Can you plug an oxygen concentrator into a van? DC outlets, inverters, and battery time on a ride

Can a portable concentrator run from the van’s outlet?

Yes. Portable oxygen concentrators ship with a DC power cord made for a vehicle’s 12-volt outlet, and the makers’ manuals give the conditions for using it. The same cord keeps a rider’s portable oxygen running on a long ride. Two current examples show what the manuals ask for.

• Inogen Rove 6. The DC input is 13.5 to 15.0 volts at 100 watts. Inogen says the car’s power socket must be fused for at least 15 amps, because a socket that cannot carry the load may blow its fuse or be damaged. It also says the socket has to be clean and the plug has to fit, or the connection may overheat.
• CAIRE FreeStyle Comfort. The DC input is 11 to 18 volts at up to 10 amps. CAIRE says not to connect external power unless the battery pack is installed, and to keep the 12-volt outlet free of debris with the plug seated.

Both makers also say the cord’s metal tip and the DC supply get hot in use, so a rider should let them cool before touching them. Inogen adds that nothing should be driven over, dragged across or set on the cord, since damage can cut power to the unit. In a wheelchair van, that means keeping the cord out of the path of the chair’s wheels and the ramp.

Does the engine have to be running?

Yes. Both makers tell the rider to start the vehicle before connecting the DC cord, and a concentrator left on a parked van’s outlet can run the battery down. Their wording differs in the details:

• Inogen says to ensure the engine is running before plugging the DC cord into the outlet, because operating the device without the engine running may drain the vehicle’s battery. It also says never to jump-start the vehicle with the cord connected, since voltage spikes can shut down or damage the device.
• CAIRE says plugging into a 12-volt outlet can deplete the vehicle’s battery if the engine is not running, even if the concentrator is turned off. It says not to leave the unit plugged in with the ignition off, and to disconnect it and take it out when the vehicle is turned off.

The scale of the load explains the warning. Ford, for one, tells upfitters that everything connected to the battery with the key off should draw no more than 28 milliamps in total, a limit the battery drain guide explains. A Rove 6 on DC power draws up to 100 watts, which at 12 volts is about 8 amps, roughly 300 times that limit. A van that is turned off at the curb should not be feeding a concentrator.

The practical plan for a ride with a long appointment is to run the concentrator on its own battery during the wait and plug it in once the engine is running for the trip home. Both units recharge their battery while on DC power. Recharge times are long, though: Inogen lists up to 3 hours for the Rove 6 standard battery and 4 hours for the extended one, and CAIRE lists 3.5 hours for the FreeStyle Comfort single battery and 6 hours for the double. A 40-minute drive cannot refill a drained pack.

Can a home concentrator run in a van?

No, not from a 12-volt socket. The two home concentrators below are built for AC wall power and draw far more than a portable unit:

Dividing watts by volts gives the current a 12-volt supply would have to carry before any conversion loss: about 23 amps for the At Home unit and 50 amps for the NewLife. Inogen asks for a socket fused to at least 15 amps for its 100-watt portable unit, so an inverter plugged into a standard socket is not a workable way to run either home unit.

The home models’ own manuals fit that. Inogen lists use in a home or institution for the At Home unit, and CAIRE describes stationary concentrators like the NewLife as operating wherever an AC power source is available. Neither manual describes vehicle use. A rider who owns only a home concentrator needs a portable unit or cylinders for the ride, which is a matter for the rider’s oxygen supplier.

What about an inverter?

A portable unit does not need one, and neither maker’s manual describes one. Inogen’s Rove 6 and CAIRE’s FreeStyle Comfort each come with an AC adapter for a wall outlet and a DC cord for a vehicle, which is the vehicle power the makers support. Inogen says nothing but the supplied power supply belongs in the device’s power port, and CAIRE bars extensions, splitters and adapters on its DC supply. None of the four manuals mentions an inverter.

The draw figures settle the home units. At 12 volts, 275 watts is about 23 amps and 600 watts is about 50 amps, against the 15 amps Inogen asks of a socket for its 100-watt portable unit. A home concentrator on an inverter is a setup no manual here covers, and a plug-in inverter at a socket sized for the portable unit cannot carry either home model.

If a rider arrives with an inverter and a home unit, treat it as unsupported. Offer the portable unit’s own cord instead, and if the rider has none, ask whether a cylinder or a charged battery can cover the trip.

Booking questions that keep a rider from running dry

A concentrator that stops mid-ride is a booking problem, and a few questions at booking prevent it:

1. Which model is it? The manuals differ. The Rove 6 can run from external power with no battery installed, but CAIRE says not to connect external power to the FreeStyle Comfort without its battery pack.
2. Is the DC cord in the bag? The AC adapter does nothing in a van. Ask whether the rider has the vehicle cord with the unit.
3. Is the battery full at pickup? Ask the rider or family to charge it overnight and bring a spare when the trip runs long.
4. What flow setting is the rider on? Makers’ run times are best cases. The Rove 6’s up to 6 hours 15 minutes is the standard battery at setting 1, and the FreeStyle Comfort single battery lists up to 4 hours at setting 2. The long-distance trip guide has more run times and the cylinder math.
5. How long is the whole trip? Count the drive each way plus the appointment and any wait, and compare it with the battery time at the rider’s setting.
6. Is there a backup? Inogen’s manual makes it the patient’s responsibility to plan a backup oxygen supply when traveling. A cylinder in the bag covers a dead battery or a van that has to shut off.

Heat matters on a summer wait. Both makers list a 41 to 104 degree Fahrenheit operating range, and each says not to leave or store the unit in a hot car. If the van is parked, the concentrator goes with the rider.

The rider connects and runs the device, as the oxygen transport policy sets out. For the matching question about ventilators and trach riders, see the trach and ventilator page.

Matching oxygen riders to vans in HealthRide

In HealthRide you can mark a vehicle as oxygen equipped, and a ride that needs oxygen is matched to a vehicle that has it. Wheelchair, stretcher, and oxygen needs are matched, so the van sent is one that can take the rider. See the fleet page.