How many watts does a gas furnace use?

While firing, about 0.5 kWh per therm for a multi-stage ECM furnace and 1.0 kWh per therm for others, from the same Wisconsin study: 300 W or 600 W at 60,000 Btu/h. With the fan alone on, the study measured a median 100 W for ECM blowers and 500 W for PSC blowers. The rating on Goodman's GR9S80 60,000 Btu/h furnace is 7.7 A minimum circuit ampacity at 115 V, about 890 W, an upper bound.

How long will a power station run a furnace?

If the furnace fires half the time, about 6 hours for a 60,000 Btu/h ECM furnace on a 1,070 Wh Jackery Explorer 1000 v2 at an 85% conversion factor, and about 3 hours for a single-stage PSC furnace. Milder weather means less firing and more hours.

Can a power station run a gas furnace?

Q: Can a power station run a gas furnace?

Often, if you can connect it. The gas makes the heat; the station runs the blower, inducer fan and controls. A field study of 31 new Wisconsin furnaces measured a median 0.5 kWh of electricity per therm of gas for multi-stage furnaces with ECM blowers and 1.0 kWh for other furnaces, about 300 W and 600 W while a 60,000 Btu/h furnace fires. Most furnaces are wired in on their own circuit, so a station needs a transfer switch or inlet put in by an electrician.

The gas makes the heat; the station only runs the blower, the inducer fan and the controls. Metered furnaces used about 300 to 600 W while firing at 60,000 Btu/h. The catch is the wiring: most furnaces are hard-wired.

Last updatedOct 18, 2026

Furnace electricityWisconsin field study of 31 furnaces (ACEEE, 2004) and Goodman's GR9S80 spec sheet, read Oct 18, 2026

Your furnace and station

Your furnace

Furnace type

Gas input exampleBtu/h on the furnace's rating plate

Share of time it fires example (percent)The study's furnaces had about twice the capacity needed on a design-cold day, so about half the time then

Electrical rating, amps (A)From the rating plate or spec sheet; Goodman lists minimum circuit ampacity, which errs high

Rated volts (V)

Start-up multiple exampleWhirlpool: motors may need two to three times running amps to start

Station

Power station example

Rated capacity (in watt-hours)From the maker's spec page

AC output, continuous (in watts)

AC surge (start-up) (in watts)Leave blank if the maker doesn't list it

Inverter and conversion efficiency (percent)Jackery's published runtime factor is 0.85

Share of capacity you can use example (percent)Depth of discharge

Station's own idle draw example (in watts)The inverter stays on between heating cycles. BLUETTI gives about 15 W for its AC180

Hours to cover example (hours)Overnight, for example

Result

Most furnaces are wired in on their own circuit, not plugged in; Goodman's sheet says to make the connections to the National Electrical Code. Running one from a station takes a transfer switch or inlet installed by an electrician.

Every station against this furnace

Hours from full at your firing share. Gray rows can't run or start it on paper. The shaded row is the smallest station in our table that runs it for your hours. Prices are what each maker's US store showed on Oct 18, 2026.

Links marked “affiliate link” go through Awin to that maker’s US store (Jackery or BLUETTI); if you buy, the maker may pay us a commission at no cost to you. It never changes the hours, the checks or which row is shaded. Affiliate disclosure.

Every station in our table against this load
Station	Capacity, Wh	Runs it for	AC output, W	Surge, W	Store price	Verdict

What furnaces drew in the field

Watts while firing = kWh per therm × input ÷ 100,000 Btu per therm × 1,000
Furnace type	kWh per therm	40,000 Btu/h	60,000 Btu/h	80,000 Btu/h	100,000 Btu/h	Fan only, median W

Medians from Pigg and Talerico's metering of 31 new Wisconsin furnaces (ACEEE Summer Study, 2004). Multi-stage ECM furnaces spend most of their time at low fire with a slower blower, which is why they use about half the electricity per therm. The study also found ECM furnaces used more than their rating data suggested in real homes, which it put down to higher static pressure in the ducts. Your furnace's age, filter and ductwork change these numbers.

How the hours are worked out

Watts while firing = the study's kWh per therm × your furnace's gas input in therms an hour (input ÷ 100,000 Btu per therm, EIA) × 1,000. Average draw = watts while firing × share of time it fires + the station's idle draw. Hours = capacity × share you can use × efficiency ÷ average draw. The output check uses the furnace's electrical rating, amps × volts, which is higher than what it draws; the start-up check multiplies that by the start-up multiple, at the low end of Whirlpool's range because the rating already errs high (Whirlpool). Sources are on Methods and sources.

Space heater on a station
Why a plug-in heater drains a station in under an hour.
Well pump on a station
The other hard-wired load, and the start-up problem.
Size a station
Plan a whole outage day with the fridge and lights.