Will a battery actually raise your self-consumption?
A battery only lifts self-consumption when it shifts solar into the evening, not when it sits full for load shedding. How to check the real number on your own meter.
System Sizing and Yield
Tutorials for estimating solar array size, yield, battery capacity and inverter power based on South African consumption, roof, irradiation and load profiles.
The kW limit that decides your embedded generation approval
Municipalities cap embedded generation at a share of your connection capacity. Here's how the inverter's AC output, not the panel count, decides approval.
The Inverter Number That Decides If Your Fridge Starts
The continuous rating rarely trips an undersized inverter. The surge number, the seconds behind it, and the battery current limit decide if your fridge starts.
Why a bigger battery barely moves your monthly bill
A battery does not make energy, it moves it. Here is the rands-per-shifted-kWh arithmetic that decides whether a bigger battery can lower your monthly bill.
How A Stage 4 Outage Really Tests Your Battery Bank
Stage 4 means about eight outage hours a day in four blocks. Here is how usable battery capacity, not the nameplate figure, decides what stays on.
That 5 kW Inverter Label Won't Start Your Borehole Pump
Inverter size comes from simultaneous load and motor start-up surge, not panel count. Why a bigger machine can still fail, and what oversizing really costs.
Three limits decide inverter size before you compare quotes
Inverter sizing is the lowest of three ceilings: backup load draw, battery delivery and your supply connection. Work that order before comparing quotes.
Your big battery is only as fast as the inverter charging it
Your battery is only as fast as the inverter charging it. How C-rate, the PV-to-battery path and the winter sun window set your real system limit.
The inverter number your pump actually needs to start
A correctly sized inverter still trips when a borehole or pool pump starts. Match the peak rating and its duration to the motor load you keep on backup.
Why a 5 kWh battery is not five hours of backup power
Backup hours come from the essential load list, not the battery's sticker. How usable energy, depth of discharge and circuit choices set real run time.