[Krissaroth]

Hi

We have just had PV panels installed and they generate roughly 3Kw on a sunny day, hopefully this will increase once the optimisers are installed.

I also currently have a Hypervolt that charges the car when solar PV export goes over 1.4Kw.

However I would like to install an iBoost, or use the current immersion element with an eddi or similar to use the exported energy between 0 and 1.4Kw, Currently this is lost as exported energy.

I have been looking at the Eddi but I can't seem to tell if you can program it to take the load between 0 and 1.4Kw export and turn off when export would be in excess of 1.4Kwh. Is there any method to achieving this?

In summary I am looking for something that would identify when the export is between 0 and 1.4Kw and shunt it to the immersion heater/ iBoost, and when export would be over 1.4Kw shunt the excess to the car.

Thanks

 

[Slartibartfast]

I do not know enough about the technical stuff to give a useful answer but I think you are generating too little to be useful. 3kWh seems to be very low for the energy produced in a day from a solar system our small system with just sixteen panels produces about 20 kWh on a good day and at least 5kWh on a cloudy day here in summer.

 

[Harry6]

Hi, the Eddi will use any excess available as the immersion heater is just an resistive element.
You may find that you can't find any stock of the Eddi.

 

[Krissaroth]

I do not know enough about the technical stuff to give a useful answer but I think you are generating too little to be useful. 3kWh seems to be very low for the energy produced in a day from a solar system our small system with just sixteen panels produces about 20 kWh on a good day and at least 5kWh on a cloudy day here in summer.

Sorry might have said it wrong, but thats what is being generated per hour.

 

[Slartibartfast]

Sorry might have said it wrong, but thats what is being generated per hour.

Are you mixing up power with energy here? Our sixteen panels can get up to a power of about 3kW or perhaps a bit more on a good day.

 

[Harry6]

If your house load is say 400W the EVSE needs 1.4kW and the Eddi will use the rest but it will depend on if you can set the priority between the Eddi and EVSE.
If you then turn the kettle on both will stop.

 

[Krissaroth]

Are you mixing up power with energy here? Our sixteen panels can get up to a power of about 3kW or perhaps a bit more on a good day.

Yes quite possibly. My app at the moment says we are generating 3,300 watts currently. I will adjust my initial post.

 

[Spiny]

The boost Is similar to the Eddi. Monitors export and diverts any over your setting say 20 watts to the immersion if the water can be heated. Mine is done By 9am, tank is hot.
Works fine with a battery as well, just need to set the trigger level around 100 watts

 

[Krissaroth]

If your house load is say 400W the EVSE needs 1.4kW and the Eddi will use the rest but it will depend on if you can set the priority between the Eddi and EVSE.
If you then turn the kettle on both will stop.

Thanks Harry.

Currently the situation is, we generate X amount use some in the house and export Y. When Y is above 1.4Kw the EV takes that 1.4Kw and anything more up to about 7.5Kw. I'd like that to carry on but I'd like the excess between 0 and 1.4Kw to go into an immersion heater, turning off at 1.4Kw and allowing the car to take the excess from that point.

From what I'm reading I cannot get anything that will do that currently, instead just being able to set a priority. Or perhaps I am misunderstanding how priorities work.

 

[Krissaroth]

The boost Is similar to the Eddi. Monitors export and diverts any over your setting say 20 watts to the immersion if the water can be heated. Mine is done By 9am, tank is hot.
Works fine with a battery as well, just need to set the trigger level around 100 watts

Thanks Spiny, thats interesting. Can you turn it off above a certain Kw setting? I guess what I am trying to avoid is a scenario when the panels aren't producing enough for the car charger, but the boost for the water is not running as its already heated on excess energy that could have been used on the car.

For example. Boost turns on and diverts excess energy when panels are exporting say 2Kw and heats nicely (as it turns on at a much lower power level). Then it gets a bit cloudy for the rest of the day with PV creating say 1.3Kw. The boost isn't working as it is fully heated. But the car is not charging either as its below the 1.4Kw needed. I'd have preferred it to charge the car above 1.4Kw and then switch to the water heater below 1.4Kw.

 

[Harry6]

I have a Zappi and have just an Eddi connected too both are Myenergi products so work they together well.
Having solar installed in a couple of weeks

 

[barneyd]

iBoost uses the existing immersion element but the early versions were totally unprogramable. The only think you could set was the boost timer. Reading other forums, it may now be possible to set the lowest level at which it will divert but it may still not be able to set an upper limit.

Due to the race condition between two devices that are both trying to identify and use excess generation, you really need them to be linked. The easier way is to buy devices that are part of the same ecosystem. The alternative is to integrate independent devices using a home automation platform such as Home Assisant or OpenHAB. There’s a lot of fun to be had with home automation but it’s also a route to frustration and burning a lot of time.

 

[Spiny]

The zappi I have set to always use 1.4kW or more (eco Mode) as the ampera is a menace if its turned on and off which the eco+ will do. But I have a battery which supports that if generation drops below 1.4kW. If after battery charging and the zappi the house is still exporting then the Iboost cuts in. Seems to work.

 

[208's Plenty]

I do things slightly differently. Purely at weekends, because I have an EV tariff, I connect the Granny charger, when the sun is powering my solar panels. It's not exact science, but there is little household consumption and I can check my IHD to see if I'm pulling power from the grid or not (which generally I am not). When the IHD starts showing I'm consuming grid power I unplug the charger. All very manual, I agree, but it works.

 

[KenB]

I played with that problem until someone here gave me the answer.
You put a current clip (forgotten the correct name) on both the immersion heater feed (just one of the wires) and the house feed wire as normal. Join these feeds together before entering your charger. Then as soon as the charger sees 1.4kw+ off you go. Brilliant.

 

[Harry6]

CT clamp🤫