Why is my Powerwall being charged from the grid?

[jboy210]

Hi,

This evening I noticed that my Powerwall was charging from the grid at 9PM at about 8-9 kW. There is not power emergency or alert I am aware of, so I though this very strange. It looked like it was refilling the PW after it powered the house through the evening peak. Is this a new behavior?

 

[arnolddeleon]

Asking the obvious, check to see if "grid charging" is enabled in the settings

 

[Matt-FL]

I had a similar issue right after my install was complete. I was in-between install and PTO, but since I had powerwalls I was able to run the system.

Two days after the install, we had a storm warning and my powerwalls started grid-charging - pulling amazing amounts of wattage from the grid.

In my app, 'grid charging' and 'storm watch' options were grayed out - the features (according to Tesla support) were not changeable yet since I didn't have PTO. I was stuck with the defaults. I was able to message one of my installers, and they did something to re-enable all the features remotely.

I don't think this completely applies in your case (no storm warning), but thought it might be some useful information.

 

[jboy210]

Asking the obvious, check to see if "grid charging" is enabled in the settings

Yes, it is. I think an update set it. But I thought that did not apply since PGE did not allow it. I guess I was wrong. Thanks.

Turned it off for now.

 

[Vines]

Yes, it is. I think an update set it. But I thought that did not apply since PGE did not allow it. I guess I was wrong. Thanks.

Turned it off for now.

I think that NEM parity says that either the batteries can charge from the grid, or they can export battery power to the grid that was charged from solar power, to the grid.

You should not be able to do both, but some systems get extra or fewer privileges for various reasons.

 

[jboy210]

I think that NEM parity says that either the batteries can charge from the grid, or they can export battery power to the grid that was charged from solar power, to the grid.

You should not be able to do both, but some systems get extra or fewer privileges for various reasons.

Thanks. I am not exporting power from the batteries, but rather using them to power the house and prevent pulling from the grid during the peak. So, I guess that is why the system can recharge the battery from the grid.

However, I don't think I saw this behavior last summer, and don't remember seeing this until this June when the summer rate structure started with the high peak rates. I am under NEM2 and a Community Power (East Bay Community Energy) agreement.

 

[Mayer]

Newbie here
PW install 10/9
Municipal inspection yesterday
Storms rolling in tomorrow
Homecoming tomorrow (2 teen girls)
PW still discharging after 8 PM
PW now at 65% and still discharging
PW set to “Grid Charging”
Enrolled in TOU so Peak ended at 6 PM
Yet PW still discharging

Will PW charge from grid after midnight (Super Off-Peak)?

I will have my hat handed to me if we suffer grid failure during tomorrow’s storm (after spending $X on PWs) if teens and their parents come to our house for Homecoming Photos and we have no power.

Odds are low for outage but ….

PWs will recharge from grid tonight, right?

I could change settings now but at this point it feels like that would be a mistake.

 

[power.saver]

Switch to Backup mode now with reserve at 100%. Don't rely on off-peak grid charging or Storm Watch.

 

[Mayer]

Switch to Backup mode now with reserve at 100%. Don't rely on off-peak grid charging or Storm Watch.

Thank you.
PW charging now.

 

[Mayer]

@power.saver thank you for the quick save

Backup Reserve will remain at 100% through tomorrow’s storm and I won’t rely upon off-peak grid charging whenever a storm is forecasted (will always set Backup Reserve to 100% when storm/wind is pending)

Nevertheless, had I left my system alone as it discharged my PWs during “Off-Peak” evening hours, would Gateway have started charging the PWs after midnight, during “Super Off-Peak”

I’m just wondering what the program pattern is, if you know

 

[power.saver]

@power.saver thank you for the quick save

Backup Reserve will remain at 100% through tomorrow’s storm and I won’t rely upon off-peak grid charging whenever a storm is forecasted (will always set Backup Reserve to 100% when storm/wind is pending)

Nevertheless, had I left my system alone as it discharged my PWs during “Off-Peak” evening hours, would Gateway have started charging the PWs after midnight, during “Super Off-Peak”

I’m just wondering what the program pattern is, if you know

It's hard to say if it would have started charging after your peak, but with a storm coming, always best to manually override so you aren't without power. Your install is so new, it will take some time before you know for sure how it works. Once the storm clears, you can turn it back on and see. The program pattern depends on rates, TOU hours, projected solar and usage, so watch it closely for a few days/weeks until you're satisfied it's working right.