Backup Starter
An inverter and battery that keep the lights, Wi-Fi, TV, fridge and a laptop running when the power goes. Solar panels can be added later.
Good for: a smaller budget, with panels added when you're ready.
FoxESS Solar Installation, Designed and Installed Properly
A FoxESS inverter and battery system, designed by CleanVolts for how your home uses power, and installed by the CleanVolts Approved FoxESS installer nearest to you: Crown Technologies in Roodepoort (086 112 7696), or Ben Kruger of Madebere Electrical in Centurion (072 784 1714).
Signed off with the Certificate of Compliance and SSEG registration. No shortcuts. Pay cash, or monthly through a partner lender and own it. Site assessment R750, credited against the installation if you go ahead.
A lot of the solar in Johannesburg went up in a hurry during the load-shedding rush. Some of it was sized for a sales target rather than a household. Some of it was never labelled, never earthed properly and never registered. Plenty of it is still running today with nobody quite sure whether it is safe.
We do new installations the other way: slowly enough to get the design right, properly enough that the paperwork is complete on the day we hand over.
And it costs far less than it did then. Panels are about half their 2022 price and batteries have fallen too, so a properly designed system is now within reach of many more homes.
Why FoxESS
FoxESS makes hybrid inverters and batteries that are designed to work together and are monitored from one app. It is a brand we recommend for South African homes because it gives you good value for money, the parts and warranty support are handled locally, and our installers have years of FoxESS installations behind them.
- Inverter and battery from the same maker, built to talk to each other
- Batteries that stack, so you can start with less storage and add more later
- Monitoring in the FoxESS app from day one, so you can see what the system is doing
- Components and warranty support through a South African FoxESS distributor
Not set on a brand? We design around your home, and if another make suits it better, we will tell you.
Our FoxESS Installers
We match your home with the CleanVolts Approved FoxESS installer nearest to you, so they can get to you quickly and come back when you need them.
Crown Technologies, Roodepoort
FoxESS Gold Installer with more than 25 years in the business and over 2,000 installations across solar, cooling and water. Covers Roodepoort, the West Rand and Johannesburg. See Crown's profile and case study.
Phone: 086 112 7696
Website: crowntechnologies.co.za
Ben Kruger, Madebere Electrical & Airconditioning, Centurion
Solar installer and electrician who has been installing FoxESS for years. Covers Centurion, Pretoria and surrounds. See Ben's profile.
Phone: 072 784 1714
Email: bfgkruger@gmail.com
Who Does What
CleanVolts assesses your home, designs the system, checks the quote against distributor prices, coordinates the installation, prepares the SSEG application with you and stays your point of contact. We never buy, sell or hold the hardware.
Your installer supplies the FoxESS components, installs the system and issues the Certificate of Compliance. You contract with them directly for the components and the installation. Where a partner pays us a referral fee, we tell you. How CleanVolts earns.
How It Works
- Tell us about your home. Fill in the short quote form or WhatsApp us. Send a recent electricity bill, tell us what you want solar to do (cut the bill, keep the lights on, or both) and whether you'd like to pay cash or monthly.
- Site assessment. We visit to look at your roof and its direction, your distribution board, where the inverter and battery can go, and how your household uses power through the day. The site assessment costs R750, credited against the installation if you go ahead.
- Design and written quote. You get a system designed for your home and a written quote with every component named by make and model, the installation, the Certificate of Compliance and the SSEG application all listed. No vague “5 kW inverter” line items. Before you see it, we check the component prices against what the distributors charge. The quote shows the cash price and your estimated monthly saving, and if you'd rather pay monthly, we talk you through the finance options.
- Installation. Once you accept the quote and pay the deposit to the contractor, they order the components and book the installation. The registered contractor installs the system; we coordinate the job and check the work against the design.
- Sign-off and handover. The Certificate of Compliance is issued, the SSEG application goes to City Power, the system is labelled, monitoring is switched on, and we walk you through how it works and how to shut it down safely.
Three Starting Points
Most homes fit one of three starting points. Every system is adjusted to your home after the site assessment, so the final quote is for what you actually need, not what a package says. Not sure which is yours? Try the free sizing guide: six quick questions and you get a starting size and budget range.
Hybrid Home
Panels, inverter and battery working together. The panels run the house during the day and charge the battery for the evening.
Good for: cutting the bill and riding through outages.
Full Home
A larger array and more storage for bigger households, pool pumps, home offices and electric geysers on a timer.
Good for: taking a real bite out of a large monthly bill.
What Every Installation Should Include
- A system designed from your bills and how you use power
- Every component named by make and model on the quote
- Installation by a registered electrical contractor who meets the CleanVolts Approved standard
- A Certificate of Compliance issued under the contractor's registration
- An SSEG registration application to City Power
- DC isolators, surge protection and labelling, itemised on the quote
- Monitoring switched on from day one, so early faults are caught while the warranty still covers them
- A handover walk-through, including how to shut the system down safely in an emergency
- A check-in after the first 30 days to compare what the system produces with what it should
We check that each of these is on your quote, and who is responsible for it, before you sign.
What We Won't Do
- Sell you a bigger battery than your household needs
- Make money on the hardware. We never buy or sell components, and we check the contractor's component prices before you sign
- Quote without seeing the house
- Send anyone to your property who isn't registered, licensed and insured
- Hand over a system without the Certificate of Compliance
- Leave you guessing what you're paying for. Our fee is its own line on the quote, and we tell you about any referral fee we earn.
Payment
You pay the components and installation to the registered contractor. They order the components only once you have accepted the quote and paid their deposit, and the balance is due when the system is installed and the Certificate of Compliance is issued.
Prefer to pay monthly? Use a bond re-advance, or ask us about finance and we'll talk you through the options available for your system. Either way you own the system from day one, rather than renting it. We don't lend money ourselves, and if we earn a referral fee from a lender, we tell you.
CleanVolts never takes payment for components. Our design and project management fee is invoiced separately and shown as its own line.
The site assessment costs R750, credited against the installation if you go ahead.
Already Have a Solar Quote?
Send it to us with a recent electricity bill. We'll tell you whether the system is sized for how your household uses power, whether the components hang together, and what is missing that should be there. You get it back in writing, it's free, and there is no obligation to use us.
After Installation
A new system is still worth watching. Your FoxESS system is connected to the FoxESS app from day one, and we can keep an eye on it for you through monitoring, so a fault shows up in a report rather than on your bill.
After the first year, a service plan keeps the system inspected, cleaned and performing.
Common Questions
Why FoxESS rather than another brand?
FoxESS gives you a matched inverter and battery, app monitoring and local warranty support at a price that works for most South African homes. It isn't the only good brand, and we'll recommend something else if it suits your home better.
Can I add more FoxESS batteries later?
Usually, yes. FoxESS batteries are modular, so many homes start with less storage and add modules later. We confirm at the site assessment how far your system can grow, and design it to leave room.
Who handles the warranty?
The FoxESS components carry the manufacturer's warranty, supported through a South African FoxESS distributor. The installer gives you a written workmanship warranty. If something goes wrong, contact us first and we coordinate the claim.
Who do I sign the contract with?
You sign the installation contract, components included, with the registered electrical contractor who does the work and issues the Certificate of Compliance. CleanVolts' fee for design and coordination is its own line on the quote. If you choose finance, you also sign a loan agreement with the lender.
Do I have to register my system with the municipality?
Yes. Any grid-connected system has to be registered as a small-scale embedded generator (SSEG) with your electricity supplier. We prepare the application with you as part of the installation.
Which areas do you cover?
We're based in Blairgowrie and cover northern Johannesburg. Our FoxESS installers are based in Roodepoort and Centurion, so if you're on the West Rand, in Centurion or in Pretoria, ask us anyway.
Related Guides
Planning a new system or adding to the one you have? Start here.
Where We Work
Blairgowrie, Linden, Randburg, Ferndale, Northcliff, Fairland, Emmarentia, Greenside and Parkhurst, and the suburbs around them. If you're further out, ask anyway.
Mon-Fri 08:00-17:00 and Saturday mornings. Call or WhatsApp +27 72 368 2960.
Get a Solar Quote
Tell us about your home and what you want solar to do, and we'll come back to you within one working day to arrange a site assessment.