<
https://thedriven.io/2024/08/07/smart-charging-with-rooftop-solar-it-is-possible-with-a-laptop-and-the-right-software/>
"The recent cut in rooftop solar feed-in tariffs and the looming possibility of
a solar tax are sparking concern among solar power users.
In Victoria, the minimum feed-in tariff was recently reduced to 3.3 cents per
kilowatt-hour. In New South Wales, IPART forecasts solar exports will be worth
between 4.9 to 6.3 cents per kilowatt-hour in 2024–25, down from 7.7 to 9.4
cents in 2023/24. These changes make it crucial to optimize solar energy usage
at home, especially for electric vehicle (EV) charging.
During less sunny months, charging your EV at an equal rate throughout the day
is not efficient because your solar system produces more energy around noon
than in the morning or afternoon. This means you might be exporting
kilowatt-hours at a low feed-in price around mid-day and then buying back
energy at a higher cost later in the day. Aligning your EV charging times with
peak solar production can help you avoid this issue.
However, setting up an optimised solar system for EV charging can be expensive
due to the need to buy special chargers, home batteries, or meters, all from
the same manufacturer. And doing it all manually is a huge hassle – who has
time to regularly check for the sun and adjust the charging throughout the day?
Instead, many homeowners already have all the necessary equipment through their
personal computers. A PC could manage and optimise solar energy use, making
additional costly equipment unnecessary, if only it had access to all the
devices.
I have tried this out using the Tesla API and the Fronius Inverter API on my
Mac, and successfully managed to get to ’smart charging’. Now, based on the
solar output (read from the Fronius API), and if the battery is below 80%, the
Mac tells the Tesla to start charging (via the Tesla API).
If a cloud passes by it will reduce the charging current and then increase it
again when the sun is back. This is a highly efficient way to charge, and on a
typical day in Spring would save about 5$, compared to plugging in overnight.
All by making the existing equipment smarter."
Share and enjoy,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
