Jackery portable power stations are great devices that can provide you with reliable and green power for your outdoor adventures, home backup, and off-grid living. They have multiple outputs and inputs to charge your devices and appliances, and they can be recharged by wall outlets, car cigarette lighters, or solar panels.
But what if you want to use your Jackery portable power station while it’s charging? Can you do that? Is there a feature called pass through charging that allows you to do that? In this quick guide, we will answer these questions and explain what pass through charging is and whether Jackery portable power stations support it or not.
Pass through charging is a feature that allows some power banks to charge themselves and other devices simultaneously. Jackery portable power stations do not support pass through charging. You cannot use your Jackery portable power station while it’s charging. You can only use the outputs when the battery is charged.
What Is Pass Through Charging?
Pass through charging is a feature that allows some power banks to charge themselves and other devices at the same time. For example, if you have a power bank with pass through charging, you can plug it into a wall outlet and charge it, while also plugging your phone or tablet into the power bank and charge them as well.
Pass through charging can be convenient and useful in some situations, such as when you have limited access to power sources or when you want to save time and space. However, pass through charging also has some drawbacks and risks, such as:
- Reducing the battery life: Pass through charging can cause more heat and stress on the battery cells, which can reduce their lifespan and capacity over time.
- Slowing down the charging speed: Pass through charging can divide the input current between the battery and the devices, which can slow down the charging speed for both of them.
- Causing safety hazards: Pass through charging can increase the risk of overheating, overcharging, or short-circuiting, which can damage the devices or cause fire hazards.
Do Jackery Portable Power Stations Support Pass Through Charging?
No, Jackery portable power stations do not support pass through charging. You cannot use your Jackery portable power station while it’s charging. You can only use the outputs when the battery is charged.
This is because the charging inputs on Jackery portable power stations are only designed to charge the battery, not to power the outputs. The outputs are powered by the inverter, which uses the battery power. There is no direct connection between the inputs and the outputs.
This design has some advantages, such as:
- Preserving the battery life: By avoiding pass through charging, Jackery portable power stations can protect their batteries from excessive heat and stress, which can extend their lifespan and capacity.
- Maximizing the output power: By using the inverter to power the outputs, Jackery portable power stations can provide pure sine wave AC power, which is more stable and compatible with most devices and appliances.
- Ensuring safety: By separating the inputs and the outputs, Jackery portable power stations can prevent any potential risks of overheating, overcharging, or short-circuiting that may occur with pass through charging.
How To Use Your Jackery Portable Power Station While It’s Charging?
If you want to use your Jackery portable power station while it’s charging, there is a workaround that you can try. However, this workaround may not work for all models or situations, and it may have some limitations or risks. Therefore, we do not recommend doing this unless you really have to.
The workaround is to use a device called a transfer switch or an uninterruptible power supply (UPS). A transfer switch or a UPS is a device that can automatically switch between two power sources: one primary source (such as a wall outlet) and one backup source (such as a battery). A transfer switch or a UPS can provide continuous power to your devices without interruption when one source fails or changes.
To use this workaround, you need to connect your Jackery portable power station to a transfer switch or a UPS as the backup source. Then, you need to connect your devices or appliances to the transfer switch or the UPS as well. Finally, you need to connect the transfer switch or the UPS to a wall outlet as the primary source.
When you do this, your devices or appliances will be powered by the wall outlet directly through the transfer switch or the UPS. At the same time, your Jackery portable power station will be charged by the wall outlet indirectly through the transfer switch or the UPS. If there is a power outage or interruption from the wall outlet, your devices or appliances will be powered by your Jackery portable power station automatically through the transfer switch or the UPS.
However, this workaround has some drawbacks and risks as well, such as:
- Costing more money: A transfer switch or a UPS is an additional device that you need to buy and install, which can cost you more money and space.
- Losing some efficiency: A transfer switch or a UPS can cause some power loss or conversion loss when switching between the power sources, which can reduce the efficiency and performance of your devices or appliances.
- Voiding the warranty: A transfer switch or a UPS is not an official accessory or product from Jackery, and using it with your Jackery portable power station may void the warranty or cause damage to your devices or appliances.
Conclusion
Jackery portable power stations are great devices that can provide you with reliable and green power for your outdoor adventures, home backup, and off-grid living. They have multiple outputs and inputs to charge your devices and appliances, and they can be recharged by wall outlets, car cigarette lighters, or solar panels.
But what if you want to use your Jackery portable power station while it’s charging? Can you do that? Is there a feature called pass through charging that allows you to do that? The answer is no. Jackery portable power stations do not support pass through charging. You cannot use your Jackery portable power station while it’s charging. You can only use the outputs when the battery is charged.
Pass through charging is a feature that allows some power banks to charge themselves and other devices simultaneously. However, pass through charging also has some drawbacks and risks, such as reducing the battery life, slowing down the charging speed, and causing safety hazards.
If you want to use your Jackery portable power station while it’s charging, there is a workaround that you can try. However, this workaround may not work for all models or situations, and it may have some limitations or risks as well. Therefore, we do not recommend doing this unless you really have to.
The workaround is to use a device called a transfer switch or an uninterruptible power supply (UPS). A transfer switch or a UPS is a device that can automatically switch between two power sources: one primary source (such as a wall outlet) and one backup source (such as a battery). A transfer switch or a UPS can provide continuous power to your devices without interruption when one source fails or changes.
To use this workaround, you need to connect your Jackery portable power station to a transfer switch or a UPS as the backup source. Then, you need to connect your devices or appliances to the transfer switch or the UPS as well. Finally, you need to connect the transfer switch or the UPS to a wall outlet as the primary source.
When you do this, your devices or appliances will be powered by the wall outlet directly through the transfer switch or the UPS. At the same time, your Jackery portable power station will be charged by the wall outlet indirectly through the transfer switch or the UPS. If there is a power outage or interruption from the wall outlet, your devices or appliances will be powered by your Jackery portable power station automatically through the transfer switch or the UPS.
However, this workaround has some drawbacks and risks as well, such as costing more money, losing some efficiency, and voiding the warranty.
We hope this quick guide has helped you understand what pass through charging is and whether Jackery portable power stations support it or not. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to contact us. Thank you for choosing Jackery.
