-
Want to remove ads? Register an account and login to see fewer ads, and become a Supporting Member to remove almost all ads.
Post Your Tesla Solar Layout
- Thread starter pdx_m3s
- Start date
A lot of it depends on how many powerwalls you’re getting and how much power your home uses. One powerwall pretty much has to be partial because it simply can’t provide enough sustained power to support a whole home. With two powerwalls you might be able to get away with whole home backup, but it can be kinda iffy, especially if you have a large air conditioner or your house uses a lot of power. Three or more powerwalls should be able to do a whole home backup pretty comfortably unless you have a huge power demand.
I'm either doing whole home with 2 PWs otherwise I'll remove the PWs from the order. I could easily exceed the 10KW by running both ACs and something else, but I want to be able to pick and choose what I run depending on the weather, time of day, etc and realizing that if I exceed what the PWs can put out PLUS current solar the system will shut down.
I only run AC when it gets very hot outside and only when the it's very sunny so on hot days when I usually run one AC for the last two hours before I hit peak cost, I'm good for the rest of the day. The temperature inside does continue to go up even as the outside temperature drops below the inside temperature. As soon as that happens, specific windows open up and the whole house fan turns on automatically.
I only run AC when it gets very hot outside and only when the it's very sunny so on hot days when I usually run one AC for the last two hours before I hit peak cost, I'm good for the rest of the day. The temperature inside does continue to go up even as the outside temperature drops below the inside temperature. As soon as that happens, specific windows open up and the whole house fan turns on automatically.
I am getting 2 Powerwalls and I have separate AC zones for upstairs and downstairs..which means AC load might be high. I will stay with partial backup for now as my plan seems to cover AC, Tesla charging, electric range, lights, plugs and small 120v appliances per the document. I am not even sure whats left .. LOL
Mine is whole house. I selected this because of less rewiring required, and I figure we were smart enough to do load shedding. Also, if needed I could add additional PowerWalls. Since we work from home we can determine when to do high usage activities like EV charging to minimize impact on battery storage.
Like @jboy210 said, the advantage of doing whole house is that it gives you the option to keep using everything during an outage and you can still do manual load shedding. However, it’s also worth noting that manual load shedding requires you to be home and to manually do something.
Using the pool pump as an example, if you aren’t home when your power fails then you can’t manually turn off your pool pump and if you have a big pump and a small number of powerwalls then it could drain a significant amount of power from them. Or even if you are home, but the power fails at 2AM are you going to want to wake up and go manually shut off the pool pump? If you only do a partial backup then the pool pump could be on a not backed up circuit so you know it will turn off automatically when the power fails. But at the same time, not backing it up means that you can’t turn your pool pump on during an extended outage. If you have an extended outage and want to run your pump for an hour or two a day to at least try to circulate the water a bit you can’t do that.
It’s also worth noting that in order to meet code your powerwalls do have to be capable of supporting all of the loads that are backed up. You can’t just say “well, whenever the power fails I’ll make sure I turn some loads off manually or I’ll be sure not to use X appliance”. Again, this is only an issue with a house with a large power demand and a small number of powerwalls as three+ powerwalls should be able to support the power demand of an average house without much problem.
Using the pool pump as an example, if you aren’t home when your power fails then you can’t manually turn off your pool pump and if you have a big pump and a small number of powerwalls then it could drain a significant amount of power from them. Or even if you are home, but the power fails at 2AM are you going to want to wake up and go manually shut off the pool pump? If you only do a partial backup then the pool pump could be on a not backed up circuit so you know it will turn off automatically when the power fails. But at the same time, not backing it up means that you can’t turn your pool pump on during an extended outage. If you have an extended outage and want to run your pump for an hour or two a day to at least try to circulate the water a bit you can’t do that.
It’s also worth noting that in order to meet code your powerwalls do have to be capable of supporting all of the loads that are backed up. You can’t just say “well, whenever the power fails I’ll make sure I turn some loads off manually or I’ll be sure not to use X appliance”. Again, this is only an issue with a house with a large power demand and a small number of powerwalls as three+ powerwalls should be able to support the power demand of an average house without much problem.
Good points.
FWIW, they did whole house backup on my house with 2 PWs. They look at your power usage over time to determine is 2,3,4,or more PWs are required to do whole house backup. We do not have a pool (and wpuld never have on) and were OK with two even though it gets over 100 often in the summer.
how back Tesla cars? I have two 220v outlets in garage (50 amp circuit) to support 2 Tesla charging at same time..
CrazyRabbit
Active Member
I think the verbiage is “expected” loads. I would think these would be the automatic loads, like heat, AC, well pump; and not things like oven. Homeowner will be home, usually, when oven turns on.
This is for generation equipment with a automatic transfer switch.
My HPWC is backed up. But I would not use it in an outage unless it was a real emergency or at least wait until the PowerWalls were pretty full so I could mostly use solar to charge the car and save the batteries' power for night.
BTW, my HPWC is V2 so is dumb. I heard rumor that the HPWC V3 with Wifi has a setting for controlling charging during an outage. Anyone know if that is true?
Last edited:
This is not true. Tesla did recently introduce a new option for controlling charging during the outage, but it works with communication between the powerwalls and the car. It doesn’t matter what charger the car is using. Right now it’s model 3/Y only, but it says that support for model S/X is “coming soon”.
Vehicle Charging During Power Outage | Tesla Powerwall
Thanks. We have both 3 and X but usually drive the X (<600 miles on 3 from 1/1/2020). May have to switch to driving 3 during an outage.
I want to ask if the installation crew cuts back plantings that are in the space specified on their site plan for the equipment. I emailed the question to an advisor but have received no reply. I have a couple bushes that are in front of my garage wall next to the main electrical panel and meters, gas and electric. I don't want to remove the shrubs if they might come and want to place the equipment elsewhere, ie, inside the garage. I want to stack 3 PWs in front of the wall. I was told they could put down a pad.
The good news is that I received my installation date today for September 17th. Large system and 3PWs. I haven't heard anything of where the permit approvals stand, only that on Thursday after I approved layout design and signed the loan docs that they were working on the permits. I believe the crew is out of Petaluma. I had heard they were backed up to December. I started my application on July 13th. I am happy to get a date to look forward to. They did say if an earlier date opens up I can move up the appointment.
The good news is that I received my installation date today for September 17th. Large system and 3PWs. I haven't heard anything of where the permit approvals stand, only that on Thursday after I approved layout design and signed the loan docs that they were working on the permits. I believe the crew is out of Petaluma. I had heard they were backed up to December. I started my application on July 13th. I am happy to get a date to look forward to. They did say if an earlier date opens up I can move up the appointment.
In my case there was a large bush that was in front of my electrical panels. It wasn’t super close, but I did notice that they cut off a few branches that happened to be bothering the electrician as he worked.
I don’t think I would expect them to go so far as to do major trimming or completely remove plants, but it would appear that minor trimming is acceptable. They also did show some flexibility in placement of panels and such. So if you don’t want your panels placed where the bushes are then I’m sure they will work with you to find a better spot for them. If you do want them placed where the bushes are, but the bushes are in the way, then I would suggest removing the bushes before they get there.
I don’t think I would expect them to go so far as to do major trimming or completely remove plants, but it would appear that minor trimming is acceptable. They also did show some flexibility in placement of panels and such. So if you don’t want your panels placed where the bushes are then I’m sure they will work with you to find a better spot for them. If you do want them placed where the bushes are, but the bushes are in the way, then I would suggest removing the bushes before they get there.
Anyone run into an issue where the powerwalls had to be in a different room than the main electrical panel? Our home has the panel in a cabinet in a basement bedroom. There is an unfinished utility room nearby that has space for power walls and whatever other electrical equipment. Due to weather and temperatures, I’d really like to keep the powerwalls indoors, but not have them installed in the bedroom where the main panel is. I tried asking Tesla about this, but no one responds.
There is definitely some leeway for the powerwall install location. In my case my electrical panels are outside and my powerwalls are in my garage. I don’t think putting your powerwalls in a room that’s not too far from the panel would be a problem, assuming there is no issue running the conduit between the panel and the powerwalls.
However, do be aware that if you’re getting solar and powerwalls that there will be a lot of panels that need to be added. Here is the before and after from my install:
I’m not sure how big your cabinet is, but I wonder if all of the equipment will fit in the cabinet with your main electrical panel.
Additionally, I believe that there are some code restrictions about putting panels in closets and such. If it’s against code to have your panel in a cabinet then you won’t pass the inspection after your system has been installed.
Once you start the buying process by putting down the initial deposit they get more responsive. But, IMHO they are usually more concerned about where the power coming from the utility is versus your main panel. If need be they can install a load center at the utility meter that connects to the existing main panel. The basic wiring path runs everything (Power company, Powerwalls, Solar) to and through the Gateway and then onto the main panel. You can see this in @BrettS picture where the gateway (box next to meter with the black horns on top is being feed by the inverters (far right), power company (far left) and then sending power to the home .
Last edited:
Do they ever move the main electrical panel? Could my main panel be moved from the exterior garage wall onto the interior garage wall right behind it? The main electrical panel currently faces the street hanging above my smart meter. My house sits on the lot sideways, so the side of the house/and garage face the street and the garage entrance is facing the side of the lot.
I would like to have all the various boxes put on the interior garage wall behind the electric smart meter with my 3 PWs stacked outside on the ground of the exterior garage wall facing the street.
The site plan I received had it in reverse, with the 3 PWs inside and the equipment outside. Hanging 3PWs on the interior garage wall would be too tight a fit for my car beside them. And there is no other place to fit them in the garage. My weather is moderate in North SF Bay with rarely if ever in winter reaching freezing, 32 F, in the middle of the night. The garage wall faces northerly and gets very little direct sun in am. Temperatures here in summer/fall do reach the 90s but not for extended periods of time, not more than 4-5 days. It is mostly in the low to mid 80s.
I saw on the layout that the crew will discuss this on installation day. I am looking for advice/suggestions now in advance to think about.
TIA
I would like to have all the various boxes put on the interior garage wall behind the electric smart meter with my 3 PWs stacked outside on the ground of the exterior garage wall facing the street.
The site plan I received had it in reverse, with the 3 PWs inside and the equipment outside. Hanging 3PWs on the interior garage wall would be too tight a fit for my car beside them. And there is no other place to fit them in the garage. My weather is moderate in North SF Bay with rarely if ever in winter reaching freezing, 32 F, in the middle of the night. The garage wall faces northerly and gets very little direct sun in am. Temperatures here in summer/fall do reach the 90s but not for extended periods of time, not more than 4-5 days. It is mostly in the low to mid 80s.
I saw on the layout that the crew will discuss this on installation day. I am looking for advice/suggestions now in advance to think about.
TIA
Moving the main panel is certainly technically possible, but it would be quite a lot of work as every circuit would need to be extended and run to the new location. I don’t know if Tesla would be willing to do this work or not, but if they did I’m sure there would be a considerable extra charge for it. If you really want to have the panel moved and are willing to pay for it you might be better off hiring an electrician to move the panel before tesla comes for their install.
Similar threads
- Question
