Safety

Fuel generators: carbon monoxide is the deadly risk

• Outdoor use only — always. Fuel generators emit carbon monoxide (CO), which is odorless and can be fatal within minutes. Never run one indoors, in a garage, in an RV bay, in a tent, or on a balcony — even with doors or windows open, and regardless of a CO-shutdown feature.
• Distance and direction. Place a running generator well away from the home or RV and downwind of windows, doors, and vents. CO-shutdown sensors reduce risk but never replace safe placement.
• CO-shutdown is a documented feature, not a license. This index only marks a generator's CO-shutdown as present when official documentation describes an automatic engine shutoff. It is a backstop, not permission to run near enclosed space.

Home connection: transfer switches, never backfeeding

• Never backfeed an outlet. Plugging a generator into a wall outlet to power house circuits ("backfeeding") is dangerous and illegal in most places — it can electrocute utility workers and damage equipment.
• Use a proper transfer switch installed by a licensed electrician to connect any generator to home circuits.
• Battery stations connect through their own outlets or documented EPS/UPS pass-through — check each product's exact wording; "UPS-like" marketing is not a certified online UPS.

Battery power stations

• Indoor-safe by design — sealed batteries emit no fumes, which is the entire reason they are the right tool for apartments and indoor use.
• Not certified medical devices. Several manuals explicitly exclude medical or life-support equipment. Do not assume a station is a medical UPS.
• Follow the manufacturer's temperature, charging, and storage limits; do not modify or open the unit.

RV solar kits

• Follow the install order. Manufacturer install guides specify connection sequence and grounding — for example, connecting the controller to the battery before the panel, and covering panels during wiring. Do not abstract these steps away.
• A kit is not a whole-RV power source. It charges a battery bank; AC loads (and air conditioning especially) require a separately sized battery and inverter. Do not infer A/C capability from panel wattage.

Limits of editorial assumptions

Recommendations on this site read normalized official-source specs; they do not invent real-world figures. This index does not publish "runs your fridge for X hours" or "X days off-grid" claims without an explicit, stated load and assumption basis. Runtime, sizing, and appliance-support decisions depend on your specific loads, sun hours, fuel, and conditions — treat editorial estimates as starting points, never as installation advice or code compliance. See the methodology and editorial standards for the full policy.