Page 14 - Blue Valley Issue 4_2022

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FIVE TIPS TO GO (partly)

OFF THE GRID IN SOUTH AFRICA

BY JUSTIN KILLOPS

South Africans are finally 1. Rechargeable globes to charge and should provide between two
united as a nation. Perhaps these little gems won’t come as a huge and four hours of light during power outages,
depending on the type of globe you get.
surprise. On the other hand, I only discovered
However, this united front them very recently, and they were an absolute 2. Wi-Fi mini-UPS back-up
revelation. Rechargeable LED globes are
has nothing to do with readily available online or from most reputable Generators and/or inverters with enough
politics, religion, opinion or hardware, DIY and lighting stores, and even in capacity to power your entire home during
some of the bigger supermarket chains.
outages don’t come cheap. But if you consider
allegiance to any particular the essentials for any given working day or quiet
set of beliefs. What These adorable rays of light come with a built- evening at home, you don’t need to sell a kidney
in battery that charges when the power is on.
to power them.
unites us is our universal They generally require between four to six hours
discontent when we hear If you work on a modern laptop, you’ll get
between one-and-a-half to four hours’ battery
the simple words: ‘load- life, depending on the brand and battery
capacity. If you’re at the higher end of that
shedding!’ scale, you’ve probably found that your laptop
generally outlasts load-shedding, which is
usually between two and four hours at a time.
e all face the same collective
annoyance and inconvenience or While your laptop can power itself, your Wi-Fi
Wworse – loss of income, business router can’t. But if all you need is light, a laptop
interruptions and cold, dark, sometimes hungry and an internet connection, just switch on your
nights. We roll our eyes, shake our fists, stub rechargeable globe, make sure your laptop
our toes in the dark and are never really certain charges when the power is on and add an
which stage of load-shedding to expect next. affordable mini-UPS or inverter into the mix to
run your router.
Candlelit dinners are not quite the same when
you aren’t having them by choice. After all, you
can get too much of a good thing. And sadly,
not all of us can afford the (roughly) R250 000
starter kit it takes to move a modestly-sized
home entirely off the grid.
It’s not all bad news, though. With a few small,
relatively inexpensive touches added to your
home, you can dial down the disruptions Image by Kendall Ruth Image by Dreamlike Street
brought about by our ailing power utility. Here
are five tips to beat load-shedding without
breaking the bank.

12 • Issue 4 2022 • BLUE VALLEY NEWS