PVOutput - Idiot's Guide for auto-uploading required

Ageing_Stick_Insect

A fellow PV enthusiast has pointed me to PVOutput as an excellent way of monitoring output and comparing it to other sites using a standard interface.

I've registered and completed the user information but despite being pretty computer savvy I just cannot fathom their instructions for automating uploads.

I am able to generate csv files for my own use but cannot see how it's possible to extract the data in the required format without specialist software.

I have a Solar Edge 3680W inverter connected via Ethernet to my home network.

Can anyone point me in the right direction so I can upload data please?

jimmyboy420

Hiya! I have the same sytem. I can't automate it, but I can paste the CSV data in as live data...

So, download a CSV, with data at 15 minute intervals from SolarEdge. Copy the data and paste it in to the live load configuration (select add output at the topm and then "live loader" at the bottom

10/04/2014 06:15 0
10/04/2014 06:30 29.5
10/04/2014 06:45 60.8333
10/04/2014 07:00 106.8333
10/04/2014 07:15 215.1667
10/04/2014 07:30 386.3333
10/04/2014 07:45 430.8333
10/04/2014 08:00 593.6667
10/04/2014 08:15 636

Use the settings as I've got here:
[FONT=&quot]https://docs.google.com/a/jamesking.co.uk/file/d/0B4KHAs9P5uH7OThXMFlpNXhmOEU/edit?usp=docslist_api[/FONT]

Also make sure that you edit your sytem to have "live settings" set to 15 minute intervals

groovyf

Hmmm, I can grab daily CSVs from my GEO Solo meter... might give this a go tonight.

Ageing_Stick_Insect

Hi Jimmy,

It's like pulling teeth! I cannot upload more than one day at a time and can't upload anything older than 14 days without making a donation. Fair enough but I need an automated system. Can't be doing with manual updates every day.

Happy to make a donation if there's an automated process.

Whilst my Solar Edge software does update every 15 minutes I can't control the frequency of the output to a csv. Seems to be hourly.

Surely people don't update manually every day? What about when you go on holiday?

jimmyboy420

Hiya,

Well I have been doing it manually so far, and I started right away so I haven't yet got as far back as 14 days so far.

Perhaps one of us could raise a ticket and the other could raise a ticket to "backup" the first persons ticket with SolarEdge...

Maybe if enough do so it might get them to give some sort of interface for automating it...

jimmyboy420

PS, if I look at the monthly view, then click on a particular day to get the line graph, I can then download a CSV of only that day, and that gives 15 minute figures...

Ageing_Stick_Insect

Hi Jimmy,

Did some more digging and found the Automated Upload section in the help. Scrolling through that I come to the Primary Device drop-down. Nine entries are listed but none include Solar Edge. I imagine until it is I can't automate uploads.

I've emailed them asking if Solar Edge can be supported. Hopefully I'll get a positive response soon.

Just seen your post about 15 minute figures and I can't replicate it. We must have different versions of their software.

Ageing_Stick_Insect

Jimmy,

Just sussed out the 15 minute csv data. It's generated from the Dashboard page. I was using the Chart page.

Ageing_Stick_Insect

I've uploaded data for March and April up to yesterday. Good. Now trying to upload today's data via the Live Loader. Despite all rows being in the correct format it's accepting some rows and not others. :mad:

Has anyone else encountered this problem? I'm pasting my data here for someone to experiment with. Looks okay to me.

06:45,0.00
07:00,15.83
07:15,49.17
07:30,97.33
07:45,117.67
08:00,142.33
08:15,117.17
08:30,195.50
08:45,273.00
09:00,490.50
09:15,659.50
09:30,467.67
09:45,696.17
10:00,727.50
10:15,658.17
10:30,1263.00
10:45,2071.00
11:00,1567.00
11:15,930.50
11:30,286.83
11:45,398.17
12:00,384.00
12:15,474.83
12:30,720.00
12:45,1033.83
13:00,1044.33
13:15,1212.83
13:30,1037.17
13:45,812.17
14:00,791.33
14:15,851.83
14:30,842.50
14:45,665.67
15:00,675.83
15:15,546.83
15:30,412.33
15:45,388.83
16:00,449.00
16:15,526.00
16:30,457.00
16:45,462.00
17:00,463.17
17:15,386.67
17:30,169.17
17:45,100.50
18:00,131.67
18:15,76.00
18:30,79.83
18:45,276.33
19:00,298.00
19:15,324.50
19:30,55.83
19:45,13.83
20:00,0.00

I think I've established what the problem is. It needs to be a cumulative value, not a snapshot of the current output. Despite unchecking the Cumulative Energy Values box it won't allow any values that are lower than the preceding one. Huh? I've told it it's not cumulative and it still doesn't work.

zeupater

Hi

For old data, can you not simply create a daily total file in the correct format to upload, then once you're up-to-date move to the time-slice format.

I'm pretty sure that when PVOUTPUT (like similar style systems) receives a large block of data to process, it splits the data into smaller chunks and schedules these through over an extended timescale (effectively batch, as opposed to interactive, processing ) ... this helps prevent the upload system performance experienced by other users from being unduly affected. Taking this into consideration, I can understand why a restriction on the back-period would be implemented, but would have thought that daily records would be treated differently .... if not, there's always the option of manually entering the daily generation if the system isn't too old.

HTH
Z

Ageing_Stick_Insect

Z,

I've uploaded old data. My system went live on 25 March so it's not that old. That went okay. It's Live Data that's causing the problem. Solar Edge software outputs snapshot values, not a cumulative total of energy generated. I don't see how I can fix this.

The data I'm trying to import is shown above if anyone would like to validate it. Not upload of course.