What Is Electric Bounce Houses? (Do Bounce Houses Need Electricity?)

When we say electric bounce house, we mean bounce houses that require electricity to inflate. All bounces have blowers with which air is pumped into the unit.

Electricity for your bounce house can come from the main power source around or by a generator. The former is best if you inflate your bounce house close to a socket or have the right length of an extension cord.

Generators are used for inflating bounce houses if the unit is to be set up is far from the main power source. Generators are expensive and require to be maintained, and they can be pretty noisy too, but by and large, they still get the job done.

Is a Bounce House A Good Investment?

A Bounce house is a great investment even if you are buying one for your home because it saves you lots of money you would spend on renting one.

If you are setting up a bounce house rental, then be ready to make lots of bucks because the return on investment is high because these days, there are hardly any parties for kids that you don’t see bounce houses.

The overhead for starting a bounce house rental is not so much, and the average cost of most bounce house units is $1700 with shipping included, while a combo unit goes for about $2800. You will need a vehicle or trailer for delivery

The price for renting average bounce houses is about $40 per hour, while about $20 per hour for a toddler bounce house.

If you have an inflatable storefront location, you can charge as much as &10 for a child and about $250 for 20 children. Statistics show that you can make as much as $750 weekly if four bounce houses.

Suppose you factor in costs like Cleaning supplies, energy costs, Labor/payroll costs, General Liability, marketing insurance, Repair, and replacement of damaged equipment.

In that case, you will still make a decent income from your bounce house business. So yes, again and again, a bounce house is a good investment.

What Is Electric Bounce House?

Electric bounce houses are bounce houses that get inflated with electricity. The blower which inflates the bounce house needs electricity to pump air into the unit as long as the bounce house is in use.

The best way to put it is a bounce house blower powered by electricity.

How Much Electricity Does A Bounce House Need?

The amount of electricity a bounce house depends on several factors; one of them is the size of the bounce house blower. Most small bounce houses have 1HP, while medium blowers are 1.5HP. Large units like obstacle-course bounce houses have 2 HP.

Research has shown that, on average, small blowers will consume electricity to a tune of $0.14 per hour. The medium blowers will consume #0.17 every hour, while the 2HP blower will consume electricity worth $0.25 per hour. This means that you can budget about $1.34 for electricity for your bounce house for a day.

Can A Generator Run A Bounce House?

A bounce house can run on a generator as long as the generator can carry the electricity load. All bounce houses come with a three-prong plug to connect the generator.

Generators are usually used when there is no access to an electrical outlet or if the main power source is about 50 feet away. If you have a 2000watt generator, it can power almost any size of bounce house blower.

What Generator Do I need For A Bounce House?

Any generator that reads as 2000watt 20 amp power can inflate a bounce house. A generator with a small power might not inflate the bounce house due to surge wastage.

There are different generators that meet the specification above to choose based on other factors. If you have a very big bounce house that will be running for a whole day, you may want to get a bigger generator.

You can decide if you want to buy a generator that can be plugged into an outlet that gets it charged and then used for inflating the bounce house, or do you need one that requires fuel for starting and powering the blower of the bounce house.

The former is your best choice if you are looking for a portable generator that does not require you to buy fuel. These electrical generators do not produce a lot of noise like the fuel-powered generator; the only snag is that you must be willing to part with a few more dollars if you want them.

However, if you are getting a fuel generator, you must ensure that you do not use it in an enclosed space because of the fume it produces (carbon monoxide), which is very poisonous if inhaled for a while.

You must also ensure that kids understand that the blower and generators are not toys to be played with, and so they must steer clear of the place where these appliances are placed.

Can You Unplug A Bounce House?

Bounce houses need to be always plugged in if they are in use; this is because the bounce house blowers need a continuous supply of power to keep working.

All bounce houses have a vent that ensures that the unit is never overinflated, and that is why you have to keep the blower on while the bounce house is in use; this is to replenish the air that is lost through the vent.

So if you unplug a bounce house while using it, you run the risk of getting the unit deflated.

Related Article: How to Find a Leak in A Bounce House?

Do I Need to Plug My Bounce House?

Yes, you need to plug in your bounce house all the time it is in use; many people leave their units plugged in for the whole day even when it is not in use; this is to ensure that they don’t spend those minutes of having to deflate and later inflate the bounce house when they need it.

However, smaller bounce houses are meant for toddlers, used indoors; those units can be inflated and unplugged because they are pretty small and do not have air vents.

How Long Can You Run A Bounce House Blower?

There isn’t any time limit to how long you can run your blower, but we recommend using common sense in this arena.

If you are planning an event and you know that you will be running the inflatable for several hours or all day long, you can plan for small breaks in between.

If you’re planning to run your inflatable all day, you can stop the blower for 10-15 minutes every 4 hours or so to allow the blower to cool down.

Overheating is not common, but there is a breaker built-in to protect the functionality of your blower. If it overheats, the internal breaker on the blower will not turn on for approximately two hours to allow it to cool down completely.

Rather than exhausting the unit itself, overheating is more often caused by external factors such as high heat from the sun. You can minimize this by placing the blower in the shade.

How Long Do Bounce Houses Take To Inflate?

Inflating bounce houses does not take time at all; the real-time spender is setting up the unit; from choosing the right location to fixing the blower and anchoring it well, this can take close to an hour, especially if you are setting up your bounce house for the first time or in a new location.

If you have a proper blower fit for the bounce house you have, it will take about 4 minutes to inflate a unit that is 12 feet. Larger bounce houses about 20 feet will inflate in about 7 minutes.

If you are using a generator, the inflating time might increase slightly, especially if the generator has a lower power capacity than the bounce unit requires.

Suppose you notice that it takes more time than usual for your bounce house to inflate.

In that case, you should check to see if your blower is working properly or if there is a tear in your bounce house because these are two common reasons why people spend more time than usual inflating their inflatables.

How Much Space Do You Need For A Bounce House?

Every bounce house needs an additional 5 feet clearance on all sides; this means that if you have a bounce house whose dimension is 20 × 20 feet, then you need a space of at least 25 × 25 Feet.

This additional room is for safety purposes if a child falls off the bounce house to don’t hurt themselves.

That is why the space surrounding the bounce house must be soft enough to cushion the fall from the bounce house.

Secondly, this space helps ensure that the bounce is safe from any eventuality and that it also helps preserve the unit from getting easily torn.

Conclusion: What Is Electric Bounce Houses?

Bounce household is a lot of fun both for kids and the young at heart, and these bounce houses only work with the help of electricity which powers the blower that inflates them.

You can use a generator to inflate your bounce house if you are putting your bounce house far from a power supply source.

Different generators are used for powering bounce house blowers: some are fuel-driven, while others have to be charged before they can be used. Whichever one you opt for, ensure it is adequate for your bounce house blower.

Helpful Links:

We trust this article helped you learn what Electric Bounce Houses is. You may also want to check out How Much Weight Can A Trampoline Hold.

Thanks for taking the time to read our article, and we hope you find it helpful. Would you mind leaving a comment below if you have any suggestions?

Kindly reach out to people by sharing this post on social media.

If you liked this article, then please follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.