New to this, Tesla energy app a little confusing, need help on MY HOME screen.

[LiBeRtAs]

Trying to find a video that is detailed and describing exactly on my home showing solar and power wall and lines going to and from the different places on the graph, I’m assuming a green line means energy is going from where the line starts to where the line goes And the yellow line or whatever color it is represents power being taken from there?

This video doesn't answer my questions:

https://www.tesla.com/support/videos/watch/energy-overview-tesla-app

For instance the following (I do not have permission to operate yet and assume I am not sending power to PGE)

1. a yellow line going from the main electrical panel on the diagram to the "grid" means what? (seeing this a lot)
2. a white line going from the grid to the main electrical panel means what?
3. a yellow line going from solar to powerwall means what and the blue word below my home is "discharging."
4. a yellow or yellow and green line at the same time going from powerwall to home means what?

I am sure this makes sense to most folks but I am not real sure of what is what. I will try to use videos to figure out the rest of the screens and info and will do that before I ask more questions, but I have to know the basics here I think first.

Thanks.

Also, in this screenshot I am producing solar of .3 and the PW is producing .3 (is it?) and the home is using .3 BUT there is ALSO .3 going into our out of the grid?

 

[jgleigh]

Yellow is solar energy, green is battery energy, white is grid energy. Hard to say if your system is operating properly given the limited information and pre-PTO. Usually helps to verify the grid import/export versus the actual meter to ensure they match. Tesla often has issues on new installs where CTs are not configured properly. Discharging means your house is pulling from the batteries.

1) Would normally mean solar being exported.
2) Would normally mean grid imports.
3) Would normally mean solar is charging the batteries.
4) Yellow means solar going to the house, yellow/green means solar and batteries are going to the house.

 

[offandonagain]

The app usually indicates that it's in pre-PTO mode, and I don't see this in your case. So I would go to Powerwall settings and turn off "Permission to Export" just in case. If the app is aware of pre-PTO mode that option will be disabled, so you can just leave it as-is.

 

[LiBeRtAs]

The app usually indicates that it's in pre-PTO mode, and I don't see this in your case. So I would go to Powerwall settings and turn off "Permission to Export" just in case. If the app is aware of pre-PTO mode that option will be disabled, so you can just leave it as-is.

See attachment;

I have not clicked on yes or no on permission to operate, I haven’t received the letter saying I have the permission but maybe I officially have permission to operate but I just haven’t got the letter yet I don’t know… I was afraid if I tap yes on this screen and there wasn’t a second screen then I’m saying yes to something that might be no, and you’re warning me not to do what exactly? Not to say yes that I have permission to operate before I do?

It sounds like if I'm in permission to operate mode because the app does not indicate I'm in pre-PTO mode then why would I turn off permission to export? What happens to the system or whatever if I say I have permission to operate/export but I don't and the reverse of that I guess? And since the screen has the wrong info as to what I pay and am paid what do I do there?

 

[LiBeRtAs]

Yellow is solar energy, green is battery energy, white is grid energy. Hard to say if your system is operating properly given the limited information and pre-PTO. Usually helps to verify the grid import/export versus the actual meter to ensure they match. Tesla often has issues on new installs where CTs are not configured properly. Discharging means your house is pulling from the batteries.

1) Would normally mean solar being exported.
2) Would normally mean grid imports.
3) Would normally mean solar is charging the batteries.
4) Yellow means solar going to the house, yellow/green means solar and batteries are going to the house.

Thanks for responding. CT’s? Also also on my app where the price for buy and sell is for PG&E both say .49 which it isn’t. The tier one tier 2 average is probably .49 but what I am paid by PG&E since I am new is only like .04 I think, am I supposed to find out what these numbers are and fill them in for things to work properly on my system? That seems weird that they would rely on me to tell them how much these things are.

 

[LiBeRtAs]

By the way this screen says no permission to export

 

[offandonagain]

By the way this screen says no permission to export

Ok, all good then, sorry for the false alarm. It's important that your system is aware of your permission to export, otherwise in some cases you might actually get charged for the energy that you export before PTO. From my experience (2 years ago) you'll get an email from PG&E when you get PTO, and then you have to notify Tesla that you got it.

 

[jgleigh]

Thanks for responding. CT’s? Also also on my app where the price for buy and sell is for PG&E both say .49 which it isn’t. The tier one tier 2 average is probably .49 but what I am paid by PG&E since I am new is only like .04 I think, am I supposed to find out what these numbers are and fill them in for things to work properly on my system? That seems weird that they would rely on me to tell them how much these things are.

CT = current transformer. They're how the Gateway knows where the power is flowing. If they're in the wrong spot or misconfigured you'll see weird data in the app.
Looks like you're on Self-Powered mode so none of the price settings will matter at the moment. They're only used in Time-Based Control.

 

[LiBeRtAs]

CT = current transformer. They're how the Gateway knows where the power is flowing. If they're in the wrong spot or misconfigured you'll see weird data in the app.
Looks like you're on Self-Powered mode so none of the price settings will matter at the moment. They're only used in Time-Based Control.

Yes I am in self powered purposely because until I get out of PG&E rate group E-1 which I am in now and into a different tier there is no point as the rates are the same regardless of the time of day, I don’t know if TOU – C will benefit me if I’m not using the grid hardly at all which I don’t seem to be at this time. Maybe when I start using the air conditioner it will matter. But I am learning so any information is helpful, thanks.

I haven’t changed rate groups or whatever it’s called yet because you only do it twice every 12 months so I don’t wanna do it until I’m absolutely sure. Earlier today it was in time Based control and it was using the grid this morning and when I put it back to self power it didn’t use the grid at all.

 

[LiBeRtAs]

And why would you go OFF GRID? or when would you do that, does that mean you’re cutting off the connection to PG&E or something, that sounds risky I just don’t understand it??

 

[yblaser]

And why would you go OFF GRID? or when would you do that, does that mean you’re cutting off the connection to PG&E or something, that sounds risky I just don’t understand it??

Using the Go Off-Grid function physically opens the contactor in the gateway (or backup switch) to separate your system from the electrical utility. If you have non-backed up loads they will be still powered from the grid. In off grid mode if there is an issue supplying your home load it will automatically restore the grid connection.

There are a number of reasons you might want to do this:

• Testing the system to see that it operates properly off grid
• If you know or suspect there will be a power outage, being off grid will prevent your home from losing power momentarily when the grid goes down as the switch over is not always seamless
• The quality of power the grid is providing is poor. I had the grid voltage sag to the point the solar inverters and powerwalls went off line but not enough for the gateway to automatically disconnect from the grid. Going off grid restored my solar production until the grid power quality improved.
• Some people prefer to disconnect from the grid if there is lightning in the area to reduce the probability of an electrical surge damaging electronics in their home although in this case it may be best to physically turn off your main breaker if you can safely do so

 

[LiBeRtAs]

Using the Go Off-Grid function physically opens the contactor in the gateway (or backup switch) to separate your system from the electrical utility. If you have non-backed up loads they will be still powered from the grid. In off grid mode if there is an issue supplying your home load it will automatically restore the grid connection.

There are a number of reasons you might want to do this:

• Testing the system to see that it operates properly off grid
• If you know or suspect there will be a power outage, being off grid will prevent your home from losing power momentarily when the grid goes down as the switch over is not always seamless
• The quality of power the grid is providing is poor. I had the grid voltage sag to the point the solar inverters and powerwalls went off line but not enough for the gateway to automatically disconnect from the grid. Going off grid restored my solar production until the grid power quality improved.
• Some people prefer to disconnect from the grid if there is lightning in the area to reduce the probability of an electrical surge damaging electronics in their home although in this case it may be best to physically turn off your main breaker if you can safely do so

Thanks...I was just watching the video of how to go off grid. I have to first connect via bluetooth and pair the phone so the first question is what if my phone malfunctions AFTER I go off grid and cant be connected to the system/Powerwall 3? Is there any other way to reconnect other than wait till the PW runs out? I do want to test it but maybe I will wait until I have the "Permission to export or operate." Not sure what would happen if I tried it now, but again, how do I reconnect if my phone is unavailable/inoperable etc?

Also, while I have you, (have the smallest system, 4.05 kw or ten panels and one PW 3), occasionally while under "self powered" mode I will see solar 0.3 (pre permission remember) PW 0.0 100%, Home 0.3 and grid may be yellow line going to the grid from the panel or green but sometimes a white line going from grid to main panel meaning I am drawing from grid even though I have more than enough solar (very sunny day) and PW is full...in other words at no time should I draw from the grid under these conditions, right?

AND on the PW backup reserve, for now I have 15% backup and 85% self powered. Not sure what that means. I am not anticipating any storm or power loss from the grid at this time and I want to use the PW anytime I dont have enough solar generated hopefully resulting in zero from the grid. Where should I have it? Please!



One last question, when I am using .3 and solar is producing more than that and the battery is full why am I seeing occasional white line going from grid to main panel? I looked at my PGE bill site and it is showing use for these days where I had full sun and PW full, only .0.6 kWh but on that day there was no time at all when I drew more power than I had that I know of. Maybe when I was testing to see what the solar output was (before permission to operate I wont generate more than I need so I cant see what it can generate unless I turn on the electric over AND the air conditioning to use more than I have,) so I guess when I did that for a minute to test, whatever extra I needed I got billed for. Just dont know why the white line going from grid to main panel should appear at all while I have energy in my PW and/or solar happening in the middle of the day.

 

[yblaser]

Thanks...I was just watching the video of how to go off grid. I have to first connect via bluetooth and pair the phone so the first question is what if my phone malfunctions AFTER I go off grid and cant be connected to the system/Powerwall 3? Is there any other way to reconnect other than wait till the PW runs out? I do want to test it but maybe I will wait until I have the "Permission to export or operate." Not sure what would happen if I tried it now, but again, how do I reconnect if my phone is unavailable/inoperable etc?

I guess I've never been too concerned that my phone would stop working or at least I could figure out how to get it working again. The only thing I can think of is to turn off the powerwalls or reset the system which should bring it back on grid. I am only familiar with PW2s, so I don't know how that would be done on a PW3 system.

Also, while I have you, (have the smallest system, 4.05 kw or ten panels and one PW 3), occasionally while under "self powered" mode I will see solar 0.3 (pre permission remember) PW 0.0 100%, Home 0.3 and grid may be yellow line going to the grid from the panel or green but sometimes a white line going from grid to main panel meaning I am drawing from grid even though I have more than enough solar (very sunny day) and PW is full...in other words at no time should I draw from the grid under these conditions, right?

The readings you see in the app and their associated power flow animations are instantaneous values and it is not uncommon to see an occasional small flow to/from grid when it should be zero. This should be only ~0.1-0.2 kW. I wouldn't be worried unless you see something unexpected in the daily graph of the grid usage.

AND on the PW backup reserve, for now I have 15% backup and 85% self powered. Not sure what that means. I am not anticipating any storm or power loss from the grid at this time and I want to use the PW anytime I dont have enough solar generated hopefully resulting in zero from the grid. Where should I have it? Please!

This means that the PWs will supply your house with power until they reach 15% and then it will pull from the grid as necessary to power your house. It is reserving the 15% as backup in case you happen to lose power after you have depleted the PW to the 15% reserve level. Where you set it is really personal preference and how you want to use your system. Some things to consider:

• Even if you don't expect a power loss they can happen any time. It is useful to have enough energy in the PW to cover your essential loads until the sun comes up the next morning.
• To me, at least, it doesn't make sense to discharge the PWs more than the solar can charge them back up the next day. For example, let's say you drain them to the 15% level but the solar can only charge them back up to 85% by the end of the next day. It seems better to have the reserve at 30% and get the PW back up to 100%. This is more of an issue in the winter when solar production falls off or if you have a small solar system compared to your PW capacity.

 

[LiBeRtAs]

I guess I've never been too concerned that my phone would stop working or at least I could figure out how to get it working again. The only thing I can think of is to turn off the powerwalls or reset the system which should bring it back on grid. I am only familiar with PW2s, so I don't know how that would be done on a PW3 system.


The readings you see in the app and their associated power flow animations are instantaneous values and it is not uncommon to see an occasional small flow to/from grid when it should be zero. This should be only ~0.1-0.2 kW. I wouldn't be worried unless you see something unexpected in the daily graph of the grid usage.


This means that the PWs will supply your house with power until they reach 15% and then it will pull from the grid as necessary to power your house. It is reserving the 15% as backup in case you happen to lose power after you have depleted the PW to the 15% reserve level. Where you set it is really personal preference and how you want to use your system. Some things to consider:

• Even if you don't expect a power loss they can happen any time. It is useful to have enough energy in the PW to cover your essential loads until the sun comes up the next morning.
• To me, at least, it doesn't make sense to discharge the PWs more than the solar can charge them back up the next day. For example, let's say you drain them to the 15% level but the solar can only charge them back up to 85% by the end of the next day. It seems better to have the reserve at 30% and get the PW back up to 100%. This is more of an issue in the winter when solar production falls off or if you have a small solar system compared to your PW capacity.

Thank you for responding, this 15% that I have it at means that the powerwall charged reading on the app will never go below 15% or whatever I set it at, right now it’s barely going below 60% even when I use it all night to power my house, so I suppose as you say changing it to 20 or 30% should be no problem.

Is there anyway to change the app from kilowatt hours to just watts? Not important but it would be fun to be able to see the exact wattage usage at any given time. Maybe not fun but informative, ha ha.

 

[charlesj]

Thank you for responding, this 15% that I have it at means that the powerwall charged reading on the app will never go below 15% or whatever I set it at, right now it’s barely going below 60% even when I use it all night to power my house, so I suppose as you say changing it to 20 or 30% should be no problem.

Is there anyway to change the app from kilowatt hours to just watts? Not important but it would be fun to be able to see the exact wattage usage at any given time. Maybe not fun but informative, ha ha.

That 15% applies for normal operation with grid also on line.
If you have a grid outage, it can go down to 0 unless you manually turn off batteries by the switch on its side.

If you want better resolution, you may want to check out the thread here "Powerwall Companion." While it is still in kWh you can set it for 3 decimal places, Watts, or even a 4th decimal place, 1/10 Watt.

 

[LiBeRtAs]

My Project Advisor and I were trying to figure out whether or not I had a whole home back up and then he said that because I have the back up switch, the PG&E back up switch that it is a whole home back up, does anyone know about that?

He said it’s different in California because of the back up switch.

 

[Vines]

My Project Advisor and I were trying to figure out whether or not I had a whole home back up and then he said that because I have the back up switch, the PG&E back up switch that it is a whole home back up, does anyone know about that?

He said it’s different in California because of the back up switch.

I am concerned that your project advisor cannot determine if you have whole home backup. If I am giving them lots of credit, maybe they are new at their job. See my response in the other thread where you posted an almost identical question.

 

[LiBeRtAs]

I am concerned that your project advisor cannot determine if you have whole home backup. If I am giving them lots of credit, maybe they are new at their job. See my response in the other thread where you posted an almost identical question.

Thanks, responding now at other thread.

 

[GregBallantyne]

There are a number of reasons you might want to do this:

• Testing the system to see that it operates properly off grid
• If you know or suspect there will be a power outage, being off grid will prevent your home from losing power momentarily when the grid goes down as the switch over is not always seamless
• The quality of power the grid is providing is poor. I had the grid voltage sag to the point the solar inverters and powerwalls went off line but not enough for the gateway to automatically disconnect from the grid. Going off grid restored my solar production until the grid power quality improved.
• Some people prefer to disconnect from the grid if there is lightning in the area to reduce the probability of an electrical surge damaging electronics in their home although in this case it may be best to physically turn off your main breaker if you can safely do so

Interesting bullet about the switch over.... I had questions about that prior to going into operation, that the master electrician involved couldn't definitively answer. At this point, my system is about 10 months into operation. During that time there have been 24 grid outages. I've never really noticed them without looking at the app, but recall once or twice some slight apparent change in power users like a momentary variation of light intensity that prompted me to check the app for grid status. Not sure if whole house rather than partial backup (Gateway feeds main load center, grid connects to Gateway) is a factor....

 

[lodar]

During that time there have been 24 grid outages. I've never really noticed them without looking at the app, but recall once or twice some slight apparent change in power users like a momentary variation of light intensity that prompted me to check the app for grid status.

The Powerwall is not computer UPS grade. Depending on how the grid goes out, you (and your electronics) may or may not notice the switch.

If you have sensitive electronics, then you should still protect them with a UPS battery.

I’ve had outages that knocked me off of a Zoom call. Other times, I don’t notice until I see the neighborhood dark.