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Smart Energy Controller Add-on

Intelligent energy management for Home Assistant with solar, pricing, and heat pump optimization.

Features

Device Management

  • Import switches, lights, and buttons from Home Assistant
  • Set device priorities for intelligent control
  • Configure estimated power consumption per device
  • Real-time device status monitoring

Automation Based On

  • Solar Generation: Automatically turn on devices when excess solar power is available
  • Power Costs: Control devices based on current electricity pricing
  • Free Electric Sessions: Enable all devices during free electricity periods
  • Saving Sessions: Turn off non-essential devices during demand response events

Heating System Analysis

  • COP Calculation: Calculate Coefficient of Performance for heat pumps
  • EER Calculation: Energy Efficiency Ratio for cooling systems
  • Cost Comparison: Compare heat pump vs. gas heating costs in real-time
  • Smart Recommendations: Get automated recommendations on which system to use

Web Interface

  • Beautiful, responsive dashboard
  • Real-time energy monitoring
  • Device management interface
  • Heating system comparison view
  • Automation control panel

Installation

  1. Add this repository to your Home Assistant Add-on Store
  2. Install the "Smart Energy Controller" add-on
  3. Configure your sensors (see Configuration section)
  4. Start the add-on
  5. Access the web interface through Home Assistant

Configuration

Basic Configuration

solar_sensor: sensor.solar_power
electricity_cost_sensor: sensor.electricity_price
gas_cost_sensor: sensor.gas_price
solar_forecast_sensor: sensor.solar_forecast
electricity_forecast_sensor: sensor.electricity_forecast
free_session_sensors:
  - binary_sensor.octopus_free_session
saving_session_sensors:
  - binary_sensor.octopus_saving_session
cop_coefficient: 3.5
eer_coefficient: 12.0
automation_enabled: true
heating_min_change_interval: 900
publish_ha_entities: true
allow_direct_device_control: true
enable_solar_forecast_optimization: true
enable_cost_forecast_optimization: true

Configuration Options

Option Required Description Default
solar_sensor No Entity ID of your solar generation sensor (in Watts) ""
electricity_cost_sensor No Entity ID of your electricity cost sensor (per kWh) ""
gas_cost_sensor No Entity ID of your gas cost sensor (per kWh) ""
solar_forecast_sensor No Entity ID of solar forecast sensor (with forecast attribute) ""
electricity_forecast_sensor No Entity ID of cost forecast sensor (with forecast attribute) ""
free_session_sensors No List of sensors indicating free electricity sessions []
saving_session_sensors No List of sensors indicating saving sessions []
cop_coefficient No Coefficient of Performance for your heat pump 3.5
eer_coefficient No Energy Efficiency Ratio for cooling 12.0
automation_enabled No Enable automation on startup true
heating_min_change_interval No Minimum seconds between heating changes (300-3600) 900
publish_ha_entities No Publish automation decisions as HA entities true
allow_direct_device_control No Global setting to allow device control true
enable_solar_forecast_optimization No Enable solar forecast features false
enable_cost_forecast_optimization No Enable cost forecast features false

How It Works

Device Priority System

Devices are controlled based on a priority system (1-10):

  • 1-3: High priority - Always on unless in saving session
  • 4-6: Medium priority - Controlled based on solar/cost
  • 7-10: Low priority - First to turn off during high costs or saving sessions

Automation Logic

  1. Saving Sessions: Turn off all devices with priority > 3
  2. Free Sessions: Turn on all managed devices
  3. Smart Control:
    • High solar (>1kW): Turn on devices
    • High costs (>0.30/kWh): Turn off low priority devices

Heat Pump vs Gas Comparison

The system calculates the cost per kWh of heat for both systems:

  • Heat Pump Cost = Electricity Cost / COP
  • Gas Cost = Gas Cost (already per kWh)

A recommendation is provided based on which is cheaper.

Usage

Adding Devices

  1. Navigate to the "Devices" tab
  2. Click "Refresh Device List" to see available devices
  3. Click "Add" next to a device
  4. Set the priority (1-10) and power consumption
  5. The device is now managed by the system

Monitoring Energy

The Dashboard shows:

  • Current solar generation
  • Electricity and gas costs
  • Active sessions (free/saving)
  • Number of managed devices

Heating Comparison

The "Heating Comparison" tab shows:

  • Cost per kWh for heat pump
  • Cost per kWh for gas heating
  • Your heat pump's COP
  • Recommendation on which system to use
  • Percentage savings

Automation Control

Toggle automation on/off from the "Automation" tab. When enabled:

  • Devices are controlled automatically every 30 seconds
  • Device states are logged
  • Energy decisions are made based on current conditions
  • Automation decisions published to Home Assistant (if enabled)

New Features in v1.1.0

Device Scheduling

Configure time windows when devices should NOT be controlled:

{
  "entity_id": "switch.dishwasher",
  "schedule": {
    "start": "08:00",
    "end": "22:00",
    "days": [0, 1, 2, 3, 4]  // Monday-Friday
  },
  "allow_direct_control": true,
  "required_run_duration": 120,  // Minutes
  "auto_start_automation": "automation.start_dishwasher"
}

Solar Forecast Optimization

When enable_solar_forecast_optimization is enabled and solar_forecast_sensor is configured:

  • System analyzes forecast data to find optimal time slots
  • Considers device required_run_duration
  • Returns top 10 slots with highest solar generation
  • Accessible via /api/devices/schedule/{entity_id}

Cost Forecast Optimization

When enable_cost_forecast_optimization is enabled and electricity_forecast_sensor is configured:

  • System calculates cheapest time slots
  • Factors in device run duration
  • Returns top 10 most cost-effective slots
  • Helps schedule energy-intensive devices

Heating Control

Minimum interval between heating system changes:

  • Configurable via heating_min_change_interval (300-3600 seconds)
  • Prevents frequent cycling of heating systems
  • Automatically detects heating devices (name contains 'heat' or 'thermostat')
  • Tracks last change per device

Home Assistant Integration

When publish_ha_entities is enabled:

  • Control decisions published as sensor.sec_{device}_decision
  • Device configs published as sensor.sec_{device}_config
  • Includes timestamp, reason, and action details
  • View automation activity directly in HA

Auto-Start Triggers

Trigger Home Assistant automations/scripts when conditions are favorable:

# In device config
auto_start_automation: automation.start_washing_machine
# or
auto_start_automation: script.dishwasher_start

When device is turned on due to excess solar or cheap rates, the configured automation/script is triggered with context variables.

API Endpoints

GET /api/devices

Get all available devices from Home Assistant

GET /api/devices/managed

Get all devices currently managed by the system

POST /api/devices/managed

Add a device to energy management

{
  "entity_id": "switch.washing_machine",
  "priority": 5,
  "power_consumption": 2000,
  "schedule": {
    "start": "08:00",
    "end": "22:00",
    "days": [0,1,2,3,4]
  },
  "allow_direct_control": true,
  "required_run_duration": 90,
  "auto_start_automation": "automation.start_washing"
}

PUT /api/devices/managed/{entity_id}

Update device configuration (new in v1.1.0)

{
  "priority": 7,
  "schedule": {...},
  "allow_direct_control": false
}

DELETE /api/devices/managed/{entity_id}

Remove a device from energy management

GET /api/devices/schedule/{entity_id}

Get optimal schedule for device based on forecasts (new in v1.1.0)

GET /api/forecast/solar

Get solar generation forecast data (new in v1.1.0)

GET /api/forecast/cost

Get energy cost forecast data (new in v1.1.0)

GET /api/energy/status

Get current energy status

GET /api/heating/comparison

Get heating system cost comparison

GET /api/automation/status

Get automation status

POST /api/automation/toggle

Toggle automation on/off

{
  "enabled": true
}

Troubleshooting

Devices Not Appearing

  • Ensure Home Assistant API is accessible
  • Check that devices are properly configured in Home Assistant
  • Verify the add-on has the correct permissions

Automation Not Working

  • Check that sensors are configured correctly
  • Verify sensor entity IDs in configuration
  • Check add-on logs for errors
  • Ensure automation is enabled

Cost Comparison Incorrect

  • Verify gas and electricity cost sensors
  • Check COP coefficient matches your heat pump
  • Ensure cost sensors report values in the same units

Support

For issues and feature requests, please visit: https://github.com/MattHadfield113/home-assistant-smart-energy

License

MIT License