the bank has to serve, then multiply by two full charges each. That number decides capacity far more usefully than a vague 'three-day' claim. One 20,000mAh bank serves a typical family; two 10,000mAh banks split between the house and the car serve them better.
USB banks charge phones, tablets, head torches and rechargeable AA kits. Anything with a plug — router, lamp, medical device, fridge — needs a power station with a real mains socket. Most households want the bank first and only add a station if there is a genuine dependency.
Petrol generators produce carbon monoxide and kill people every winter. If you want indoor backup power, it has to be a battery station. Fit a CO alarm near any fuel-burning appliance regardless.
A charged bank in a drawer you can't locate by torchlight is no use. Keep it with your torch, in one known place, and tell everyone in the house where that is.
For one phone through a day-long outage, 10,000mAh is enough — roughly two to three full charges. For a household of three or four sharing one bank, 20,000mAh is the realistic minimum. If you rely on medical equipment, a router or a fridge, you need a mains-output power station rather than a USB bank.
Top it up every three months and always after you use it. Lithium cells self-discharge slowly, and a bank left flat for a year may not hold charge when you finally need it. Set a recurring calendar reminder on the same day you test your smoke alarms.
For most homes, no — a 20,000mAh bank plus a torch covers the common two-to-six hour outage. A power station earns its price if someone in the household depends on powered medical equipment, if you work from home and need the router up, or if you live somewhere with repeated multi-day storm outages.
A 250–300W fridge-freezer will run from a River-class station for several hours because compressors cycle rather than draw continuously. Keeping the door shut matters more: a full freezer holds temperature for around 24 hours unopened, so you often don't need to power it at all.
Solar is a useful top-up in summer but unreliable as your only plan in a British winter. Treat a solar panel as a bonus for multi-day outages, and rely on charging from the mains between events as your primary method.
Join UK households getting practical readiness advice. No spam, no scaremongering.