The City of Johannesburg’s new load limiting mechanism to restrict the use of electricity has come to the suburbs‚ prompting residents to become more aware of which appliances are “power hungry”. The city services 330‚000 households‚ and reckons that load limiting will help it keep the lights on when Eskom declares load shedding.Load limiting – the first of its kind in the country – is being piloted in selected suburbs where smart meters have been installed‚ including the Aspen Hills Nature Reserve complex‚ near Booysens‚ and Blairgowrie near Randburg.So far‚ an estimated 65‚000 households in the city have smart meters but the city intends to roll this out to all homes.Blairgowrie residents were surprised by their electricity being turned on and off on Monday night (20/07)‚ with neighbourhood Whatsapp street committees accustomed to load shedding first checking these schedules before realising it was the new system at work.Sharing information about how the mechanism works‚ the local community association issued a newsletter advising that the smart meters limit usage for an average household from 42 amps to 21 amps.“If you are using too much energy‚ according to City Power‚ you will receive a 30 second shut down where your electricity will be turned off. This may happen repetitively over 5 minutes.”Residents who are at home for the 30 second warning are meant to turn off appliances such as stoves and washing machines as well as geysers.You should still be able to use lights‚ TVs and your alarm systems‚ according to the community association.Residents who do not reduce their energy consumption‚ will find themselves being remotely disconnected.One of the suburb’s residents explained that City Power has allowed households 4‚600 watts power at any one time. So the key‚ he said‚ is to limit the use of big power users at the same time. These are: • Geyser (heating up after a bath) – 3‚000w • Pool pump – 1‚000w • Dishwasher – 2‚000w • Kettle – 1‚500w • Stove – 2‚000+w • Heater – 1‚000-2‚000w eachWhile it is not yet clear exactly what times the load limiting will be activated‚ City Power previously indicated that this could be enforced between 7pm and 10pm during peak hours‚ or when load shedding is under way...