With load-shedding being a non-issue in recent months, we reconfigured our small home solar power system to prioritise savings over backup availability. The results are fantastic.
In late March 2024, we installed six solar panels with a peak output of 3.3kW, a 5kW hybrid inverter, and a 5.12kWh battery at our 3-bedroom townhouse in Pretoria.
That included a top-up to around 50% charge between 02:00 and 05:00 to ensure that we would have backup power capacity for the early morning routine if load-shedding kicked in. However, we figured sparing that 10% capacity each day over the long term would help the battery last longer. During June 2024, we consumed around 321.94kWh of energy, over 91% of which came either directly from the solar panels or the energy stored in the battery, produced only by solar power.
The remaining grid consumption was primarily for a handful of periods early in the morning, when we sometimes made extensive use of an 800W electric heater or turned on the geyser for about half an hour if we consumed water at above-average levels in the previous afternoon or evening. Deducting the R920.25 savings means that we were paying roughly R1,115.31 per month for the benefit of having backup power during the previous municipal financial year.
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