Outage guide
Edmonton Power Outages
Where to check and report an outage, why Edmonton loses power, what to do in a winter outage, and how to keep the essentials running next time.
Power out right now?
We are a solar and battery installer, not the utility, and we can’t see outage data. For a live outage, go straight to your wire owner:
- Edmonton outage mapoutages.epcor.com
- EPCOR, 24 hours780-412-4500
- Outside the city (FortisAlberta)310-WIRE (310-9473)
- Downed lineStay at least 10 metres back and call 911
Inside Edmonton the wires belong to EPCOR whichever retailer bills you. St. Albert, Sherwood Park, Spruce Grove, Leduc, Beaumont and most nearby towns are FortisAlberta. Your bill names your wire owner.
The causes
Why Edmonton loses power
Edmonton’s grid is reliable most of the year, which is part of why an outage feels like such a shock. But power outages here are common enough that people search for them more than ten thousand times a month, and in July 2026, a stormy month, that jumped to about forty thousand. On a single Thursday morning that month, four separate outages left more than 7,000 residents without power, and a thunderstorm the next evening brought down trees and lines across the city.
Most outages come from a short list of causes. Storms and wind drop poplar and elm branches across lines; many older neighbourhoods are fed by overhead lines running along the back lanes, right under the trees. Animals, mostly squirrels and birds, get into transformers and substations. Vehicles hit poles. Equipment fails, more often in heat waves and deep cold snaps when the system is working hardest. And sometimes power is switched off on purpose for planned maintenance, with notice.
Newer subdivisions mostly run on underground cables, which storms rarely touch. When an underground cable does fail, though, the fault takes longer to find and fix than a branch on an overhead line.
During an outage
What to do when the power goes out
- Check the outage map first. If your outage is listed, EPCOR already knows. If it isn’t, report it on the 24-hour line.
- In winter, keep the heat in. Close doors to rooms you aren’t using, keep curtains shut at night and gather in one room. A well-insulated house holds its heat for hours, not minutes.
- Watch for frozen pipes in a long cold outage. If the house is dropping toward freezing, let a trickle run from a tap on an outside wall.
- Keep the fridge and freezer closed. A full freezer stays frozen for about two days if you leave it shut, and a fridge keeps food cold for about four hours.
- Unplug sensitive electronics. Power can return with a surge. Leave one light switched on so you know when it is back.
- Never run a generator, barbecue or camp heater indoors, in a garage or near a window. Carbon monoxide kills, and a winter outage is when people take this risk.
- Don’t backfeed your house. Plugging a generator into a wall outlet can send power up the line and injure crews. Use a transfer switch or interlock installed by an electrician.
- Stay away from downed lines. Assume every fallen line is live. Keep at least 10 metres back and call 911.
How long do outages last?
Most Edmonton outages are restored within a few hours, and many within an hour. Big storms, underground cable faults and damage that crews can’t safely reach take longer. EPCOR’s outage map gives an estimated restoration time for each outage and updates it as crews learn more. Homes on rural lines outside the city, on FortisAlberta or rural networks, tend to wait longer after a storm than homes in town.
If your household can’t go more than a few hours without power, because of a sump pump in spring, a furnace in January, medical equipment or a home business, it is worth planning backup rather than hoping for a short outage.
What actually needs to stay on
Backing up a whole house is expensive and rarely necessary. In an Edmonton home the list that matters is usually short:
- Furnace blower and controls. A gas furnace burns gas but needs a few hundred watts of electricity to run. Without it, there is no heat.
- Sump pump. Most important during spring melt and summer storms, exactly when outages are likely.
- Fridge and freezer. Low draw, high value.
- Internet, phone charging and a few lights. Tiny loads that make an outage manageable.
- Medical equipment, if anyone in the home relies on it.
Backup options
Generator, battery or solar plus battery?
There is no single right answer. Here is how the options compare for an Edmonton home that wants the essentials covered.
| Option | Typical cost | Starts by itself? | Noise & fuel | Good for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portable generator + interlock | $1,500 – $4,000 | No, you start and connect it | Loud; gasoline stored and refilled | Occasional short outages, tight budgets |
| Standby generator | $10,000 – $20,000 | Yes | Runs on natural gas, regular servicing | Long outages, whole-home loads |
| Home battery | $13,000 – $18,000 (essentials) | Yes, instantly | Silent, no fuel | Typical outages of a few hours to a day |
| Solar + battery | Battery cost + solar system | Yes, instantly | Silent; panels recharge it daily | Lower bills and backup from one system |
Typical installed ranges for Edmonton homes, October 2026. Generator costs depend on size, fuel connection and transfer equipment. Battery prices are before any program support; none is currently available in Alberta.
Why your solar panels go dark in an outage
This surprises people every summer: a standard grid-tied solar system switches off when the grid goes down, even at noon on a sunny day. It is a safety rule. The inverter must stop sending power the moment the grid disappears, so it never energises a line that crews think is dead.
A battery changes that. With a hybrid or battery inverter and an automatic transfer switch, the house separates from the grid by itself and keeps the backed-up circuits running. During the day the panels recharge the battery, so a solar-plus-battery home can ride through a long summer outage. In winter, when the panels make little, the battery’s stored capacity is what carries you.
If you already have solar, a battery can usually be added without replacing what works. Home battery backup
Questions
Power outage questions
Why is the power out in my area right now?
EPCOR’s outage map shows the cause once crews know it. In Edmonton the usual causes are storms and wind bringing branches down on lines, animals getting into equipment, vehicles hitting poles, equipment failing in heat waves or cold snaps, and planned maintenance. One fault on a feeder can take out thousands of homes at once.
How do I check a power outage in Edmonton?
Use EPCOR’s outage map at outages.epcor.com. It lists current outages with the number of customers affected and, where known, the cause and an estimated restoration time. To report an outage or a hazard, call EPCOR’s 24-hour line at 780-412-4500. Outside the city, most towns are served by FortisAlberta: call 310-WIRE (310-9473).
How long does it take EPCOR to restore power?
Most outages are restored within a few hours, and many in under an hour. Storm damage, underground cable faults and damage in hard-to-reach places can take longer. The outage map gives an estimate for each outage and updates it as crews learn more.
Will solar panels keep my power on during an outage?
Not on their own. A standard grid-tied system shuts down when the grid does, so it can’t send power onto lines crews are repairing. With a battery and an inverter that can island your home, your chosen circuits switch over by themselves, and the panels recharge the battery during the day.
When the power goes out
Next time, keep the essentials running
We design battery backup around the circuits that matter in an Edmonton home: the furnace blower, sump pump, fridge and internet. Free estimate, no obligation.
Talk to us about backup power.
Tell us what has to stay on and for how long. We will price essential-circuit backup next to whole-home, and tell you honestly whether a generator would serve you better.
250-250-2525Have these ready
- A year of power bills or the “kWh used” line from each. Twelve months tells us more than anything else.
- Your address, so we can check roof direction, pitch and shade on satellite imagery.
- A photo of your electrical panel with the door open. It shows whether an upgrade is needed.
- Plans for an EV, heat pump, hot tub or garage suite, so the system is sized for them.