diy solar

diy solar

Solar Assistant Wish list, Bugs and Issues.

More options for data integration than Home assistant would be nice to have. Something like a simple JSON API would do wonders. I did eventually get a MQTT broker setup to pull data but it seems like overkill when I just want to know basic status info.
 
Agreed. I was just doing this today on my iPhone and iPad and a small Pi 4 touch screen running Ubuntu. The all looked perfect.

ill have to set up that automation for the grid Loss!

I was shocked yesterday to find out that if both the LV6548or LV6048 loose power (no battery or pv) they do NOT go into Grid bypass mode. It was 105 here and the inverters were at 63 degrees C Which is over their 50C operating max temp. So I called my wife to shut off the batteries and PV so the inverters wouldn't go into thermal shutdown. But instead of going into Grid bypass mode, They just shut down and you're S.O.L. - no power at all... So I'm installing a couple of DPDT 80amp relays for an automatic transfer switch function on the loss of the inverters. They'll be here Tue. I'll set up that automation then as well.


So the lesson here is that if it's night time and your batteries unexpectedly die or go into error mode (and SA is crashed), and you don't have a grid tx switch, you go down with no power... glad I figured this out now vs when it matters.

Jeff
That is not normal, I just double checked and mine immediately kicked over to bypass when I flipped the battery disconnect. I noticed this when I installed the shunt, it kicked back to bypass when I killed discharging through the BMS. It did have a bit of a longer delay than I would like though. Just enough to trip all the network switches despite being on UPS's.
 
Dark Theme.
Grafana supports a dark theme, why is it not a tick box option on Solar-Assistant?

1659320024057.png
You can tweak the URL to get the dark theme, and that's what I have done, but the front dashboard takes around 15 CSS tweaks to get 'dark'.
1659320101487.png
It really should be done right by the dev.
You can also enable 'High contrast' mode on your iPad to force a super ugly dark mode (which I love and use 24*7) on that device.
1659320216558.png

And yes, I have three broken (smashed screens) iPad dashboards for my hobbies on my window still.

The other thing I want to comment on is the JSON that @Riwall asked for.... No. Just no. JSON is a mess and is not needed
You can get the MQTT going in about 5-8 seconds. No broker needed since Solar Assistant is the broker. You simply need to subscribe.
The data is all all there, its not over kill. The basic data is right there. JSON needs so much overhead to support and parse, its just nuts.
Here are the topics that 1 inverter and 2 BMS provides from Solar-Assist.

1659320520464.png

So quick simple and clean.
 
Is there any way to get Solar assistant to work with Victron Multiplus ? Have just bought a Victron Multiplus 2 and trying the Venus OS but it is no where as good as Solar Assistant. I am almost to the point of taking the Victron back and buying something that uses Solar Assist.
 
Yes I know the shut does as I have been using that with my Powmr inverters and is good. If only the victron software worked anywhere near as well !!!! I can't believe how bad it is compared to SA. I thought I was buying into quality setup but I am not so sure now. Victron inverters may be able to do some fancy stuff but to actually get it to actually work like it is supposed to is another matter. So many people on Victron forums have similar problems but have not been able to find any solutions. Very frustrating!
 
Hi folks. I’m not sure if this is the right thread for this as it might already exist… I’m looking at getting solar assistant- does it have the ability to show/track/graph the energy you have exported back to the grid?
 
I know the smartshunt is compatible, but no idea about the inverters
Similar but a little off topic.

I noticed the JK and JBD have a spot for a Can connection on the board. Can-H Can L GRND but no plug.

Also Solar assistant has in the configuration under battery for Daly, JB, JK via 485/Uart others.

The JBD has the Bluetooth dongle plugged into the UART port as do Daly.

UART pin outs are GND Rx TX Vraw.

Has anyone every made a connection between those BMS and SA?
 
I am 100% off grid by choice, but you can clearly see in the screenshot from SA it shows what you are looking for.
Monthly and yearly.
Provided of course the inverter is capable of supplying the data on exports to grid. It will need to have separate such monitoring in place to do that.
 
I noticed a new update came out Yesterday.
Nothing really new for current users. Just more equipment compatibility.
It would be really nice to see some new features for current users.
 
Here's one for the wish list and put a large bag of spanners in the works!

What I would like is some sort of functionality of the GPIO pins of the Raspberry Pi. Our inverters are connected to a small computer after all!

Scenario:

Battery is fully charge and floating at 54 volts the sun is shining and no particular load, as we know the inverter pulls only what it needs from the panels ........what a waste of power.

I'd like to be able for the Raspberry to use one of its GPIO pin to operate a relay to turn something on. IE dishwasher, tumble dryer, washing machine etc.

Look forward to others comments.
 
Here's one for the wish list and put a large bag of spanners in the works!

What I would like is some sort of functionality of the GPIO pins of the Raspberry Pi. Our inverters are connected to a small computer after all!

Scenario:

Battery is fully charge and floating at 54 volts the sun is shining and no particular load, as we know the inverter pulls only what it needs from the panels ........what a waste of power.

I'd like to be able for the Raspberry to use one of its GPIO pin to operate a relay to turn something on. IE dishwasher, tumble dryer, washing machine etc.

Look forward to others comments.
that sounds like something you would want handled by a home automation system like home assistant or self programmed..
sa had mqtt intergration that works well..

one of the ways great software gets screwed up is adding too many "add-ons" in my personal view..
kiss comes to mind
 
that sounds like something you would want handled by a home automation system like home assistant or self programmed..
sa had mqtt intergration that works well..
Yes, I have Home Assistant and it manages my pool pump automation.

I also have plans to automate some load reduction and provide warnings during grid outages, when I need to preserve battery capacity for essentials. e.g. if the grid goes down and the clothes dryer is running, I want a warning that the dryer is running and an option via my phone to cut power to it. I can do that via Home Assistant.

That said, most of the inverters we use with SA have some form of DC relay control and perhaps using or having control of those those is an option.
 
That said, most of the inverters we use with SA have some form of DC relay control and perhaps using or having control of those those is an option.
this i like, however that would be dependant if the inverter allows this to be done through rs485

if so , mqqt would be an excellent way
 
Here's one for the wish list and put a large bag of spanners in the works!

What I would like is some sort of functionality of the GPIO pins of the Raspberry Pi. Our inverters are connected to a small computer after all!

Scenario:

Battery is fully charge and floating at 54 volts the sun is shining and no particular load, as we know the inverter pulls only what it needs from the panels ........what a waste of power.

I'd like to be able for the Raspberry to use one of its GPIO pin to operate a relay to turn something on. IE dishwasher, tumble dryer, washing machine etc.

Look forward to others comments.
Some GE dryers have a WiFi connection port at the back. You can buy the GE WiFi module for I think $40 and then you can control the Dryer or Washer. Mine has the port but I always thought it was a stupid idea but now that I am on Solar I could use SA and monitor the system remotely and when conditions are right I could turn on the dryer remotely. Sounds good but maybe it's going a bit overboard. I think I should just get a second water heater to feed the main one and connect it into the Dump Load. That would be simple and Automatic.
 
I added wifi controller to my Daikin ducted aircon system, and I added a Sensibo Sky to my mancave aircon. I can control both via Home Assistant integrations, along with Solar Assistant integration and the integration for my grid-tied Fronius system. Alls sorts of automations are possible. I use a smart plug with Home Assistant automation to control the pool pump.
 
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