Backup performed through its real world first power outage – and it did great.
We are in the midst of our Engineer Testing Phase, with six Backup units currently installed in real world in-home conditions across Milwaukee and Salt Lake City, and 6 more being installed next week. The host homes are a combination of BioLite employees as well as independent users who have an engineering background so they can help us collect detailed feedback on the performance of their unit in addition to administering some specific use cases that enable us to really kick the tires on power requirements, voltage, delivery efficiency, and more.
Backup powering fridges and go-to kitchen appliances
Backup powering an entertainment center
Two backups powering freezer chests in two homes
Backing up a sump pump and radon protection system
We tested a wide range of appliances and confirmed Backup is able to accommodate hungry loads and multi-device plug ins: various refrigerators, large chest freezer, sump pump and radon system, entertainment center, coffee maker, microwave, power boiler, air fryer. Additionally we were able to test pass-through charging (ie running plugged in items with the grid ON), manually switching to draw from Backup (good for load shedding), as well as simulating outages to test switchover efficiency (as well as the real outages, but more on that later).
Everyone operated using our app (currently in Beta Mode) and actionable feedback coming out of this cycle (and we're already implementing) are updates to the App user interface to more clearly show state of charge, mode of operation (charging / discharging / idle, etc) with the accurate source and amounts of power going in and out of the device or bypassing through to a load.
We were also able to test a variety of install options, including simple no-drill “stack and store” as well as wall-mounted solutions (including a masonry wall installation!). Everyone reported easy, straightforward installation, well under our “box-to-backup in 30 minutes” claim.
Let’s talk about that power outage - what happened? How did Backup do?
Two separate power outages related to lightning storms occurred in the Milwaukee area during our testing and, in short - Backup did beautifully!
A refrigerator and sump pump were connected in these instances and both switched over without any noticeable interruption or need for manual interaction. The outages were brief, only 15 minutes, but both demonstrated automatic detection, switchover, and successful power to connected appliances.
In both setups, the wifi routers were not connected to Backup so when the power outage occurred, the router went down, prompting a notification on their phone about loss of connectivity - when power was restored and wifi was back up, Backup automatically reconnected and sent another notification saying AC power and connectivity was restored. This is good! It means the app and system are communicating properly.
**Editors Note: a quick reminder, Backup can talk to your app via wifi OR via bluetooth when you are in close range (the latter not requiring a wifi connection, but requiring proximity.) If you want to be able to maintain real-time feedback and connectivity on your Backup system when away from home, we recommend connecting your wifi router to Backup so it can automatically stay up and running in the event of an outage”
Other noteworthy product progress updates
We’ve begun actual testing of the Backup battery to our UL test standard with a Nationally Recognized Test Lab (NRTL). In earlier updates, we confirmed the detailed registration required of all component parts for testing, now it’s all happening. This independent, 3rd-party rigorously tests our system to validate and confirm we are performing to strict safety standards. This is a major step towards mass production AND it enables us to conduct in-home testing with non-engineers and get out to the broader user community.
