I recently purchased two third party solar panels for around $150 to feed a small Ecoflow battery. I specifically did not purchase Ecoflow panels because like t

I recently purchased two third party solar panels for around $150 to feed a small Ecoflow battery. I specifically did not purchase Ecoflow panels because like their batteries everything is boutique priced. Based on energy costs, the panels will take years to break even but that's not the point: being able to run a few small appliances - most notably my CPAP machine and a fan - the next time power fails is the point. Plus charging my phone and having somewhere to plug in a light is worth the $300 for a small Ecoflow battery (prime day price.) A modern fridge is ~300 watts/hr, and a small inverter air conditioner can be 300-500 watts. So 800 watts of solar panels won't outstrip your usage and charge the battery while you power those appliances but it's close. Perhaps with judicious use of the battery during the day you can stretch out use overnight? The article cited a 3.6KWh Delta Pro, which is capable of running a small window unit overnight for several hours. Sure, it's nice to run your fridge 24/7, but cooling it down for a couple hours every day and minimizing round trips should be enough to prevent spoilage. To answer your question I think it's the only practical way for an apartment owner to have any backup at all since most likely an actual generator is right out. I can't imagine many apartments being ok with a generator on your balcony merrily generating noise and carbon monoxide along with electricity. Most generator manufacturers recommend 20+ feet from the nearest window! No one has that kind of space on a balcony and I'd argue the balcony door counts as a window.