Here’s how to save more energy, and more money

Eskom recently admitted it is working with the National Energy Regulator of South Africa to prepare blackout schedules beyond Stage 8. According to energy experts, that could mean more than 12 hours of loadshedding per day. It also means that the industrial sector will begin to experience the impact of loadshedding on their operations through what is known as load curtailment.

The impact is two-fold for households and businesses:

💰 The cost associated with keeping our homes and businesses running as per usual

⚠ The risk to the integrity of our material assets

Understanding the energy consumption of your appliances is critical in the era of generators, solar, inverters and UPS systems. These products have become an essential part of our daily lives in South Africa – but running them can be an expensive exercise.

This blog series will highlight product comparisons in terms of:

🌿 Energy efficiency

🔋 Inverter compatibility

💲 Cost implications 

Let’s look at the Tumble-dryer facts 🔍

Why is it important to understand the energy consumption of your appliances? Well, because winter is on the way and loadshedding is here to stay. The cost of living is also skyrocketing, both in South Africa and the world over.

Tumble-dryers are used often by South Africans, particularly in humid or wet conditions, like Durban or Cape Town in the Winter, or in smaller apartments where drying laundry outside isn’t an option.

🌿 Energy efficiency – They draw a national average of 3150 Watts per load of laundry. This means its more than double what a washing machine draws per load, and is the equivalent of powering a TV for 30 hours straight. In short, it’s not energy efficient.

🔋 Inverter compatibility – Given the average tumble-dryer’s energy usage, its generally not compatible with inverters and not advisable on solar. An alternative like a dehumidifier works wonders. @Solenco’s MeacoDry Arete range of Dehumidifiers for example draw a minimum of 151 Watts and a maximum of 267 Watts per their 6-hour laundry drying mode, depending on the size you need, making it inverter friendly and compatible for inverter batteries as small as 500kVa.

💲 Cost implications – It costs on average R8,06 per load of laundry in a tumble-dryer. But to power this energy vampire on a battery or solar powered inverter, you’ll be drying out a significant investment where you could be powering a lot more of your home, for much less, or with a much smaller inverter.

The MeacoDry Arete range costs a minimum of R1,55, and a maximum of R2,73 per 6-hour load, tackling laundry and powering more of your home while respecting the integrity of your back up power. That’s as much as an 80% saving per load, when compared to a tumble-dryer.

In the age of solar and battery powered homes, it's time re-assess your home appliances and consider whether they're fit for purpose.

Let’s look at home cooling systems 

Given the frequency of loadshedding, many have had to go without home or office cooling, simply because it draws too much energy, and costs too much to run.

Consumers are opting for fans that are inverter-friendly to keep cool and to provide good air flow and circulation.

Here’s why:

🌿 Energy efficiency

Aircons draw as much as 150 times more energy than fans, drawing 900 watts in average conditions of 26.7°C and relative humidity of 60%.

If you’ve already made the switch, but not considered the energy usage, you could also be using 5 times more energy than necessary. Cheaper fans draw energy in the range of 40 – 50W, where a quality fan, like the standing MeacoFan Pedestal Air Circulator draws 6W.  

💲 Cost implications

It costs you roughly R55 to run an aircon for 24 hours, which is R20k a year. Even If you just ran it every night while you slept, you’d be spending R6.7k a year. Short answer, its expensive.

With that kind of money you could power a MeacoFan for more than 2 years - 24 hours a day.

That’s a 99% saving.

You’ll also save roughly R7000 on your initial purchase.

🔋 Inverter compatibility

Aircons are almost impossible to run on any backup power source, simply because they draw too much power. They’re generally not considered an appliance for your essential load list.

An effective fan, however, can be powered on most small (500kVa) and affordable inverter batteries.

Ditch the aircon, bring in the fans – they’re cheaper, quieter and they circulate air much more efficiently.

Just make sure you choose the right one.