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Solar power
Two types of solar power are used on all 3 houses:
Solar water heating
Solar PV power with inverter and batteries. More details are provided in the description of each unit. See also the note about the inverters below.
Each unit is independent and has its own systems.
Heating and cooking: Each unit also has a slow combustion stove for space heating and gas for cooking.
Internet: Two fibre connections, the one 200Mbs and the other 1Gbs, put the house in the "fast lane". The internet is distributed around the property using 4 commercial grade access points at strategic points to ensure coverage over the whole property.
Additional facilities on the property:
A large 30m2 (5m x 6m) workshop, gym, pottery studio or yoga studio. The room is light and airy with 4 skylights and double sliding doors leading onto the secluded and shady back garden. It is wired for 3 phase power for a pottery kiln or other heavy power use. There is a toilet and shower adjacent to this unit.
A 6m x 3m storage shed for garden equipment, wood store, etc.
A small 3m x 2m storage room which is used for the inverter and battery and additional garden storage.
300l solar geysers with 2 flat-plate pre-heaters and a 16 tube vacuum panel. Two Geyserwise controllers enable each geyser to be controlled independently.
Pool and Gazebo
The pool is large (10 x 5m - and deep!)
The thatched gazebo can seat 10-12 people.
There is a change room attached to the gazebo and also a garden storage room.
Water
All properties can also run off the exceptionally good borehole water available on the site. So the Estate can also be "off grid" as far as water is concerned and therefore immune from the water restrictions that have been in place in Cape Town from time to time. (Contrary to common belief, the City Council encourages home owners to use alternative sources such as boreholes. See Be Part of the Solution and Install a Borehole Today)
10 (of the 12) solar PV panels. 3.6kW in all. Connected to a 5kw inverter and 4Kw Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiPo) battery. But see the page on Solar
NB Inverter changes
The solar and inverter system were installed before the City revised the regulations which must now be implemented retrospectively. The work will be done in discussion with any purchaser as instead of reinstating the system as it was, a purchaser may wish to install a bigger systems- or do without solar PV. The seller is flexible and will work with any purchaser to enable them to have the system that suits their needs.
The house also lends itself to going totally off-grid . The key change that would be needed is the addition of a small generator that can charge the battery during extended cloudy periods. Having a suitably sized inverter makes this possible and more economical because the generator can run as long as necessary to charge the battery, while the inverter and battery meet peak loads. This is like a modern HPEV electric car, combining the best of of solar and internal combustion sources.
The constraints on many properties is that the noise from a generator prohibits their use in many residential areas. At Fairhurst there is a natural generator room that faces away from any properties. This could house a generator. It is in the same room as the inverter, so wiring changes would also be minimal.
6x5m Workshop/studio in back garden with separate off-street access
Outside toilet and shower a few meters from the workshop/studio
Looking out from workshop to back vegetable garden. Note high veiling with four skylights. The covered veranda leads out to large deciduous trees which shade in summer and allow sun in winter.
Next to the workshop is a 5x3m garden shed for garden tools, firewood, storage of boxes, etc
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