How Much Electricity Does a Bounce House Use

Bounce houses need blower to be blown up and keep inflatable, or they will be deflated. Bounce house blowers need to be plugged in to be able to continuously blow air.

If you want to run a bounce house, you may wonder how much electricity a bounce house will cost you.

Bounce House Power Requirement

Bounce House Blower Requirement (115 volts)

Size	Blower Power	Ampere	CFM
Small inflatables	3/4 – 1.5 HP	6 – 10 amps	500 – 1000 cfm
Medium inflatables	1 – 2 HP	8 – 12 amps	>= 800 cfm
Large inflatables	2 – 3 HP	10 – 14 amps	>=1500 cfm

CFM is cubic foot per minute (unit: ft^3/m). It means the amount of air is blown every minute. CFM is roughly determined by the power output and pressure of a blower fan. Inflatable bouncy castles are not air-sealed and demand ongoing air flow. Hence, you don’t need to worry about bursting.

For a residential moon bounce and water slide, you’ll need 3/4 to 1.5 HP blower. Small residential bouncers require 500-1000 CFM air flow.

A medium or standard size commercial grade bounce house is 13×13 ft. It requires an air blower of 10 amps and 1-2 horsepower. The blower should have more than 800 CFM ability.

Larger commercial grade inflatable bounce houses, water slides and obstacle courses start from 15×15 ft. They require 2-3 HP blower, and most often 2 or more such blower fans.

You can learn more about electricity and blower in bounce house from this party equipment rental company.

Bounce House Electricity Bill

Let’s assume you are from California. According to Energy Sage, the average electricity rate of CA is 30 cent per kilowatt-hour. 1 kilowatt is equal to 1000 watts.

Let’s assume you are using a 1 horsepower blower for 4 hours a day. 1 mechanical horsepower is about 746 watts.

So, the hour rate of electricity will be (746 / 1000) × 30 = 22.4 cents or 0.224 dollars. The day cost of bounce house electricity will be 0.224 × 4 = 0.9 dollars.

The complete formula for bounce house electricity cost is power × hour rate × hours.

Compared to the rental price of bouncers, I would not worry too much about the electric bills.

Can I Use a Generator for a Bounce House

Yes.

If your party or event locates at somewhere that does not have a power source or outlet, you can use generators to power up the bounce house blowers.

You’ll also need extension cords. Because you need to distance the generator from the inflatable bouncers, in order to keep children safe. Most people recommend at least a distance of 50 ft.

Most inflatable party rental businesses rent generators and extension cords for a fee. Just make sure you have the powerful enough generator to inflate the inflatable jumpers.