Newfield Annual Maintenance Service
We are excited to announce the launch of our Newfield Annual Maintenance Service! For just R3000 (including VAT), you can now ensure your solar system operates at peak performance with our comprehensive maintenance and cleaning package. Here’s what’s included: Overview Panel Cleaning Inspection of System Battery and Inverter Firmware Update Recommendations for System Improvements Panel Cleaning Solar panels have a protective coating that enables rain water to wash off most of the dirt that settles on them. However they do occasionally need cleaning, particularly if it has not rained for a while. It is important to use the correct cleaning product and method to ensure no damage is caused to the protective coating. We use Solar Wash Protect (SWP)(please see image below), a concentrated antistatic cleaning and protection product specifically developed for photovoltaic solar panels. The antistatic properties of SWP make future cleanings easier, keeps the panel cleaner between cleanings, reduces cleaning time and water consumption by up to 50%. Using the SWP solution to wash the solar modules allows an increase in solar panel efficiency of up to 5%, resulting in significant economic benefits for you. Inspection of System Our thorough inspection covers the entire system. We check cables for any breaks or insulation damage and inspect all connectors and fuses. Additionally, we vacuum dust from your inverter’s filters to ensure optimal performance. Battery and Inverter Firmware Update Keeping your system’s firmware up to date is essential for efficiency and longevity. We will update your inverter or Li-ion battery to the latest manufacturer-recommended firmware version. Recommendations for System Improvements Our experts will provide tailored recommendations to enhance your system’s efficiency. This could include minor tweaks or suggestions for necessary upgrades to ensure your system runs smoothly and efficiently. Maximise your solar investment and enjoy the benefits of a well maintained system. To book your maintenance service or for more information, please contact us on 081 515 7777 or email us atinfo@newfield.co.za.
How to change the WiFi details on the Luxpower inverter
Are you struggling to change the WiFi details on your Luxpower inverter? You’re not alone! Many users find this process a bit daunting, but it doesn’t have to be. Whether you’re upgrading your network, moving to a new location, or simply updating your security settings, changing your WiFi details is a straightforward task with the right guidance. To make this process as easy as possible, we’ve created a comprehensive step-by-step infographic that will walk you through every stage. Follow along with our visual guide to ensure a smooth and hassle-free transition. We hope our step-by-step infographic has made the process of changing the WiFi details on your Luxpower inverter clear and simple. By following each stage carefully, you should now have your inverter successfully connected to your new network settings. If you encounter any issues or have further questions, don’t hesitate to reach out to our support team. Keeping your inverter connected ensures optimal performance and monitoring of your energy system. Thanks for following along, and happy energy saving!
Solar Investments Unwrapped: Understanding Payback Periods and Future Benefits!
We are often asked what the payback period is for a solar system. To find out we looked at 5 Newfield customers with similar systems – Newfield Flex with 6 solar panels, a 5kW inverter, a 5kWh hour Li ion battery and an efficient ceramic geyser element. The data presented is actual metered data. These systems do not feed back to the utility grid and use solar power to keep the battery charged – the battery is used for some night time consumption and during power outages. The systems power all lights, most plug circuits and the energy efficient geysers. The price of the systems as installed ranged from R100,000 to R120,000. We have used the City of Cape Town Home User tariff in our calculations. This is a 2 tier tariff where the costs are related to usage. CoCT Home User Tariff 2025 charges Using the above tariffs we calculated the following based on data for the year January 2025 to December 2025. This is actual data extracted from monitoring systems. An annual saving of R 19,798 is calculated. What is important to note is that the more expensive tier 2 above 600 kWh has been eliminated completely. The service charge is included in the calculations. Annual generation data 2025 The payback period will continue to decrease with each tariff increase. The systems have the ability to feed back to the utility grid, which could increase savings and reduce the payback period even further. Capital repayment term From the above calculations the payback period is around 5 years at today’s pricing based on a system value of R 120,000 fully installed (October 2025). To find out how to put your roof to work and keep the lights on for less contact us now!
Optimising solar production and consumption
Optimising your use of solar requires matching your load as closely as possible with your solar production. When first installing solar panels it is unlikely that peak production will match the times of peak consumption exactly. This is particularly the case when peak consumption occurs at times such as before breakfast and dinner when the sun is not shining. How do we ensure that we get the maximum power possible out of the solar panels? Underutilised Solar Production The simple approach is to ensure that as much consumption as possible takes place during daylight hours. It is also important that the right types of loads are powered by the solar system. By this I mean loads that are relatively high consumers and can be set to run at specific times, e.g a pool pump or geyser element that can be set to a schedule on a timer. Batteries can also be utilised to shift the solar production – the battery is charged by solar during the day and provides power to the loads at night. Improved matching of solar production & consumptionIf the solar system has battery backup the idea is to charge the battery first thing in the morning – once the battery is full and solar production dips start running loads that can be set on a timer and have a predictable and constant power draw, such as a pool pump. These loads can be increased as the solar production rises through the day, so replace the pool pump with the geyser, or run a borehole pump simultaneously with he pool pump to increase the total power draw. Taper off the draw into the afternoon, so that there is time for the battery to charge up before sunset. This will provide stored solar power to run night time loads. Optimised solar production and consumption Being able to time shift your loads by use of timers or batteries is essential to getting peak performance out of your system. This applies to “off-grid” systems that do not feed power back to the utility – that is an entirely different scenario, where the utility acts as a “battery”. Further articles will look at grid-tied systems.
How to fine-tune your power supply
Installing a solar system is only part of the process – once everything is up and running, you need to fine-tune your mix of solar, battery and utility to get the best out of your investment. Optimising your load begins with understanding your load profile and this can be discovered through your system’s monitoring app. At its most basic, a monitoring app will show the energy consumption, solar production, battery production and import from the grid. The aim is to maximise solar production while reducing importation from the grid. This can be done by shifting loads to times of high solar production such as 10am to 4pm. Not all loads can be shifted, however, some loads are perfect to run during the day and can be managed with timers – such as pool pumps, geysers, borehole pumps and any other load that can be set to run at a time of your choosing. Even loads that are not able to be shifted can be powered by battery after dark if you have sufficient solar power to charge the battery during the day. In Figure 1 below you can see that there is a heavy load running between 19:30 and 21:30 – this is being powered by utility thus not gaining any benefit from free solar power. On investigation it was discovered that the geyser was responsible. This is an example of an appliance that can be shifted to run during day light hours, as it will keep the water hot for a long time after it has run. Figure 1. Unbalanced consumption/production In Figure 2 we have shifted the geyser to run from 11:00 to 15:00 – we did this by adjusting the timer – timers are key in being able to load shift. The geyser is now entirely powered by solar power and thus heating the water is now completely free. A similar exercise can be done with pool pumps and any device that can run during the day. Further analysis of the graph in Figure 2 shows that the system ran on battery until about 1 AM, it then switched to utility. When the sun came up at 6:45 it started charging the battery until just before 11AM – as the battery is now full the inverter stops using the utility and powers the loads by a combination of solar and battery power. As long as the load does not exceed the combined capacity of battery and solar it will continue to be powered until the battery reaches about 50% (cut off voltage, which is adjustable) – the system then reconnects the utility. This cycle continues every day. Figure 2. Optimised Consumption/Production This system has now been optimised to take advantage of low cost solar and battery energy. This maximises the return on investment and reduces the utility bill. Be smart with your solar instillation, you only save if you understand how it works!
The Sunny Side of Solar – Installing a Solar PV System
Whilst load shedding is keeping us all in the dark, solar has brought new light to the energy situation in South Africa and has been keeping more and more lights on throughout the country. To those who have made the decision to invest in solar, welcome to the sunny side of life! For those who are still on the fence here are our 5 easy steps to joining the sunny side of SA with the help of Newfield. Step 1: Understanding your needs and the environment of your home. At Newfield we like to keep it personal. So, we will discuss your solar requirements in person which gives us the benefit of seeing the full picture and allowing us to better understand what you would like to achieve by installing one of our systems. For your benefit, we talk you through how the technology can best serve your power needs and what solutions will optimise your current energy environment in order to reduce the amount you spend on electricity. We’ll save you money wherever we can! Step 2: On-site survey and proposal. An on-site survey is done to determine the best position for your solar panels; how to run the cables most efficiently; and the best place to mount the inverter and batteries in a way that ensures the installation is neat and safe. Once we fully understand what you need from our solar PV system, we prepare a proposal with the most relevant options for you to consider and decide on the best choice for your property and family. Step 3: Procurement and Instillation After you’ve accepted our quote, we will place your order for the necessary components and schedule an installation date. On the day of installation, we’ll deliver the equipment to your home and start the process by identifying which circuits will be powered by the inverter. Our expert team of electricians then mount the inverter and batteries before transferring over the relevant circuits. Once we’ve neatly run the cables between your distribution board and the inverter, and from the inverter to the solar panel site, we’re all done with the wiring. For a three-bedroom house, this process usually takes around a day. The next day our skilled panel installation team arrive to install your solar panels. It normally takes about 3-4 hours to install eight panels, depending on the type of roof. Step 4: Configuration Once we’ve run the cables and installed the solar panels, it is time to configure the system. We do this in a way that maximises the use of free energy from the sun and charges the batteries to see you through the dark days of load shedding with lights on and Netflix loaded. We’ll also connect your solar system to Wi-Fi, allowing you to view the performance of the system over the Internet via our IOS or Android App. Step 5: Testing and use. As soon as we’ve finished with configuration it is time to turn on your new solar system and put it to the test. After this, we’ll spend some time training you on how to use your new solar system, answering any questions you may have and showing you how to get the most value out of it. We also provide a one week “hand holding” exercise, where we keep in contact with you to ensure that your move from coal power to solar power is as smooth and trouble-free as can be. If you’re still concerned and wondering about the background paperwork; as part of the process with Newfield, we prepare all the registration forms, diagrams, and certificates of compliance necessary for you to register your system with the City of Cape Town. It’s as simple as that! Don’t stay in the dark, the sunny side is waiting!
Reduce your monthly electricity bill by 80%. Here’s how it’s done!
A Case Study: In 2012 my electricity consumption was 26 units (kWh) per day or about 780 kWh per month. I decided to embark on a journey to reduce my consumption. Eskom were offering subsidies on solar geysers at the time, so I took the plunge and had one installed. This worked well – reducing my consumption by about 7 units (kWh) per day. Over the next year I replaced all of my halogen and fluorescent lighting with low power LED bulbs. These did not provide a huge reduction, only about 0,2 units per day, but every bit helps. The next major power consumer I tackled was my pool pump – this consumes about 6 units per day, every day. I replaced my old pump with a Grundfos pump that works off solar panels – my monthly consumption was now down to 384 kWh – over 50% less than when I started the exercise 3 years before! It was getting harder and harder to reduce my consumption further and load shedding was becoming a concern, so I installed a small battery backup system, this didn’t reduce my bill, but it kept the lights and WiFi working when Eskom went dark. I then discovered a company called Xtend that makes efficient geyser elements – these use PTC ceramics and promise to reduce your water heating bill by 25% at a reasonable cost of less than R2000 – I was sold. Installing this was easy, it simply replaces your existing element and uses less power (2kW for a 150l geyser vs 3kW). Amazingly enough, the Xtend element reduced my usage by a further 1 unit per day. I was now down to 11,8 kWh per day. During this time we started Newfield Alternative Energy as we could see the potential for improving people’s lives with this technology – both from a financial and lifestyle point of view, plus it is good for the environment. Recently I installed a complete solar PV system system that is sufficient to owner everything in my house except for the stove, oven, air fryer and laundry. So far after 2 months it has reduced my electricity consumption by an average of 7 units per day, leaving my monthly consumption from Eskom at about 144 kWh – a massive 81% reduction over my original un-assisted consumption! Real Savings: At today’s rates, my original consumption of 780kWh would cost me R2036 per month, whereas my actual, reduced consumption costs me R393 per month – 80% less! This is a R19,700 savings per year – more than enough to finance my solar solution over 5 years. The Solution: The good news is that you don’t have to take a 5 year journey to achieve similar savings. We have developed a solar package that includes everything you need to start saving immediately. Our solution includes solar panels, inverter, battery backup and an Xtend geyser element to reduce your consumption and provide backup during load shedding from day one! See our Solar Essentials and Solar Essentials + Packages Here. – Dean van Vuuren: Co-founder, Newfield Alternative Energy
Optimising Your Solar Solution to Meet Your Home’s Requirements
Congratulations! You have taken the jump and bought an off-grid solar system with a Lithium ion battery to protect against load shedding and reduce your bill. However, you’re not entirely sure if you are receiving the maximum benefit from your new purchase. This is part 1 in a series on how to maximise your free power from the sun, while ensuring you have sufficient battery capacity for load shedding. Before diving into how to maximise your use of solar we need to understand how your inverter works and the logic it operates under. Two main settings decide how you utilise solar power. Understanding your inverter 1. How your load is powered and; 2. How your battery is charged. Your inverter receives power from the utility, battery and from solar. This setting determines which source of power the inverter uses to power your loads and how it balances or switches between the various sources. There are 4 main options: UTI – only utility provides the power to your house. Solar and battery will only be used if the utility is not available. SOL – solar provides power to your loads as first priority, if there is insufficient solar power available, battery will be used to power the loads at the same time. Utility is only used when solar is not available (e.g at night) or the battery drops to it’s low voltage setting. SBU – solar provides power to your loads as first priority, if there is insufficient solar power available, battery will be used to power the loads at the same time. Utility is only used when the battery drops to its low voltage setting. *Please note there is a subtle difference between SOL and SBU – SOL will switch over to utility when solar is unavailable, even if the battery is full. SBU will continue using the battery until its low voltage point. SUB – solar provides power to the loads as first priority, if there is insufficient solar to power the loads, utility tops it up. Battery is only used when solar is not sufficient and there is no utility available. Charger source priority This setting decided what source of power the inverter uses to charge the battery – there are 3 options.CSO – solar energy charges the battery. Utility is only used if solar is not available. SNU – solar energy and utility both charge the battery. OSO – only solar energy is used to charge the battery. Optimum settings How do you determine the optimum combination of output source and charger source for your inverter?From the above we can eliminate UTI as an option as it does not make use of free solar power and will not reduce your bill. Equally a charge setting of SNU doesn’t make sense as it uses utility to charge the battery even when there is solar energy available. So which of the remaining settings makes the most sense? The key is deciding how much you want to cycle your battery. If you want to preserve your battery for load shedding and maximise its life span, then SUB and CSO make the most sense. Solar energy will be used when it is available, with utility topping it up as necessary, e.g. if a cloud moves over the panels, or the sun starts going down. The battery will be charged by solar, however if the battery is depleted going into night time, the utility will charge it. Thus you should always have spare battery capacity to carry you through load shedding. Should your priority be maximising the amount of solar power you receive and using this energy into the night, then SBU and OSO are a good match. Only solar power will charge the battery and the system will use battery to top up solar power as needed. It will continue using the battery into the night until it reaches its low voltage point – typically at 50% of capacity. You will then only have the remaining50% of the battery to use in the case of load shedding. This is efficient, but risky if there are days of cloudy weather or heavy load shedding. Thirdly is an option that balances the risk of load shedding with making good use of solar power. This is to use SOL and OSO. Solar energy will power your loads, with battery topping it up as necessary. The battery will also be charged by solar power. When night falls and the panels stop producing, the inverter will switch to utility power. At this stage the battery will be close to fully charged unless there was extreme cloudy weather. A slightly more conservative variant of this option is to use CSO for charging – the utility will be used to charge the battery when solar power is not available – this should ensure that you have a full battery going into the night. Now that you have an understanding of how your inverter works and which settings produce the best results depending on your requirements, part 2 will deal with optimising your load, read it HERE.