Loadshedding to plunge on consumers till Saturday

Eskom has announced it will implement stage 2 load-shedding from 14:00 on Wednesday, until 05:00 on Saturday.

This was due to ongoing insufficient generation capacity and the loss of a unit each at Medupi, Duvha and Kendal power stations on Wednesday morning.

Spokesperson Sikonathi Mantshantsha said two units were also undergoing boiler tube leak repairs. This comes as Eskom’s power system was hit by severe constraints following the failure of five generating units on Tuesday.

The move comes after the company asked businesses and households to reduce their electricity usage.

“The power system is severely constrained. Five generation units at various power stations have failed throughout the day – three over the past two hours.

“A generating unit each at Kusile and Majuba were taken offline to repair boiler tube leaks, while a generating unit each at Kriel, Majuba and Matimba tripped.”

Mantshantsha said the return to service of a generating unit at Kendal and Tutuka was delayed, however, total breakdowns had increased to 16 822MW while planned maintenance was at 4 888MW of capacity.

“Eskom appeals to all South Africans to help by reducing the usage of electricity and to switch off non-essential items.”

He said load shedding was implemented as a last resort to maintain the stability of the power system regardless of the stage of load shedding.

“Eskom would like to apologise for the inconvenience caused by the implementation of load-shedding, and requests the public to reduce the usage of electricity to help us through the constraints.”

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Eskom shared the below tips on how to save energy using kitchen appliances:

Use fridges and freezers smartly:

– Set your fridge at 3ºC.

– Make sure the seals of your fridge and freezer doors are intact.

– Don’t open fridge and freezer doors unnecessarily.

– Place your fridge and freezer somewhere cool – away from sun-facing walls and windows, and as far as possible from the stove.

– Defrost your chest freezer twice a year and your upright freezer three times a year.

– Don’t overfill your fridge or freezer – only use 90% of its capacity.

Use stoves and ovens smartly:

– Keep your oven door closed until the food is done cooking.

– Match pots with stove plate sizes.

– Avoid using your stove for small tasks – like boiling water for tea and coffee.

– Place frozen food in the fridge to defrost – avoid defrosting food in the microwave.

– Use your microwave to cook small to medium amounts of food.

– Use a pressure cooker or slow cooker for food that cooks for a long time – such as stews and casseroles.

Use dishwashers smartly:

– Wait for a full load of crockery and cutlery before you wash.

– Soak or pre-wash is only recommended in cases of burnt or dried -out-food.

– Remove bones and large pieces of food from crockery, pots and pans by scraping it off – not rise it off.

– Understand how your dishwasher works and make sure it is the eco-function.

Use geysers smartly:

– Install your geyser closest to the points in your home where you use hot water.

– Insulate a geyser with a geyser blanket.

– Insulate the first 1.5m of water pipes leading to and from the geyser.

– Do not let hot water run unnecessarily. Always use basin plug in your bathrooms and kitchen.

– Use cold water in your bathrooms for quick tasks like washing your hands or brushing your teeth.

– Use cold water in the kitchen to rinse fruit and vegetables.

Energy-saving tips for lighting:

– Replace incandescent lamps with energy-saving CFLs (compact fluorescent lamps) and LEDs (light-emitting diodes) do the same with your conventional downlights.

Energy-saving tips for swimming pool:

– Keep to two six-hour filtering cycles every 24 hours in summer.

– Make regular pool maintenance a priority – it will contribute to optimising your pool pumps electricity use.

– Clean your pool filter – do so at regular intervals throughout the year; a clean filter is the key to better water flow.

– Brush the floor and walls to remove debris that the filter misses.

– Clean areas with the least circulation at least once a week.

– Keep your pool covered when you use it infrequently in winter – pool covers prevent leaves, dirt and debris from falling into the pool.

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