KATE THOMPSON DAVY

I love when my professional research and personal needs overlap, and this story is one such example. As a freelancer working from home, I needed to research the various options for staying connected and staying working without electricity – and it is a story with huge “talkability” in South Africa at the moment, so it made sense for my client to delve into the topic.

Here is a short extract:

WHEN the lights go out, some consider it a simple inconvenience. But for others, notably businesses, it is as if someone pulled up the hand brake abruptly. Eskom has warned that load shedding is here to stay, but there are ways — and clever gadgets and tools — to reduce the impact on your lifestyle and business. 

1. Load shedding schedules

With several load shedding stages, direct and indirect Eskom customers, and stage-dependent schedules, it is easy to be taken by surprise when Eskom intentionally throws the switch. Fortunately, there are websites and apps to help. Major centres can get early warning alerts from www. sharenet.co.za/loadshedding and Android OS users in Cape Town, Johannesburg and Durban might benefit from the ShedAlert app.

2. Lighting

There is no need to find yourself groping for candles in the dark. Ellies has a chargeable LED lamp bulb that functions like a normal bulb when the electricity flows, but as emergency lighting when it doesn’t, providing five to seven hours light off a battery. It draws only a small amount of power when on or charging.

Read the full article: http://www.financialmail.co.za/features/2015/02/19/surviving-load-shedding-knowledge-is-power