Page 47 - Silver Lakes_Issue 9_2022
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Photo by Vije Vijendra nath on Unsplash  Start  with  the  outdoors.  Solar  lights   stock of everything you need to power and
                                                                                  consider  a  combination  of  gas  and  solar
                                             that  soak  up  the  sun  in  your  garden  are
                                             affordable and readily available at garden
                                                                                  energy if you’re on a budget.
                                             centres and DIY retailers. You can also use
                                                                                  5. Go camping
                                             a  touch  of  solar  power  to  keep  your  TV,
                                                                                  Even  if  roughing  it  isn’t  really  for  you,
                                             computer, cell phone and a light or two on
                                                                                  camping gear can be pretty helpful during
                                             using a small UPS.
                                                                                  power  outages.  Portable  power  stations  –
                                             These  vary  in  size  and  cost.  For  a  small,
                                                                                  like  the  Jackery  Explorer  250,  for  example
                                                                                  smartphone,  tablet,  computer  and  small
                                             on loot.co.za), you’re in for around R1 300.
                                                                                  appliances. And there’s no installation of any
                                             This type of unit is good enough for light
                                             but won’t power major appliances. Around
                                                                                  kind needed because all the power points
        working  day  or  quiet  evening  at  home,   solar-powered 84W/h kit from Ellies (found   –  carry  enough  power  to  charge  your
        you don’t need to sell a kidney to power   R700 - R800 more will get you a similar unit   you need are on board. You can pick one up
        them.                                with enough juice to charge your laptop.  at a camping store for between R6 000 and
                                                                                  R7 000.
        If you work on a modern laptop, you’ll get   For around R3 000 (Takealot), you can get a
        between  one-and-a-half  to  four  hours’   TG 1500 W sine wave inverter, which can be
        battery life, depending on the brand and   charged via mains or solar panels and will
        battery  capacity.  If  you’re  at  the  higher   power bigger appliances.
        end of that scale, you’ve probably found
        that  your  laptop  generally  outlasts  load   4. Got gas?
        shedding,  which  usually  lasts  between   Gas  appliances  are  relatively  affordable
        two and four hours at a time.        and  come  in  many  shapes  and  sizes.  You
                                             can  pick  up  a  two-plate  gas  burner  stove
        While your laptop can power itself, your   for under R400 at most major retailers for
        Wi-Fi router can’t. But if all you need is   basic cooking purposes. Gas lighting is also   LED  lanterns,  also  available  at  most
        light, a laptop and an internet connection,   affordable  and  easy  to  set  up.  You’ll  find   reputable  camping  shops,  are  excellent
        just  switch  on  your  rechargeable  globe,   loads of options online or in camping shops.   light sources powered by lithium batteries.
        make sure your laptop charges when the                                    Certain brands also come with built-in USB
        power is on and add an affordable mini-  If  you  want  to  take  it  one  step  further,   ports, which are handy for charging your
        UPS or inverter into the mix to run your   consult  an  expert  to  see  which  of  your   cell phone. And most LED lights are easy
        router.                              appliances can be converted to gas. Certain   to charge via USB or, in some cases, they
                                             fridges  and  geysers,  for  example,  can  run   come with optional solar attachments.
        Small  UPS  units,  made  exclusively  to   on  gas.  It  might  be  worthwhile  to  take
        power internet connections, range in price                                Let the light shine
        from around R700 to R2 000, depending                                     Besides being vocal about our discontent
        on  their  capacity.  And  they’re  available                             with  load  shedding,  we  South  Africans
        from most tech specialist retailers.                                      are  also  known  for  our  resilience  and
                                                                                  resourcefulness.  With  those  attributes
        3. Small-scale solar                                                      driving  us  to  find  simple  solutions  to
        A  solar-powered  geyser  is  a  great  start.                            complicated  problems,  we  can  equip
        Getting  one  installed  will  probably  cost                             ourselves  to  set  aside  the  annoyance
        you between R15 000 and R20 000. But                                      and  take  back  the  power  (no,  that’s  not
        you don’t need to go quite so large to take                               a  metaphor)!  Ultimately,  it’s  the  little
        advantage of solar power. You can do it in                                investments we make that will get us
        smaller ways.                                                             through these power cuts.


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