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Cape Town - When it comes to ideas on how to keep one's chin up even when the lights are down, members of the Fin24 community are certainly no slouches.
Fin24 has been flooded with user responses following a call for load shedding survival tips.
READ: Load shedding survival guide: Time to go old school
Fin24 user Riaan makes no bones about his feelings on the matter. He says: "The government should swallow their pride and admit that they have messed up." He also feels the private sector should be roped in to help find a way out of the energy crisis.
"No matter what colour or creed, appoint experienced people in Eskom. Privatise Eskom if need be," he concludes.
Fin24 user Marie says the real challenge arises when it comes to saving power at night and in winter. She says her household has bought "bright rechargeable lights" so that the children can do their homework.
Help us buy the best energy-saving heating options
She also suggests publishing a reference guide in newspapers "on what the electricity usage is of winter heating tools" such as having one's electric blanket switched on at the different heat settings, and the power used by various types of heaters.
"People will buy heaters, but they may end up buying the one that uses less energy if they know which one it is (oil heater, bar heater, panel against the wall)," says Marie.
She asks: "What happened to the Eskom rebate programme for solar geysers - has it dropped completely off the radar?" She feels "a continuous educational section in the papers about how solar geysers work, also explaining the technical bits in a way that Joe Soap can understand" will go a long way towards helping people understand how things work.
Educational inserts in papers on the latest energy saving innovations can also play a valuable role.
Kirsty-Sian swears by a Wonderbag (a non-electric portable slow cooker): "Not only does it save on cooking costs, but it means that my food is cooking even when the power is off. Furthermore, it is a South African product which means you are helping someone help other South Africans.
Waldo says: "After spending a lot of money on generators over the years since the start of load shedding and eventually upgrading to a more economical to operate but very expensive Yanmar diesel generator... the board of trustees at our estate decided that the use of generators is no longer allowed."
Complexes won't allow 'aesthetically unpleasing' solar panels
He adds that because they are "aesthetically unpleasing", solar panels and geysers on rooftops are also not allowed. He laments: "As a result of these kind of unintelligent decisions made by trustees who make rules for the sake of making rules, load shedding to us is much more of an inconvenience than it should be."
Jon points out that people arrive home after work in the evening "into darkness". He also complains about complexes which do not allow gas stoves, gas cylinders or generators because of noise levels "and the safety hazard fuel on the property creates". The necessity of finding a food outlet able to operate during power cuts in turn drives up household debt: "We PAY for electricity, then we must PAY for gas facilities to cope or PAY for fuel to get to a place to PAY for food. This in turn is creating unnecessary debt, which is why the country's going backwards."
Jon also expresses concern over the plight of business owners in shopping malls which do not have generators. "Does Eskom even know or care about the damage they're causing the businesses operating in complexes such as these? There's really nothing anyone can do during load shedding in situations like this, except sit and waste these hours of their lives away."
TV has become an ornament
As an individual, Jon says he does his utmost to save electricity. His TV has been reduced to the status of an ornament, as he has disconnected his DStv: "I don't possess gaming consoles, so my TV literally never gets used."
He has managed to reduce his power usage from 538 units per kilowatt-hour in February to just 366 units in March, and says the only devices he uses when he is at home in the evening and at weekends are his cellphone and "a lamp with an energy-saving bulb in it".
He concludes: "I don't think I can reduce my energy consumption any more than this, unless I simply trip my mains and consume no electricity whatsoever... I don't know what more to do."
Fin24 user Lynn says: "I use a hand washing machine (like the type used in caravans) for small loads that may need urgent washing."
Billy simply says: "It sucks mate."
Disclaimer: All letters and comments published in MyFin24 have been independently written by members of the Fin24 community. The views are therefore their own and do not necessarily represent those of Fin24.
