Plentify

Thank you for your interest in HotBot! You can learn more and get a HotBot for your home at plentify.io/non-solar-households

Make sure to remove or bypass any timers or other geyser controllers, and rather manage your hot water through the app at my.plentify.io

Demand for electricity is not flat, rather it peaks in the mornings and the evenings. Our electricity grid struggles the most during these peak periods, when available electricity supply often falls short of demand and Eskom burns a lot of diesel to try to keep the lights on. Often they simply can’t keep up, or need to save the diesel to serve other times of the day – leading to loadshedding. Solar by itself is not the answer as it produces most energy during the middle of the day, and does very little to address our peak problem. HotBot solves both of these problems. Your HotBot can coordinate with all other HotBots to intelligently shift energy demand away from times when Eskom is burning diesel or we’re at greatest risk of loadshedding, and towards times when more solar energy is available – while making sure that you have hot water when you want it.

After you subscribe for HotBot, you will receive a link to book a convenient installation time. All installations will be done by either the Plentify team or our existing pool of 3rd-party installers.

HotBot is a small Internet of Things device (17cm x 15cm x 6cm) that is installed adjacent to your existing geyser. The power to your geyser is run through HotBot, and it has several sensors which attach to your hot water system.

HotBot still works with geysers despite most non-compliance issues. Depending on the nature of the non-compliance, certain features may not work. For example, some hot water systems allow valves to drain into the drip tray instead of being directed outside with a pipe – in these cases it is not possible to distinguish between this and leaks. Our technicians will notify you of any compliance or other issues that they find with your geyser, and can assist in rectifying at your cost.

After you checkout, you will receive an email with a personalised link to book your installation. You simply select a convenient date and time for the installation, and our accredited plumbers will arrive with the device and install it for you. Once HotBot is installed you can register on our Plentify app and start saving! You will be charged the subscription fee each month, starting 2 months after you have ordered your HotBot.

HotBot is compatible with all electric geysers and solar geysers where the tank is on the roof (thermosyphon systems). It is not intended for gas, pumped solar thermal (where the tank is typically inside), low-pressure / push-through (typically seen in RDP houses), or heat pump geysers. The geyser must be accessible to a technician for installation. In order for leak detection and the optional shut-off valve to work, you must have a drip tray and your geyser must be installed inside.

We’re available in Gauteng, Cape Town and surroundings, or the Hessequa region in the Western Cape. If you’re interested in getting a HotBot, then please sign up to our waiting list and we’ll reach out as soon as we can support your area.

Yes. HotBot requires a stable WiFi connection to work properly.

Our devices connect to the Plentify App through WiFi. This allows you to monitor and control your geyser remotely. Without WiFi, the devices cannot communicate with the app, meaning you’ll lose access to these smart features.

For the best performance, your WiFi router should be within 10 metres of your geyser (for HotBot)