Smart Heatpumps HA (HomeAssistant)

This github repository will be regularly updated based on my tests and is made based on my specific home setup. I tried to write that in the most explanatory way so that it will be simple for anyone to adapt it to their needings. I hope it will help other people in the same situation as mine.

Any hint, suggestion or comment on the Discussion page is really appreciated.

If you want to support me you can buy me a coffee.

How to install

Check if you satisfy all the pre-requisites in the related page

Follow the instructions on the How to install file

What's the purpose of this repository?

I have 5 Daikin splits (1 Emura and 4 FTXM35N) and 2 motors (2MXM50M and 2MXM25M, respectively controlling 3 and 2 internal units) and a 4.14kWp photovoltaic system: the goal was to exploit as much solar power as i can to avoid using my radiators (or at least reduce their consumption) and so save money.

You can find the data and statistics i learned during my tests in the related page

How to connect HVAC to HomeAssistant?

I am using the official Daikin integration and their exposed sensor: i can set temperature, hvac mode, fan mode, swing mode, preset mode, consumption of every internal unit and every motor and internal temperature of every room.

To improve accuracy i use external sensors to retrieve rooms' temperatures, in particular i use temperature attributes exposed from my Tado° and Netatmo thermostats and two Sonoff Zigbee Temperature and Humidity sensors connected to a Tasmota flashed Sonoff Zigbee Bridge

How does it work

Note: when I write meter reading or power consumption I mean what the grid meter sees, so it is the result of actual consumption minus solar panels production.

Note pt2: All the automations are set to work only between sunrise and sunset, to avoid unnecessary heat pump stops when manually turning them on by evening

The idea behind this set of automation is to run heat pumps "for free", maintaining my base consumption and using solar production to power them. I'll explain: I have a base consumption of ~700W by night, so I know that's my base consumption. As my heat pumps consume ~200W I set the automations to start when the meter reading (actual consumption - solar production) is below 325W, so that I can buy a maximum of 700W, as I did not have any solar panels.

When any of these triggers is satisfied the automation tries to start:

• Power consumption is below 325W in the last 5 minutes (so binary_sensor.start_heatpumps is ON)
• Power consumption is below 1000W in the last 15 minutes (so binary_sensor.stop_heatpumps_consumption is OFF: that was made to let the heat pumps restart after a stop, for example, a dishwasher starting, cooking with induction hob, etc)
• 10 minutes have passed since the last heat pump started (so timer.wait_time_start_heatpump has finished: that was made to avoid starting more heat pumps simultaneously, to reduce false positives from peak start consumption)
• The automation was turned on (so input_boolean.auto_heatpumps is ON: that was made both to start immediately the automation if conditions are satisfied and to use this as a test trigger when changing some parameters in the YAML files)
• Every 15 minutes, in any case

If the automation was triggered, it checks if those conditions are satisfied:

• Automation needs to be ON
• binary_sensor.start_heatpumps needs to be ON (meaning that we have enough power to start heat pumps) Automation stop needs to be OFF (binary_sensor.stop_heatpumps_consumption, it means we haven't had a peak consumption, above 1000W, in the last 15 minutes)
• Power consumption is below 600W, so we still have the margin to start another heat pump staying under 700W
• Someone was home in the last 12 hours (so binary_sensor.away_mode_heatpumps is OFF: that was made because it has no sense to warm the house during holiday times, this means that we need to manually turn heat pumps on when returning home, the binary sensor turns back ON as soon as the first person enter the house zone)

Now that the automation was triggered and conditions are satisfied, we can start the automation:

It checks from sensor.heatpump_to_start which is the coldest room with HVAC off (to avoid starting again HVAC in a room still being warmed) and, if the temperature in that room is below the threshold, it refers to its specifical script file, in which there are specific instructions for that HVAC (in my case goal temperature, desired fan mode, ECO mode to avoid starting peak consumption, turning off thermostat scheduling to reduce gas consumptions, sending telegram notification, etc). A 10 minutes timer is started, after which it will check again if conditions are satisfied and eventually turn on another heat pump (if no other triggers are triggered before)

When will the heat pumps stop?

There are various scenarios in which one (or all) the heat pumps are stopped:

• If power consumption is above 325W for 6 hours (so for example by night or during cloudy days) all are shut off
• If above 700W for 15 minutes, it will stop the HVAC in the warmest room between the rooms with HVAC on, same if above 1000W for 3 minutes, to try to reduce power consumption without sacrificing comfort
• If above 700W for 45 minutes all is shut off
• If above 1400W for 3 minutes all are shut off
• If a specific room reaches a "too hot" temperature it is stopped, this parameter is specifically set in its auto_heatpumps_single.yaml file (e.g. when above 19°C)