Regulate charging rate - can I control the % of power delivered to decrease watts so charging takes longer

[herojay]

I have solar panels and my charging station delivers more power to my 2022 Mach-e GT than produced and therefore I am paying the utility to provide the extra electricity needed. My thinking is to decrease the power by 20% so my production = demand, understanding my charge time increases.

Chargepoint home charger 240v

Thanks - I did search for information but could not find.

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[generaltso]

I have solar panels and my charging station delivers more power to my 2022 Mach-e GT than produced and therefore I am paying the utility to provide the extra electricity needed. My thinking is to decrease the power by 20% so my production = demand, understanding my charge time increases.

Chargepoint home charger 240v

Thanks - I did search for information but could not find.

Yes, you can reduce the charging rate of your ChargePoint. You'll need to download the ChargePoint Installer app because they removed the setting from the regular app.

 

[DevSecOps]

To elaborate on what general said, you can't do this on the car side, it has to be on the EVSE. Either change the rate on the chargepoint that you have or get an EVSE that allows for on the fly power delivery changes. I have the exact same situation you do. I leave the chargepoint at max amperage for night charging and I use a Wallbox Pulsar Plus on the solar side and regulate power delivery automatically using home assistant.

 

[ridgebackpilot]

Your best bet will be to get the Emporia Level 2 charger. It works with an Emporia energy monitor to sense when your solar array is making excess power and sending it to the grid. The charger then turns on automatically and varies the rate of charge according to the available surplus solar power.

I installed this system a few months ago and it works well. To my knowledge, Emporia makes the only charger currently capable of automatically sensing and using excess solar energy. My solar array includes 36 panels and makes more than 12 kW at peak sunshine. So I can usually charge my Tesla Powerwall batteries and my EVs using only solar power.

 

[Arsenic17]

Do you have net metering, time of use pricing or any type of solar banking program for your house? If so, this point is basically moot. Just charge at night and don't worry about the rate of electrons flowing.

With that said, if you really do need to do this reduced rate, it has to be done on your EVSE. Some will allow you to change the charge rate in the app (e.g. Emporia/Chargepoint), while others may have a physical dial on the EVSE unit itself (e.g. Autel).

 

[herojay]

Time of use pricing.
Time of day of electrons flowing is important.
Thanks for the help all.

 

[devmach-e]

Time of use pricing.
Time of day of electrons flowing is important.
Thanks for the help all.

You might want to change when you charge to take advantage of lower TOU rates at night, and maximize the credits you are generating during the day. This assumes that your utility allows you to generate credits at retail rates during the day. I.e if you export 10 kWh during the day when retail rates are at 30 cents a kWh, you get $3 of credits that you can then spend at night when retail rates at 10 cents a kWh, allowing you to use 30 kWh of electricity for the same 10 kWh you exported during the day.

 

[Jim_I]

Juicebox EVSE also allows you to set the charging rate.

Just an FYI

Jim

 

[herojay]

You might want to change when you charge to take advantage of lower TOU rates at night, and maximize the credits you are generating during the day. This assumes that your utility allows you to generate credits at retail rates during the day. I.e if you export 10 kWh during the day when retail rates are at 30 cents a kWh, you get $3 of credits that you can then spend at night when retail rates at 10 cents a kWh, allowing you to use 30 kWh of electricity for the same 10 kWh you exported during the day.

I wished my TexasEntergy operated like that!

 

[devmach-e]

I wished my TexasEntergy operated like that!

So how do you get credit for power you export to the grid?

 

[herojay]

Reduction in monthly price on my utility bill based upon net export. Accounted for on a monthly basis.

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