Hello community, this is both a rant from a frustrated owner of an EVC 300400300 and a feature request to solve the issue in general.
The EVC in "auto" mode (charge following p.v. production) often does not start even if there is largely p.v. power available in a zero-injection to the grid setup.
To be more specific, my setup is a MultiPlus II GX 5kW with an AC-coupled Fronius Primo, I do not know if the issue is specific due to some limits of Fronius API to estimate the available p.v. or generic, but since estimate the potential p.v. production is anyway "non much precise" the feature request is an auto-mode extra button "force start" that start charging when the user press it, at the minimum amps set and see what happen, if after a certain amount of time the p.v. is not sufficient it stop actual auto mode do, else keep going as actual auto mode do.
Aside four settings/extras:
- an option to define the amount of time to wait for sufficient p.v. before stop the charge, so far it's hard-coded, in previous fw version was 4-5' now it seems around 25', IMVHO there is no reason to hard code a value instead of allowing the user to choose how many minutes inside a timeframe limits (let's say no less than 1' no more than 2h)
- a new auto+manual mode, meaning charge at the maximum power you can from p.v. but if p.v. does not suffice use the grid at a user chosen amps rate. Visually this mean a slider with a minimum amps eventually grabbed from the grid, while the auto mode choose to give more if enough p.v. is available
- in current auto mode a checkbox "allow balancing from grid" meaning if the vehicle charge at a given rate and star sucking less power than the minimum amps set (meaning it's balancing the battery) keep giving power even if p.v. production does not suffice anymore to allow finishing the balancing
- finally a "insist offering charge to the vehicle" setting since with various EV I've tried when the EVC offer charge, start charging, stop because of insufficient p.v., restart offering because there is enough p.v. again the connected EV refuse charging falsely report on the EVC "charged" since carmakers do not even consider the option that some owner charge from p.v. so a very intermittent power source. Insisting is safe anyway because it's just an offer to charge, the real charge start only if the connected EV allow it. From my experience this happen at the II tentative when the charge is "intermittent"
I suspect such features are not there because the EVC userbase is too little and those who have designed the EVC at Victron do not own them one in the first place or at least they do not use it integrated with domestic p.v... Such features or at least allowing to craft them via MQTT/ModBUS though some external tools like HA/OpenHAB would be a godsend for those who have EVC and p.v. and working from home or being retired or having more than one EV can actually charge from p.v. at home.
Thanks for reading me :-)
