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Discussion: "Powerwall +"

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How long has it been since your install was done? I have a 8.5 kw system pending and am getting a bit nervous reading all these posts I am also in PGE land in Lincoln Ca. So a permit app has been submitted and a revision just submiTed last week
System was installed on 8/20 and PGE came out on 9/16. If you don't have a backup switch installed it should be fairly straightforward as that is a brand new part, so some drama if it's approved or not.
 
I have a small Enphase solar system and it has two 20A breakers. Unless your Enphase array is 3.6kW or less, it will need two breakers. Most likely, the "New Solar" is the Tesla system and the nested pair below are the Enphase. Do you have PTO for the Tesla array?

Edit: I should emphasize that my Enphase system is old and doesn't use the IQ Combiner or other newer IQ hardware. I simply have two strings of micro-inverters and the trunk cables are only rated up to 16A continuous per string. That is why it uses 20A breakers. The wiring and breaker sizing for a system that uses other hardware like the IQ Combiner may be wired differently.
My supposition that the upper 20A breaker is for Tesla solar also implies that it would have to have a 3.6kW Tesla inverter and 4.x kW of solar panels.
thanks a lot , I tested it and it turns out the upper breaker is Tesla , it was turned off, I tested it and it is generating, what I have been seeing in my tesla app all along is the energy generated from enphase , which I have 5kw that explains the two breaker below.

No I do not have PTO yet, I am in baby steps, not even have inspection yet

Even with energy generated from enphase , my app shows most of it growing to grid, very little home consumption ( less than 10% ) despite heavy loads running
 
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I wouldn't mind waiting a while for PTO since I don't have to start paying for the system until that happens, but obviously if it drags out too long where I wouldn't be eligible for NEM 2.0 anymore that would be a problem. Will be interesting to see what happens after my inspection on Monday.
can you hold off paying untill PTO, telsa website says payment due after inspection
 
This is what I see in my app
I generate around 25kwh on avg/day from emphase , I did not turn on tesla yet, tested for few hours and It worked.
Waiting for PTO and backup switch
Any one have any idea why so much energy goes back to grid and my home captures very little and my Powerwall don't discharge at all
I tried to flip the switches by going to gateway/TEG as installer, it did not work

I have gateway 2 and last tesla rep told me is waiting for backup switch , may be backup switch prevents energy going back to grid?

Have to say , so far not happy with Tesla Energy, they are clueless when I call for customer service
 

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This is what I see in my app
I generate around 25kwh on avg/day from emphase , I did not turn on tesla yet, tested for few hours and It worked.
Waiting for PTO and backup switch
Any one have any idea why so much energy goes back to grid and my home captures very little and my Powerwall don't discharge at all
I tried to flip the switches by going to gateway/TEG as installer, it did not work

I have gateway 2 and last tesla rep told me is waiting for backup switch , may be backup switch prevents energy going back to grid?

Have to say , so far not happy with Tesla Energy, they are clueless when I call for customer service
The "Home" quantity is calculated from the Solar and Grid measurements. If the Grid CTs (Current Transformers) are not correctly placed or configured, they will not match the utility meter and therefore the Home quantities will be incorrect. When you have the installers back on site for the inspection, have them demonstrate that the Grid flow matches the utility meter and emphasize that you want the app to show the correct values before they leave. There are MANY ways that it can be configured incorrectly and only one way that is correct.
 
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I wouldn't mind waiting a while for PTO since I don't have to start paying for the system until that happens, but obviously if it drags out too long where I wouldn't be eligible for NEM 2.0 anymore that would be a problem. Will be interesting to see what happens after my inspection on Monday.
We're all waiting with bated breath. Did the inspection happen on Monday, and did your installation pass?
 
We're all waiting with bated breath. Did the inspection happen on Monday, and did your installation pass?
Hah didn't want to flood this thread with too many status updates, but yes it passed easily. Smart move on Tesla but the inspection coordinator was previously a city inspector and knows everyone still working there. They basically chatted for a few minutes showing off the backup switch and then the inspector signed the papers. Whole process was probably less than 10 minutes. The inspector coordinator did tell me it was a very long process with PGE, but the backup switch is approved. Today a team from Tesla came out to replace some roof tiles and said they have all been trained on the Backup Switch as they are pushing all new installs toward that direction, but it was the first time they have actually seen one. Not sure how I feel being one of the first, but guess I don't have much a choice at this point. I was told I should know within next 8 weeks about PTO, but let's see how long it takes Tesla to submit the paperwork.
 
From the Powerwall+ specs, it says that 7kW with no sun continuous, so thought I would try it out. Put the system into grid only and fired up both AC units, which of course caused the whole house to flicker like crazy with the power eventually turning off. My assumption is that I could run up to 14kW for a period of time, but appears the max I can draw is 10.8 kW for some reason. My family was not pleased with my test...
  • Backup Power
    9.6kW / 7kW continuous*
    22kW / 10kW peak*
    118A max LRA start
    Seamless backup transition
 
Hah didn't want to flood this thread with too many status updates, but yes it passed easily. Smart move on Tesla but the inspection coordinator was previously a city inspector and knows everyone still working there. They basically chatted for a few minutes showing off the backup switch and then the inspector signed the papers. Whole process was probably less than 10 minutes. The inspector coordinator did tell me it was a very long process with PGE, but the backup switch is approved. Today a team from Tesla came out to replace some roof tiles and said they have all been trained on the Backup Switch as they are pushing all new installs toward that direction, but it was the first time they have actually seen one. Not sure how I feel being one of the first, but guess I don't have much a choice at this point. I was told I should know within next 8 weeks about PTO, but let's see how long it takes Tesla to submit the paperwork.
Waiting for my Inspection
My install was almost 4 weeks ago
Was told Tesla will co ordinate with PGE and come for inspection and backup switch placement
 
From the Powerwall+ specs, it says that 7kW with no sun continuous, so thought I would try it out. Put the system into grid only and fired up both AC units, which of course caused the whole house to flicker like crazy with the power eventually turning off. My assumption is that I could run up to 14kW for a period of time, but appears the max I can draw is 10.8 kW for some reason. My family was not pleased with my test...
  • Backup Power
    9.6kW / 7kW continuous*
    22kW / 10kW peak*
    118A max LRA start
    Seamless backup transition
Glad to see you passed inspection, but the PGE PTO is the real hurdle here. I hope you get it!

As far as your test, you may be mistaken as to the Powerwall only output. I am not positive, but the datasheet from Electrek shows 5 kW continuous from the battery portion alone. I infer that the other power available is a combination of the PV and PW together.

The datasheet indicates 7.6 kW max on grid and 9.6 kW off grid. It doesn't specify but this appears to be a combination PV and PW power. I don't have any firsthand experience with the Powerwall+ so I am mostly guessing based on leaked specs.
 
Glad to see you passed inspection, but the PGE PTO is the real hurdle here. I hope you get it!

As far as your test, you may be mistaken as to the Powerwall only output. I am not positive, but the datasheet from Electrek shows 5 kW continuous from the battery portion alone. I infer that the other power available is a combination of the PV and PW together.

The datasheet indicates 7.6 kW max on grid and 9.6 kW off grid. It doesn't specify but this appears to be a combination PV and PW power. I don't have any firsthand experience with the Powerwall+ so I am mostly guessing based on leaked spec

I just had a 12kw solar array installed, they placed one powerwall+, and a second power wall. first day running, my solar output from the solar inverter was clipped at 7.6kW for 4 hours. They certainly underestimated the peak capacity of my solar array, and its september. Peak output from solar looks to be 7.6kw, which is what the spec sheet says. I paid 10k to move from an 8k system to a 12k system, home insurance had to be increased going >10kw. Other folks i know with 12k systems have 2 inverters, 7.6 and a 3.8. Have a feeling tesla isn't going to want to fix my system to what i thought i purchased.. Anyone have similar issues?
 
The datasheet indicates 7.6 kW max on grid and 9.6 kW off grid. It doesn't specify but this appears to be a combination PV and PW power.
Fairly sure (but by inference only) that PW+ = Gateway computer + PW2 (24A continuous) + 7.6 kW Tesla inverter (32A continuous), all together on a single 50A breaker. That means that even though there are 56A of inverter continuous current capability in the unit, the 50A breaker limits the continuous current export to 40A. Moreover, to comply with the 120% rule for the common case of a 200A main panel, while on grid the continuous current is limited to 32A.

The architecture introduces some (inferred) limitations in exchange for getting everything into one unit with simplified wiring. For example if operating in "cost savings mode" during Peak time, and the house consumption is 30A, and the PV is production is 20A, PW+ can't export 50A to push all the PV to the grid and cover all the house consumption. It can only push out 32A, covering the house consumption and pushing 2A to the grid.

Cheers, Wayne
 
Here are some of the values from the API. Looks like max charging and discharge is set to 10800, but even with the breaker limits it seems like it could be higher. Not that I would run both AC units during if I was off grid, but more worried if I don't get a chance to turn them off in time I'll end up losing power to the whole house. Guess I'll need to add some automation to turn things off when in backup mode.

max_discharge_power = 10800
instantaneous_max_charge_power = 14000
instantaneous_max_discharge_power = 24000
max_system_power_kW = 11.6
max_apparent_power = 10800
max_charge_power = 10800