This year , we ’ ve been hit by more loadshedding that ever before , with 4-hour sessions regular occurrences in many areas . Needless to say , this wreaks havoc with planning and carrying out both work-related and household tasks . Instead of putting your life on hold and becoming more frustrated by the day , why not set yourself up with everything you need to allow life to carry on as usual – even when you are experiencing loadshedding ?
Let ’ s first look at options that keep things running – or at least , keep the essentials running . Here , you have three choices . You can buy a generator , use a battery back-up inverter , or install a hybrid solar system , with the latter being the most expensive of the three .
Generators and inverters
Generators are generally cheaper initially , starting from around R4,000 – R7,000 , and installation is also relatively inexpensive . It is important to consider the fuel costs , given the current petrol price in South Africa , and that generators can produce a lot of noise . On the other hand , battery inverters are more expensive
BUILD ZONE up-front , with the cheapest options costing around R12,000 , and portable solutions starting at around R30,000 , but with no additional running costs .
Hybrid solar system
If you can afford it and the house you live in is your own , the obvious way to go is to invest in a hybrid solar system , so that you can keep your essentials running during loadshedding and save money on electricity . This kind of system consists of batteries , solar panels and a hybrid inverter that controls the energy flow between the grid , solar panels , batteries and electrical loads . It gives you the option of using the batteries or grid as a power source , and will supplement this power with the energy generated from your solar panels .
This option is expensive initially – you ’ re looking at somewhere in the region of R100 000 – R150 000 . Luckily , hybrid solar systems are modular and can be installed in stages , which means you can spread the cost over time . You can start with the inverter and batteries and add solar panels later , or do it the other way around
MARKtoe ! Februarie 2023 69