Eskom???

[kahoel117]

With the price of electricity rising again and probably for the next 5 years, its hard to swallow.

If you're paying R1000 for electricity today, you can be sure that in 5 years you'll be paying double for the same amount of electricity.

"Stealing electricity" is also a grey area. Since it depends on who steals the electricity. In Cape Town the price of electricity is high. You can pay R1.10 / KWH in one area and then R1.40 / KWH in another. Also if you get you're electricity from Eskom directly you pay cheaper then if you buying it through the the Municipality.

Add to that , the price of renewable energy sources is high aswell. Be it solar panels, solar water heating and the like. But i guess worth it in the long run and the rebate you get from buying it.

[ians]

Just remember, there is electrical test equipment which can trace cables routes without digging up the cable. You are more likely to get caught by someone pimping on you than the municipality catching you out. Unfortunatley i could never do it, being an electrician.

[wynn]

So far the consensus is:-
It is still not feasable to do the whole nine yards yet!! the tipping point is sometime in the future??

but!!

1 change to gas for cooking (two plate gas cooker with 9kg cylinder, not necessarily oven)
2 change to led when a light fitting needs replacing.
3 change to solar when a geyser packs up.
4 insulate what you can when you can, lagg pipes, insulate ceilings? (geyser blanket not necessary on newish geyser)
5 switch off 'Zombie Appliance Standby'.
6 install Jojo tanks when you can afford them.

Have I missed a few??

[kahoel117]

Just a matter of time before the LED lamps gets cheaper. Still expensive for higher wattage ones.

Braai more. You're outdoors and save electricity. I heard about the "power factor correction unit" that you install in your DB . though not sure if it makes a big difference.
All i know about it , is it brings your power factor closer to 1 and you only pay for the actual power you use. mostly applicable to appliances that has motors i think. interresting.

[ians]

At R40 for a bag of charcol, i will stick with my gas thanks, instant, no waiting period, smoke, and when you done, just switch off. People say the braai taste better, cob works for me and only uses 3 pieces of charcol to cook a lamb roast, best i have tasted and juicy.

[ians]

Just a matter of time before the LED lamps gets cheaper. Still expensive for higher wattage ones.

Braai more. You're outdoors and save electricity. I heard about the "power factor correction unit" that you install in your DB . though not sure if it makes a big difference.
All i know about it , is it brings your power factor closer to 1 and you only pay for the actual power you use. mostly applicable to appliances that has motors i think. interresting.

Power factor correction...Dont even go down that road, unless you have had a load study done by a "reputable company" (capacitor technologies, dudley stevens comes to mind) and you are aware of exactly how much money you are going to save, beware. This is a field that has also been invaded by people out to make a quick buc, like when load shedding came about, every man and his dog was selling and installing generators, by the container load. There are companies which offer to install the equipment free but take a percentage of the savings, i am not gona say anymore, before i get sued.

[SilverNodashi]

So far the consensus is:-
It is still not feasable to do the whole nine yards yet!! the tipping point is sometime in the future??

but!!

1 change to gas for cooking (two plate gas cooker with 9kg cylinder, not necessarily oven)
2 change to led when a light fitting needs replacing.
3 change to solar when a geyser packs up.
4 insulate what you can when you can, lagg pipes, insulate ceilings? (geyser blanket not necessary on newish geyser)
5 switch off 'Zombie Appliance Standby'.
6 install Jojo tanks when you can afford them.

Have I missed a few??

As matter of interest, how will a Jojo tank help with energy saving?

And, w.r.t LED lights, do you replace them with 220V ones, or 12V with a transformer ?

[wynn]

Jojo tanks save water costs as well as power saving which reduce your municipal account.
It is ESKOM now but safe fresh drinking water is going to be a problem in the future!!

Interesting that Grahamstown is experiencing polluted water, not just from the recent floods but for a while now, a Jojo would be a Godsend for them right now.

[SilverNodashi]

Jojo tanks save water costs as well as power saving which reduce your municipal account.
It is ESKOM now but safe fresh drinking water is going to be a problem in the future!!

Interesting that Grahamstown is experiencing polluted water, not just from the recent floods but for a while now, a Jojo would be a Godsend for them right now.

how does storing water in a tank reduce eskom costs?
Even if you use a borehole to pump water from the ground, you'll still use electricity to pump it into the tank.


Saving fresh water for a "rainy day" (no pun intended) is a different story but won't save on your electricity bill. And water can only be stored for a certain amount of time before it goes bad in any case

Or is there something else which I'm missing?

[ians]

The only way you save is if your tanks are higher than your property, as mentioned pumping the water is more expensive than the cost of municipal water. The only way you will save is the sewage levy charged per litre of water you consume and if the water is gravity fed from the storage tanks.

LEd lamps are very expensive, yes they do tell you they will last xxx hours, maybe in another country, as soon as you try replace these lamps they tell you the power is too dirtyin this country and there must have been a surge in the power. Unless you have a fluke 435 setup and recording spikes on your electrical supply you got leg to stand on, just pay.