Loadshedding. It’s been all the rage lately and never for the right reasons. It may be happening in South Africa for the solid reason of avoiding a national blackout, but it still does not make South Africans any less angry. Yes, the electricity being off for a few hours at a time can put a damper on , but that shouldn’t stop you from making the best of your unexpected downtime.
If you’re a student that’s studying from home or works during the day while studying at night, then here are a few tips that could and should help you survive right now and in future especially with the UNISA exams just around the corner:
- Always keep your devices, such as your phone, torches and laptop, charged. Invest in a portable charger, especially when your devices are not fully charged. Keep your devices charged so that you can communicate with friends and family during the downtime.
- When you need to study at night and the power’s out, make sure that you have a few candles on hand just in case you need some illumination in an area or two.
- Always keep cash on hand because you won’t be able to withdraw money from an ATM as they run on electricity. No electricity = No money.
- Longing for a hot cup of coffee to have alongside you while studying, yet there’s no electricity? Fill up your thermos/flask with boiling water beforehand so that you won’t have any FOMO.
- The electricity is out and all your TWP notes are on your computer. Tough luck, right? Well, not if you print them out beforehand. Always remember to keep track of when the electricity is going off via the schedule which you can find here so that when it does go off, you’ll be prepared no matter what.
- If you have a car and you feel like getting something to eat because there’s no electricity at home, make sure that there’s enough fuel in the tank for you to travel back and forth as petrol stations would be unable to pump fuel during power outages.
- Get a generator! They may be noisy, but they will help keep the lights on when you need it most.
- A more expensive option (students, LOOK AWAY!!) is to go solar. Solar is a costly option, but it has its advantages with the main one being not relying on the national grid to provide electricity for yourself and instead harnessing the power of the Sun.
- The food in your fridge warming up because of no electricity? Freeze and place water bottles in the fridge to keep the foods and liquids at a proper temperature.
These are just some of many things you can do to survive loadshedding. The UNISA exams are near, so one has to be prepared for any and every obstacle that comes your way. Remember to check the loadshedding schedule (which you can find here) to know when you will be affected.
To make sure that you don’t get left behind when it comes to preparing for the finals, head onto our online shop here to view all that we have to offer for you.
Last Updated: 18 March 2019
