Heat pump
Uses roughly a third of the electricity of a resistive element. Works day and night, rain or shine. Ideal when roof space is tight or orientation is poor.
Home intent
Water heating in South Africa
Heating water is often the largest single slice of a home electricity bill. Fixing it — with a heat pump, solar geyser, or PV diverter — can pay back faster than oversizing panels.
Educational overview. Installed prices vary by metro and roof — get a written quote for your site.
Three common approaches
Solar geyser
Roof collectors heat water directly. Strong long-term savings with good north-facing roof space. Output drops on heavy cloud unless backed by an element.
PV optimiser / diverter
Diverts surplus solar PV into your existing geyser element. Best once you already have (or are installing) a hybrid/PV system.
How this interacts with load shedding
A 3 kW electric geyser will drain a typical home battery in a hurry — most essentials-only backup boards leave the geyser off. Pair backup solar with a heat pump or timed geyser strategy so you do not ask the battery to boil water during Stage 4.