Battery Backup

August, 2021

ALS robs you of the breath of life, so us pALS have to rely on respirators to help us breathe. Respirators, which are first cousins to, if not the same as, ventilators and CPAP machines, require electric power to function. Power, however, isn’t a foregone conclusion. There’s ferocious storms that can down power lines and heatwaves that can cause the state to literally run out of electricity. Those of us living in NorCal have to contend with public safety power shutoffs, where PG&E shuts off the juice to prevent its equipment from starting yet another fire. All of these create Zoloft killing anxiety when you need electricity to breathe.

Due to local building codes the only place we could install a permanent generator was in the middle of our patio. Goddess only knows how much destruction would be involved in running the lines from the generator to the house. Drat. A portable generator solution suggested on the utility’s website required pulling a rope to get it going, which for a petite St. Laurel was a nonstarter. Sorry, couldn’t resist.

So it was time to look at a battery solution. Here’s where the medical equipment quagmire got exceedingly thick. We asked our hospice respiratory therapist if he had any suggestions and, having none, turned to our equipment provider who gave the same answer that we had received when we asked them directly. Zilch. Some research turned up a medical grade solution with a cost capacity curve which was not compelling.

So we screamed. St. Laurel contacted dear friend Gordon and I contacted Julie, our ALS Association Golden West Chapter case manager. Gordon hit the electrons out of their orbits with a primer on all our options. I guess designing and installing a siolar system at the family cabin and a backup generator at the family home provides a great deal of instant cred. Julie reached a contact at our equipment provider and found an old school solution. Yes, the very same equipment provider that previously came up with zilch when asked by two separate people. When Big Brother Jim gave a rousing testimonial about the Jackery battery backup that St Laurel had researched, we knew our search was over.

We had essentially three options. First, weighing in at a bit north of $150 is a deep cycle marine battery, an old school solution. Problem is that if the battery is drained, there’s no way to recharge until the power is restored. Heard reports that the battery will run a respirator for between ten and eighteen hours. Second, weighing in at ten times the price, but with both twelve and one hundred twenty volt outputs and solar rechargeability, is the Jackery line of backup batteries. Got the sense the Jackery 1000 could provide the same capacity as Option Uno, but do your own homework here. Third, weighing in at more than ten times Option Two, is a solarized home with a Tesla battery that can charge directly from the solar panels. So we chose Option Two, swayed by the ability to solar recharge if the power outage is extended due to wildfires or the zombie apocalypse.

I hope this helps pALS in our position and makes their backup decision a little easier. As for us, we learned it really does take a village to get the right battery backup.

See you next time.