So what is a Green Home? A green home is a home which employs environmentally friendly methods in the home. There are a multitude of the things that you can do to convert your home into a green home include:

• Replacing your incandescent light bulbs with LED or CFL energy saving light bulbs
• Using cold water to wash your clothes
• Using cold water to wash your hands
• Keeping the door and windows closed in an air conditioner is on in a room
• Installing a solar geyser in your green home

There is no exact text book description of what a green home is. A green home should rather be seen as a general principle or way of living in your home where you consider the best way to do something taking the environment and your pocket into consideration.

A solar geyser can reduce the carbon footprint and electricity bill of your home substantially.

Get Solar Water Heating can locate an accredited solar geyser supplier in your area and help you to turn your home into a green home.

Solar water heating has been used commercially around the world for more than 50 years. Some countries have even implemented legislation forcing every home to have a solar water heating system. The great advantage of solar water heating is that it can reduce your home’s electrical consumption by up to 50%.

So why install a solar water heating system?

• Reduce your carbon footprint
• Save electricity and save money – save up to 50% of your home’s electricity bill
• Limit your impact on the environment by installing a solar water heating system
• Ensure a constant supply of hot water to your home – less dependent on the national grid
• Improve the value of your home by installing a solar water heating system
• Aesthetically friendly – split solar water heating systems allow for a discreet installation

Complete the contact form under the ‘contact us’ section and Get Solar Water Heating will connect you to the solar water heating provider closest to you.

Almost half of an average home’s electricity consumption is related to heating water. A solar water heating system is capable of saving you more than 80% of the water heating costs, reducing your electrical bill by nearly half.

Solar water heating refers to the use of the energy received from the sun in the form of sunlight and using it to heat water for domestic and/or industrial use. Solar water heating systems generally consist of: solar collector, storage vessel, solar pump, solar pump and some other small bits and pieces.

South Africa has the ideal climate for the use of solar water heating. The annual 24-hour solar radiation average for South Africa is about 220 W/m2 , compared with 150 W/m2 in the USA and about 100 W/m2 for Europe and the UK.

So South Africa is the ideal place to use solar water heating and we can connect you with a solar water heating provider in your area today.

Renewable Energy

Renewable energy is energy produced from a source that is naturally repleniched such as:

• Sunlight
• Wind
• Rain
• Tides
• Geothermal heat

Wind Power

Wind power as the term suggests is power generated from wind or airflow. Air flow can be used to run wind turbines which are used to produce electricity. Most wind turbines produce between 600kW and 5MW of rated power, but the most common wind turbines produce between 1.5 and 3MW of power.

Wind power does however have its issues:

• Wind turbines are huge structures and can be aesthetically unfriendly
• They kill many birds a year
• The wind does not blow all day and all night in many parts of the world and can be unpredictable

Solar Energy

Solar energy refers to the process of converting energy received from the Sun in the form of sunlight into a usable form such as electricity or heat. Solar energy can be converted into electricity using solar photovoltaic panels (also known as PV panels). Solar PV as a technology is advancing but the efficiency of PV panels are still relatively low and costs can be rather high especially on a large scale.

Solar water heating is the process of converting sunlight into heat energy which is used to heat water for use in a variety of applications such as homes, hotels, hostels and factories.

Water Power

Energy in water – in the form of kinetic energy, temperature differences or salinity gradients – can be harnessed and used. Since water is about 800 times denser than air even a small flow or sea swell can yield large amounts of power.

There are may forms of water energy including:

• Hydroelectric energy is a form of alternate energy – a term used to refer to large scale hydroelectric dams
• Micro hydro – small hydroelectric systems which typically produce up to 100kW of power
• Damless Hydro – systems which generate power from rivers or the sea without the use of a dam
• Ocean Energy – all forms of energy derived from the oceans
• Osmotic Power or salinity gradient power – is the energy derived from the difference in concentration of salt in river and sea water

Solar water heating has become a major buzz word globally and South Africa is no exception. The benefits to both the consumer and power producer are endless as I’m sure most of you are aware of.  Even though solar water heating reduces the amount of electricity sold by the power producers which directly impact profits, the cost of expansion in other renewable technologies can just not be compared.

Solar water heating has been around for ages with a small boom in the 80’s but the latest boom has been fueled by a lack of supply on the national grid and so the authoroties have had to introduce demand side management porgrammes to help reduce the demand on the national grid. Demand in the household space is reduced substantially by installing a solar geyser in the home.

Even though installing a solar geyser in homes can help reduce the demand for electricity on the grid, it also helps with education and creating a green awareness which is great. This awareness to help reduce electricity demand along with carbon emissions and going green can only benefit the sustainability of South Africa in the long run!

So go ahead and order your solar geyser from a supplier accredited on the Eskom solar water heating programme today!

Water heating is typically the largest consumer of electricity in households and does therefore provide a perfect area for saving. Water in your geyser is typically heated by a electrical element which turns on and off based on the temperature of the water inside the geyser, thus the efficiency of this element and thermostat is of absolute importance as a faulty element can lead to decreased efficiency and increased electricity usage.  A faulty thermostat can also cause your geyser to heat the water too much resulting in a waste in electricity as well as water released by your safety valve.

So there are many ways to save money and still provide adequate hot water. Huge cash savings can be realised by ensuring that your geyser operates efficiently as well as making use of alternate energy sources to heat the water. A great source of alternate energy for water heating purposes is Solar Water Heating as it allows you to efficiently convert the energy contained in the Sun’s rays into heat which is in turn used to heat the water in your geyser.

Many different solar geyser solutions are available on the South African market today. I highly recommend sticking to SABS tested or approved solutions which are approved on the Eskom solar geyser programme. This will help ensure that you install a quality solution that is going to last as well as save you money in the medium to long term.

So complete the form to the left to be connected to a Solar Geyser provider in your area who provides SABS tested solutions and who has been accredited on the Eskom solar geyser programme.

Get solar water heating will connect you to a solar water heating supplier who is registered on the Eskom solar water heating programme and who is located closest to you.

This takes the hassle out of trying to locate a solar water heating supplier in your area who is firstly qualified to install solar water heating solutions, and secondly who qualifies for the Eskom rebate.

We cover most South African cities and towns, including:

• Johannesburg
• Midrand
• Centurion
• Krugersdorp
• Roodepoort
• Randburg
• Sandton
• Boksburg
• Benoni
• Springs
• Kempton park
• Bedfordview
• Fourways
• Pretoria
• Centurion
• Vereeniging
• Vanderbijlpark
• Three Rivers

Free State

• Bloemfontein

North West

• Rustenburg

Limpopo

• Polokwane

Mpumalanga

• Nelspruit

Kwa-Zulu Natal

• Durban
• Pietermaritzburg

Eastern Cape

• East london
• Grahamston
• Port Elizabeth
• Jeffrey’s Bay
• St Francis Bay
• Tsitsikama

Western Cape

• Garden Route
• Plettenberg Bay
• Knysna
• Sedgefield
• Wilderness
• George
• Oudtshoorn
• Mossel Bay
• Great Brak River
• Hartenbos
• Riviersonderend
• Heidelberg
• Grabouw
• Elgin
• Villiersdorp
• Franshhoek
• Stellenbosch
• Somerset West
• Vredendal
• Saldanha
• Greater Cape Town

Northern Cape

• Upington
• Kimberley