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By Matthew Hall, Chief of Products at  Rectron Loadshedding, while not new for many South Africans, has become more of a permanent fixture in our day-to-day lives. In response, more backup power solutions have become available to individuals, homeowners and businesses. From generators to inverters and solar, there are a variety of options on the market, but where does one start? Between lithium-ion batteries, milliampere hours and watts, there’s a lot of jargon to sort through. However, there are some easy tips and tricks that can help you choose the right backup power setup for what you need. Battery basics When it comes to backup power solutions, there are a number of rechargeable batteries available. The difference lies in their capacity, life span, charging time and price. The lead battery is the most common rechargeable battery available today. The reason for this is because the technology while old is tried and tested and therefore very reliable. It is also the most cost effe...

 In April this year, Eskom warned that South Africans would continue to experience power outages this winter. In the extreme scenario, this could mean 101 days of load-shedding in the coming months, as the state power utility tries to ease the strain on its floundering grid, which has seen many left in the dark for days . With experts predicting that electricity is set to double in price in the next five years, and load-shedding will be an ongoing occurrence for at least the next decade due to the mismatch of electricity supply and demand among other deep-seated issues at Eskom, it is no wonder consumers are seeking out alternative power solutions to keep their lights on. Fortunately, the likes of solar panels, inverters, and batteries, have progressed significantly in terms of efficiency and cost over the past few years, but deciding how to implement these solutions is dependent on your needs and budget. To make things easier, we have answered some common queries on how to m...