System Guidance

[timholmesjr]

I have just found Brultech, and so far I am blown away. This appears to be just what I am looking for. There is quite a bit to digest and I am hoping to be pointed toward a good place to start. Here is my current setup (pun intended):

Smartthings HA system (not married to this, but do have a good bit of Zwave in place)
TED Energy Monitor (does not provide the granularity that I would like)
Grid Tied Outback Solar System with 48kWh battery that prioritizes solar over grid

I am looking at the GEM to monitor the 30 circuits that I have on the critical loads panel that is powered by the battery system. I would love to also discuss HA integration and potentially a move away from Smartthings.

I am currently looking at the System 2-D. How do the GEM and Dashbox communicate? I assume I will need the Ethernet/WiFi module? If so, why is it an option?

Any guidance would be greatly appreciated.

[Mustang65]

Welcome to the forum.

I have the GEM and DashBox. I have been using it for the last few years and I totally love it. It shows me everything I need to know regarding the power being consumed in my house. I currently have the DashBox communicating with my Universal-Devices ISY994i, which is a Home Automation setup. Together they make Energy Management and Home Automation so easy. The GEM sends the live data to the ISY994i and through simple programming (select what you want the ISY to do for you) you can set alerts for various things. The xBee RF board is needed to communicate between both systems. It can also be done with a node server on the isy side. The first project was to notify me when the clothes dryer finished drying clothes, when the live DashBox data sent to ISY showed that the power was off, it sends me a text message.

The GEM is great for trouble shooting problems. I had issues last winter (Florida winter) where the HeatPump was not coming on. Between the live GEM usage and the live ecobee 4 thermostat view, I was able to resolve the issue, which was the HeatPump was programmed in ecobee to stop working if the temperature dropped below 40 degrees. I changed the thermostat stop to 30 degrees and all works fine.

When I first got the GEM, watching the daily individual phase usage, I noticed that the electrical system was not balanced. Like not even close. Using the GEM, I was able to rewire the main electrical panel. The usage on each phase in now very close.

As for communications, I use the serial link between the GEM and DashBox. You can separate the GEM about 50 or so feet from the DashBox, using CAT5 or Cat6 cable or use the internet connection from your home router to send the data to the DashBox.

If you are serious about using the GEM/DashBox for Energy Management I would also recommend the ISY for Home Automation. They work perfectly together. The GEM/DashBox are simple to install and get up running. They will also monitor your SOLAR.

You can also check my GEM/DashBox installation on my personal webpage http://www.how-to-doit.com.

Both companies have EXCELLENT support!!!!!!

I am sure the others will give you more information also.

[timholmesjr]

As I have read more and more, this is exactly what I am looking for. I went ahead and ordered a ISY, but I am on the fence about keeping it. I currently use Smartthings and while it is def limited, it is also supported and easy to set up. Can anyone provide examples of what Home Automation would rely on Energy Monitoring? Really the only one I can think of is charging my wife's car when we have excess solar. I am sure there is more, but I am hesitant to go through the pain of an HA conversion wiutout some def payoff on the backend. Also, while UDI corp has been nice with the couple questions I have had, the forums seem to be somewhat condescending.

Also debating on hard wired vs radio or wifi. I will be ordering two GEM's and the Dashbox. One GEM to monitor the grid tied panel. The other will monitor my off grid panel. Can the two be differentiated? Thanks again for the feedback. I am excited to get this going.

[dbksearay]

I have a GEM & ISY system with all GEM circuits fed into the ISY plus several 1-wire temperature sensors. I don't use all circuit variables within the GEM but they are all there for future use. However, some that I do currently use are for:

1. Monitoring the length of time my well pump takes to rebuild pressure. If it exceeds a certain cycle time I force a delay between cycles. This is to prevent my well from pumping itself dry and loose prime. If this happens it could burn the pump out. I also send alerts to myself when this happens.

2. Using a 1-wire temperature sensor from the GEM to effectively lower the on/off setting of a space heater in the winter. Most space heater thermostats only go as low as 55 degrees before they come on. I wanted them to come on only when the room temp dropped below 40 degrees. I have the heater plugged into an Insteon On/Off module. This effectively alters the thermostat range of the heater.

3. Reducing fantom electrical loads. For example, I have a built in double wall oven with a digital display. When the oven is not in use, which is most of the time, it still draws 20 watts or about 1/2 kWh per day. So I usually throw the breaker unless the oven is needed. However, I often forgot to throw the breaker off when finished with the oven. So I wrote a monitoring program that alerts me when I have left that breaker on for 12 hours when its draw is less than 30 watts. I would love to automate having the ISY throw the breaker but I haven't found a satisfactory ISY controllable 40amp 240v switch yet.

Those are just a few example of how I use GEM data over in my ISY.

[timholmesjr]

I have a GEM & ISY system with all GEM circuits fed into the ISY plus several 1-wire temperature sensors. I don't use all circuit variables within the GEM but they are all there for future use. However, some that I do currently use are for:

1. Monitoring the length of time my well pump takes to rebuild pressure. If it exceeds a certain cycle time I force a delay between cycles. This is to prevent my well from pumping itself dry and loose prime. If this happens it could burn the pump out. I also send alerts to myself when this happens.

2. Using a 1-wire temperature sensor from the GEM to effectively lower the on/off setting of a space heater in the winter. Most space heater thermostats only go as low as 55 degrees before they come on. I wanted them to come on only when the room temp dropped below 40 degrees. I have the heater plugged into an Insteon On/Off module. This effectively alters the thermostat range of the heater.

3. Reducing fantom electrical loads. For example, I have a built in double wall oven with a digital display. When the oven is not in use, which is most of the time, it still draws 20 watts or about 1/2 kWh per day. So I usually throw the breaker unless the oven is needed. However, I often forgot to throw the breaker off when finished with the oven. So I wrote a monitoring program that alerts me when I have left that breaker on for 12 hours when its draw is less than 30 watts. I would love to automate having the ISY throw the breaker but I haven't found a satisfactory ISY controllable 40amp 240v switch yet.

Those are just a few example of how I use GEM data over in my ISY.

Thanks for the info. I am mostly trying to expose/eliminate phantom loads as well. The ISY may become more viable after I establish what they are! For your oven I wonder if this would help? It is a 40amp switch that is able to be opened/closed by Zwave. I have thought about using this for charging my wife's car.

https://aeotec.com/outdoor-z-wave-switch/

[dbksearay]

Thanks for pointing me to the Aeotec Smartswitch. I'll have a look at that.