Thermo Group — Solar Experts You Can Trust
Affordable solar installations for homes in Newlands — quality workmanship, transparent pricing, no premium mark-up.
At Thermo Group, we install solar PV, battery and hybrid systems throughout Newlands — a leafy Southern Suburbs neighbourhood at the foot of Table Mountain, famous for being the highest-rainfall suburb in Cape Town and home to some of the city’s oldest sporting grounds. We design every Newlands system around the area’s heavy winter rainfall from the first site visit, not as an afterthought.
Thinking about solar in Cape Town?
Free solar quotes, no obligation. Installation and City registration handled for you.
Free solar quote · no obligation
Tell us about your home in 5 quick steps
No prices on screen and no pushy sales. We call you back the same day, do a free site assessment, then send an accurate written quote.
Step 1 of 5
Where is the property?
Type of property
What do you need, and how much power do you use?
What are you looking for?
Roughly what is your monthly electricity bill?
Optional: a photo of a recent bill lets us size your system more accurately before we call. Skip this if you do not have one handy.
What must keep running when the power is off?
Tick anything specific you want covered (optional)
How would you prefer to pay?
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Where should we call you?
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Preferred time for the free site assessment
By sending this you agree to our solar quote terms. We use your details only to contact you about this request.
Prefer to talk? Call 021 203 5337 or WhatsApp 082 302 0683
Our experienced team handles the complete solar installation process in Newlands — from surveying the property’s actual sun hours and shading, through design, installation, testing, compliance and registration.
Whether you are looking for a solar PV system, battery backup, hybrid inverter or a complete energy solution, we design around your property’s electricity usage, roof and Newlands’ notably high rainfall and mature tree cover. We carry out both residential and commercial solar installations, and our technicians are experienced in installing and maintaining these systems for the long term.
Complete Solar Solutions
Our solar services include:
- ☀️ Solar panel installations
- 🔋 Battery storage systems
- ⚡ Hybrid and backup inverter systems
- 🏠 Residential solar installations
- 🏢 Commercial solar installations
- 🔧 Solar system upgrades and expansions
- 📋 Electrical compliance and certification
- 🏙️ SSEG applications and registration
- 📝 Solar system registration with the City of Cape Town
- 🔍 Solar system inspections and fault finding
- 🛠️ Ongoing solar maintenance and servicing
What We Design Around In Newlands
Cape Town’s Highest Rainfall Suburb
Newlands famously receives more rain than almost anywhere else in the city. We specify roof penetrations, flashing and waterproofing around mounting points to a higher standard because of it.
Mature Tree Cover
Newlands’ leafy streets mean shading and leaf litter are real factors on many roofs. We map actual sun hours on site rather than assuming full exposure.
Older Mature Homes
Many Newlands properties are older, established homes. We assess the distribution board and existing circuits before finalising a design.
Why A Newlands Solar Installation Is Not A Generic Cape Town Job
Newlands is a leafy Southern Suburbs neighbourhood at the foot of Table Mountain, famous for being the highest-rainfall suburb in Cape Town and home to some of the city’s oldest sporting grounds. That combination of heavy winter rain, mature tree cover and older housing stock makes for an installation profile all its own. We do not quote a Newlands installation off a standard template — our site visit accounts for rainfall and roof condition before we design a system.
Designing For Cape Town’s Wettest Suburb
Newlands’ famously heavy winter rainfall means roof penetrations and mounting points need to be waterproofed to a higher standard than in drier parts of the city. We build this into every Newlands installation from the outset.
Book Your Newlands Solar Installation Consultation
Fill out the form below to book a site visit and quote for a solar installation in Newlands. Already have solar and need a Certificate of Compliance too? See our dedicated Certificate of Compliance (COC) Services in Newlands page.
As trusted solar contractors serving Newlands, our qualified solar installers provide dedicated solar panel maintenance and PV system maintenance plans, so your investment keeps performing at its best for years to come.
We Don't Just Install — We Maintain
At Thermo Group, our relationship with our Newlands clients does not end when the solar installation is complete.
We offer ongoing maintenance and servicing for Newlands solar systems, helping ensure equipment keeps operating safely and efficiently despite the suburb’s heavy winter rainfall and mature tree cover. Our team can assist with inspections, fault finding, inverter issues, battery systems, electrical connections and general system maintenance.
Regular maintenance can also help identify potential problems before they become expensive failures.
SSEG & City of Cape Town Registration
Installing a solar system is only part of the process. Where required, your system must also be properly documented and registered with the City of Cape Town.
Thermo Group can assist clients with the SSEG application and registration process, helping ensure that the required documentation, electrical compliance requirements and system information are correctly dealt with.
Our goal is to make the process as straightforward as possible for the property owner.
Your Local Solar Experts
From the initial site survey to installation, compliance, registration and ongoing maintenance, Thermo Group provides a complete solar solution for Newlands properties under one roof.
Driven by Quality. Powered by Trust.
More Solar Services
Explore our full range of solar installation and solutions services across Cape Town, find out more about our solar maintenance in Newlands, or see our Certificate of Compliance services in Newlands.
Solar on Newlands Roofs: Cottages, Edwardian Homes, Hillside Houses and Estates
A good solar design starts with the roof, and Newlands roofs vary a great deal. The suburb stretches from small village erven near Newlands Village, where many cottages began as 19th-century brewery workers’ housing, to Edwardian-style family homes in Kelvin, larger properties around Hiddingh Estate, multilevel houses on the slopes of Fernwood and a number of security estates.
- Village cottages. Roof area is limited, so the layout decides how much of your daytime use panels can cover. A compact, well-oriented array with a hybrid inverter often suits these properties better than a large one that is partly shaded.
- Edwardian and older homes. Check the roof covering and timbers before anything goes up. A roof near the end of its life should be repaired first, since removing panels later to replace it is expensive and awkward.
- Hillside houses. Complex roof planes and several levels mean more than one possible array location, and cable routes from roof to inverter can be long. Plan the inverter and battery position early.
- Estates and townhouses. Roof space may be shared or controlled by design rules. Approval from the trustees or homeowners’ association usually comes before anything else.
Newlands is lush and green, which is lovely but relevant. Mature trees cast shade that changes through the year, and in areas close to the mountain the slopes to the west can bring the sun down earlier in the afternoon. A proper site visit checks shading at different times of day and in winter, not only on a sunny summer afternoon.
Wind and Winter Storms: Mounting Panels Properly
Winter storms in Newlands can be severe. The Table Mountain Fund notes that gales on the eastern slopes can tear roofs off houses and uproot trees, and Cape Town’s south-easter is a design factor everywhere on the peninsula. Panels behave like sails, so a solar array is only as secure as the roof structure it is fixed to.
- Assess the roof before quoting. The City’s going-solar guidance says to confirm that your roof can carry the weight and wind load of the array.
- Use the right fixings for the roof type. Corrugated iron and IBR roofs take clamps or brackets fixed to the structure, while tile roofs use hooks that go beneath the tiles. Fixings should suit a wet climate.
- Prefer flush mounting on pitched roofs. Tilting panels up adds wind exposure for a small gain.
- Check clamp spacing, torque and rail layout. An installer should be able to explain these without reference to a manual.
- Look at the trees. Overhanging branches are a hazard in a gale and a source of leaf litter and shade in calm weather. Ask whether any need trimming before installation.
If your roof may contain asbestos-cement sheeting, stop and get specialist advice. Regulations restrict drilling and fast-moving cutting tools on asbestos materials, so nobody should drill or walk on such a roof without the right precautions. Thatch is generally unsuitable for rooftop panels.
Rain, Damp and Winter Output: Designing for Newlands
Newlands is widely described as the wettest suburb in South Africa, with most of its rain falling in winter. That affects solar in three practical ways.
Winter production
Short days and cloud fronts mean a system produces less in July than in January. A design based on annual averages can disappoint in winter, which is when load-shedding and evening outages hit hardest. Ask for the winter estimate as well as the annual one, and size the battery for a cloudy week rather than a sunny day.
Moisture and connections
DC connectors, isolators and cable entries must be sealed and installed so water cannot collect in them. Outdoor enclosures need a suitable ingress protection rating, and cables should be secured so they do not rub or sit in standing water. The same applies to any conduit across a garden or between a house and a garage.
Where the battery lives
The City’s guidance says batteries belong in a properly racked, dry and well-ventilated area. In a damp suburb, a garage wall that sweats in winter is a poor choice. Choose a position away from direct sun, escape routes and flammable storage, and make sure the inverter has room to ventilate.
Finally, the inverter app is your best early warning. If clear-day output drops, check for soiling, shade from new tree growth or a tripped protection device before assuming the sun is the problem. See our solar maintenance page for what an annual system check covers.
Approvals in Newlands: Estates, Body Corporates, Heritage and the City
Several approvals can apply to one Newlands solar job, and it is easier to deal with them in the right order.
- Estate, homeowners’ association or body corporate. Security estates and sectional title schemes often have design rules for roofs and visible equipment. Ask for approval in writing before ordering equipment.
- Heritage. The City says buildings older than 60 years are protected, with permission from Heritage Western Cape needed for work that changes their appearance. Panels on a street-facing roof of an older house may count, so ask early.
- City of Cape Town SSEG registration. If your electricity account is with the City, a PV or battery system that connects to your installation must be authorised before it is installed and switched on. Registration is free. The City issues a Permission to Install first, and the system may only be switched on after commissioning approval.
- Electrical Certificate of Compliance. The COC confirms the installation is safe. It is not the same as City authorisation, and you need both.
Thermo Group handles SSEG registration for its solar installations. Rules and forms change, so the current requirement is checked before each submission. Properties supplied by Eskom or another municipality have different processes, which is worth confirming from your electricity bill.
Hybrid Systems and Batteries for Larger Newlands Homes
For a house that is occupied during the day, a grid-tied system without a battery reduces daytime consumption but shuts down in a power cut, so you still lose power during outages. A hybrid system adds a battery and a protected essential-loads circuit, which keeps chosen circuits running. Since 1 October 2023, the City has treated all new solar and battery systems as grid-tied for registration purposes, and it no longer accepts applications for standby or off-grid systems in its supply area.
| Question | Grid-tied only | Hybrid with battery |
|---|---|---|
| Works in a power cut | No, it switches off for safety | Yes, for the circuits you back up |
| Best suited to | Daytime use, such as a home office or a business | Households that want evenings and outages covered |
| Extra work at the board | Usually limited | Often a separate essential-loads board |
| City registration | Required | Required |
In a big house the question is what you really need to back up. Lights, the fridge and freezer, router, gate motor and a workspace are reasonable. Geysers, ovens and pool pumps drain a battery quickly and are best left off the essential circuit. A lithium iron phosphate battery generally allows deeper usable discharge than lead-acid, but always read the data sheet for the usable capacity. If you plan to add panels or a battery later, say so now, since the City requires a new application for any expansion.
Certificates, Insurance and a Quote Checklist for Newlands Homeowners
Every solar installation is an electrical installation and needs a Certificate of Compliance from a registered person. Tell your insurer once the system is installed so it is added to your policy, and keep the COC, invoices, equipment details and commissioning paperwork together, because insurers commonly ask for them after a claim. Our solar certificate of compliance page explains what is tested.
What a good quote includes
- Make, model and quantity of panels, inverter and battery, with the battery’s usable capacity.
- Proof that the inverter appears on the City’s approved list.
- The mounting method, and whether the roof and wind load were assessed.
- Surge protection, earthing, isolation and any board work.
- Whether City registration and the COC are included, and who does them.
- Exclusions and the payment schedule, in writing.
Red flags
Be cautious of a quote with no site visit, an installer who treats registration as optional or calls a system off-grid to avoid it, and pressure to pay in full today. Ask to see PV GreenCard and registration details. Thermo Group holds PV GreenCard and is a SAPVIA and ECA member. Quotes are free, with no call-out fee and no obligation: call 021 203 5337 or 082 302 0683, or use the quote request form.
Businesses, Schools and Institutions Around Newlands
Newlands has more than homes. It has shops and restaurants around Newlands Village, a hotel, several large schools, sports grounds and a brewery. Businesses that trade in daylight can often use much of what solar produces, so commercial solar needs a different analysis from home solar: the load profile, the tariff structure, roof age and access, and whether the supply is above the threshold where City rules change. Solar reduces energy bought during the day but does not ensure a lower peak demand charge. Ownership matters too, particularly for tenants, because a lease may restrict roof alterations.
For more on how installations in neighbouring suburbs differ, see our pages for Rondebosch, Claremont and Bishopscourt, or our main solar installations page. If an existing system is underperforming, our solar repairs and fault finding team can trace the problem.
Solar Installers Newlands: More Questions Answered
Yes. Tree shade changes through the day and the year, and even partial shade can pull down the output of a whole string depending on how panels are wired. A site visit should check shade in winter as well as summer, and the design may use optimisers or separate strings. Overhanging branches may need trimming for safety in storms.
Often yes, though the layout limits what you can generate. A compact array on the best-facing roof plane, paired with a hybrid inverter and a modest battery, can cover essentials. A designer should show how much of your daytime use it covers and be honest about what cannot be done. Check shade from neighbours and trees.
Possibly. The City says buildings older than 60 years are protected and that work changing their appearance needs Heritage Western Cape permission. Panels on a street-facing roof of an older house might count, while panels on a rear roof usually raise fewer issues. Ask early, and keep photos and plans ready.
It depends on the scheme’s rules. Many estates control roof appearance, equipment visibility and noise, and sectional title schemes may need trustee approval for roof alterations or common property use. Ask the managing agent for the rules and apply in writing before ordering equipment. Keep the approval letter with your solar paperwork.
Safety depends on the battery model, how and where it is installed, and the ventilation. The City advises that batteries belong in a properly racked, dry, well-ventilated area. A wall that sweats in winter or a garage that floods is a poor choice. Ask the installer to confirm the position suits the manufacturer’s installation requirements.
Ask for their electrical registration details, how the COC will be issued, proof of City-authorised installations and any PV GreenCard or SAPVIA membership. You can verify a PV GreenCard company on the programme’s website. Membership is useful but is not a substitute for the legal requirements, and the electrical certificate must come from a registered person.
Usually after, or alongside, the structural and electrical work. A roof repair, new ceiling or board upgrade can change the best array position and cable routes. If a rewire or board upgrade is due, doing it first avoids installing a modern system on tired wiring. Tell the installer about any planned renovations at quote stage.
You should tell your insurer once the system is installed. For a sale, buyers and conveyancers increasingly ask for the COC and City commissioning paperwork, and a new owner must sign a new supplemental contract with the City. An unauthorised system must be authorised or decommissioned. Keep every document together.
Book Your Newlands Solar Installation
Fill in your details below and our team will contact you to discuss your solar installation or maintenance needs in Newlands.
How much does solar installation cost in Newlands?
It depends on your household’s usage and system size — a small backup system for essentials during load shedding costs far less than a full system covering your whole home. We assess your usage and roof before quoting, so you get an accurate price rather than a generic estimate.
How long does a solar installation take in Newlands?
Most residential installations take 1 to 3 days on site, depending on system size and roof complexity, plus the time needed for approvals. Winter rain can affect scheduling, and we will give you a clear timeline once we have assessed your property.
Does Newlands’ heavy rain affect how solar is installed?
Yes. We waterproof roof penetrations and mounting points to a higher standard in Newlands specifically because of the suburb’s notably high rainfall.
Will solar keep my home running during load shedding?
Yes. A correctly installed and configured solar and battery system will keep your essential circuits running during load shedding, and we handle the City of Cape Town’s SSEG registration and Notice of Completion as part of every installation.
Do you also handle compliance certificates and ongoing maintenance for the system?
Yes. We issue the Solar Certificate of Compliance your installation needs, and we offer ongoing maintenance and fault-finding to keep it performing well for years — whether we installed it or another company did.
Solar Installations & Maintenance in Newlands
Registered, experienced solar technicians serving Newlands’ leafy, rain-prone properties — installation, compliance, registration and ongoing maintenance.
Other Thermo Services In Newlands
- Certificate of Compliance Newlands
- Electrician Newlands
- Emergency Electrician Newlands
- Solar Maintenance & Repairs Newlands
See all Solar Installation areas in Cape Town or everything we offer in the Southern Suburbs.
