The short answer
Store it indoors, cool and partly to mostly charged as the maker directs, top it up on a schedule, and run a test with your real loads before storm season. The maker's manual overrules general advice, including ours.
Storage
- Keep it inside the conditioned space where possible; heat shortens battery life and cold limits charging.
- Check the maker's recommended storage charge level and how often to top it up; many specify a periodic recharge for units in storage.
- Keep it away from moisture and out of direct sun, and keep ventilation openings clear.
Test before you need it
- Charge it fully.
- Plug in the loads you plan to run (a refrigerator, a router, lights) and watch the display for real watts.
- Note how long it runs and compare with the calculated runtime on the product page.
- Recharge and practice the connections — solar, car, wall — so you are not learning them in the dark.
Wattstanding calculationMeasured runtime that is well below the calculation usually means a higher real load than the planning value, a cold battery, or an aged battery.
Safety
Use the maker's cables and chargers, stop using a unit that is swollen, hot, damaged or smells of chemicals, and follow the manual's indoor-use and ventilation rules. Wattstanding makes no safety claims about specific products.
Figures marked as Wattstanding calculations show their working; product figures come from the sources on each product page. How we work