Ny Tesla app just indicated that a storm was forecast in my area and switched to backup mode only. The only problem is, is that there is no storm on the horizon., We had some rain yesterday,, but that is long gone. I thought stormwatch was a good idea, but after this there appears to still be some bugs in it.
-
Want to remove ads? Register an account and login to see fewer ads, and become a Supporting Member to remove almost all ads.
Stormwatch Failure
- Thread starter jeep1979
- Start date
Mine is currently running storm watch as well.
I can also confirm getting a high wind advisory from weather.com.
So maybe it's working as expected?
@Az_Rael raises a good point though, maybe it gets it's data from the utility and not weather events?
If that's the case it would be really nice for the powerwalls to learn about planned outages from the utility and fill itself up before the outage window.
I can also confirm getting a high wind advisory from weather.com.
So maybe it's working as expected?
@Az_Rael raises a good point though, maybe it gets it's data from the utility and not weather events?
If that's the case it would be really nice for the powerwalls to learn about planned outages from the utility and fill itself up before the outage window.
Attachments
This is the alert I got:
Arcadia is considered LA County, that's probably why you didn't get it.
Given that we're in the same mountain range, I also noticed that our Powerwalls went into "storm watch" mode. I quickly turned off this feature, though. Here are my thoughts:
1. For the first time ever, in storm watch mode, our Powerwalls were starting to charge from the grid. This is basically a no-no for anyone intending to claim the federal ITC (investment tax credit) - you need to be charging from your solar generation. That was my primary reason for turning off this feature right away. We might end up missing out on an SGIP rebate, and I don't want to complicate our ITC claim.
2. For storm preparation, it seems to me that all that's really needed is to increase the backup reserve level. I manually changed ours from 15% to 30% this time. We still have plenty of sunlight and the "storm" consists of just wind, so there's no need for a high reserve level since our solar PV system should be able to replenish the batteries. For a real winter storm, I'll increase the reserve level to maybe 80% or more.
3. With a higher reserve setting, the Powerwalls will prioritize charging when solar energy is available. This is generally good enough.
Now, in a true potential emergency situation (temperatures well below freezing, little to no sunlight, Powerwall charge level is low, road conditions are poor, no alternate way to heat the home without power, and there's an imminent or very likely power outage), one might indeed want to charge from the grid in spite of ITC concerns. I think we should have the ability to do so. But this is something I'd hope to never actually need.
Thanks for the picture. I often see the animated Storm Watch icon in Customize...but haven't seen it yet on the Power Flow screen. Any idea why it is sometimes animated on the Customize Screen and sometimes it isn't?
I didn't get SGIP or ITC on my Powerwalls so I would hope it would be possible for mine to be charged from the grid when necessary. We had several cloudy/snowy days last week and my Powerwalls went down to the reserve and didn't receive any noticeable charge for nearly 4 days. If the power had gone out, I wouldn't have had nearly as much standby power since they couldn't be charged from the grid. I actually did see power going between the grid and the Powerwalls (both directions) at times but just for a few seconds at a time, nothing sustained.
Last edited:
eml2
Member
It always starts the animation when you scroll to the bottom of the Customize Screen, regardless of it being activated or not. At least it is for me on Andrioid. Not sure if it is the same on iOS.
Interesting. I guess sometimes I don't scroll all the way to the bottom. Seems like a bug. That icon should always be animated IMO. I swear there have been days when I scroll to the bottom (and can see the tiny Powerwall icon) and it isn't animated. Right now, it is...but I'll keep my eyes on this to see if I can prove it isn't always animated.
I've confirmed that it does not always animate the Storm Watch icon. On my phone, it appears to work as you mention but on my tablet, it isn't animated. I guess they don't recognize that I've scrolled all the way down.
Attachments
mspohr
Well-Known Member
Apparently the new policy for California utilities is to shut off the power when there are high winds and dry conditions which could easily lead to power lines starting fires. This is the result of the Santa Rosa fires which were started by numerous high tension wires falling and starting fires. The utilities are liable for these fires (although they are trying to wiggle out of it).
The last few days both PGE and SCE have shut down power in affected areas since we've had high winds. It's interesting to see that the Powerwalls pick up this information and plan accordingly.
Another good reason to get a Powerwall. It looks like this is going to be a regular occurrence.
On the main Powerwall screen in the Tesla app, you will see "Storm Watch" indicated. This was my experience during a recent wind event (which led to me turning off Storm Watch because the Powerwalls were starting to charge from the grid).
So I am not in Storm Watch as the main screen is just saying Standby. Wonder why my battery is not discharging then.
Yeah, that's definitely odd. At a high state of charge, with a reserve at 65%, I would certainly expect your Powerwall system to be discharging during Peak hours to meet your home demand. It might be a good idea to gather some evidence by doing screen captures and contact Tesla.