I’m running a Vera V3 and I have a Fibaro FGS221 connected to it right now. This one doesn’t support energy metering, but I’ve filled in the proper wattage per switch. When I switch it on, it nicely displays the wattage on the lightswitch, but when I go to energy monitoring doesn’t seem to work properly.
On the first tab ( Live Usage) everything is ok. But when I go to “Historic Usage” it all goes bad. When I try to retrieve the information it gives me a report Could not connect to MySQL server.. It doesn’t matter if I try Device, Room or Category. Or even if I have the lights on for 3 hours or more
On the ERGY tabs everything seems to be nonfunctional as well (after having activated the plugin). I’ve created an account at the ERGY website, but I can’t find a way to link the information and the ERGY page seems to keep telling me “Waiting for data”
This could be because the SQL server isn’t available, but it could be somebody else. Has anybody experienced this yet?
<I haven’t connected my Aeon-Labs MSES yet, I’ll do so this weekend> It’s a zwave device with actual energy metering in it.
I don’t have the error anymore. I resetted my device (it was a SIS controller in my network) and made it the primary Master controller. I don’t know if this did the trick, but after several hours it was working again.
I did notice that I had to have a mios account for using this feature. Which kind of leaves me with a question for the MCV people and the people that know more about this plugin:
Where is the information stored?
The error was very specific about a MySQL server not running and now that it’s working there still isn’t a MySQL server running on the local Vera v3 box (wise choice though not running a database locally). This leads me to conclude that the information from my energy usage is being stored in a foreign companies database without having been confronted with a warning about this. >:(
To that end I’d like to know what is happening with my energy usage information and why I haven’t been warned with very big warning signs about this. :o [sub](If I’m wrong about the warning sign, please point me to the signs again… [/sub]
If the information is being stored “offsite”, is there a configuration possibility for me to configure my own onsite solution. I have plenty of server power left to run a mysql db and some software to generate the charts. (no, not the high powered 200Wh kind of server but a gentle 28.8w kind of server ;D)
[quote=“Turk4U2, post:7, topic:170193”]Probably part of the GT&C’s that you ticked of when activating your ERGY account.
Will have a look as I am to set up this monitoring capability.[/quote]
No, this is the monitoring part without the ERGY account.
BTW: I am also using the Fibaro’s.
How do you get these to show the wattage?
I can’t find the set-up for energy monitoring where one can select devices to be monitored and add the power (in Watts) for a device.
Looking under the Measure Data tab I see no “devices currently measuring” and no “devices available to measure”.
Is this something you have set up directly in the devices?
If so, what parameter/variable is used for this?
BTW: I am also using the Fibaro’s.
How do you get these to show the wattage?
I can’t find the set-up for energy monitoring where one can select devices to be monitored and add the power (in Watts) for a device.
Looking under the Measure Data tab I see no “devices currently measuring” and no “devices available to measure”.
Is this something you have set up directly in the devices?
If so, what parameter/variable is used for this?
Thanks for your help ![/quote]
The Fibaro’s don’t have energy monitoring onboard. on your virtual devices you have a energy entry you have to use to fill in the wattage used by the device connected to this virtual device.
Understood that the Fibaro’s do not monitor energy. This is why I wanted to specify the power in Watts as an approximation for the consumption.
I found the “energy used” field under “settings” and put in the power load of the loads connected to the switches.
This results in displaying the power specified by me on the Dashboard when ON and zero when OFF for the individual switches.
Happy with that.
I am using many of the Fibaro double switches.
These appear as two switches and the virtual device, so three devices in total on the Dashboard.
It is however possible to specify the “energy used” under Settings for both switches AND for the virtual device.
Are you suggesting that only the virtual device is taken into account while monitoring energy consumption as part of total, room, etc. so I should specify the sum of power used by both switches in the virtual device “energy used” field ?
[quote=“Turk4U2, post:11, topic:170193”]I am using many of the Fibaro double switches.
These appear as two switches and the virtual device, so three devices in total on the Dashboard.
It is however possible to specify the “energy used” under Settings for both switches AND for the virtual device.
Are you suggesting that only the virtual device is taken into account while monitoring energy consumption as part of total, room, etc. so I should specify the sum of power used by both switches in the virtual device “energy used” field ?[/quote]
I’m using the FGS221 as well. Basically you have a “root device” which is the real device. You’ll see that under advanced settings it has zwave[] as a “controlled via” setting. If you look at the virtual devices e1 will switch “S1” on your physical fibaro and e2 will switch “S2” on your fysical fibaro. You’ll see that these virtual devices don’t have zwave[] as their “controlled via” setting, but they’re pointing to the real device.
If you still have the default names it’ll be hard to spot as they’ll be named “_appliance module”. renaming the root device will make the overview a lot easier to understand.
OK, so I am mixing up “virtual” device and “root” device.
Implying there are 2 virtual devices that allow specifying the energy usage in Watts.
And no need to to specify the (negligible) energy usage in the root device. Makes sense.
[quote=“Turk4U2, post:13, topic:170193”]OK, so I am mixing up “virtual” device and “root” device.
Implying there are 2 virtual devices that allow specifying the energy usage in Watts.
And no need to to specify the (negligible) energy usage in the root device. Makes sense.[/quote]
yes … and no…
If you switch the root device, it’ll actually talk to S1 as well. I think this is part of a legacy ZWAVE_BASIC command set instead of the newer multi-instance implementation…
I’m not a zwave wizard, but it sounds plausible to me.
so what I do is use the virtual device and pin them on the dashboard and sort of hide the root device by keeping it unpinned.
That is exactly what I am doing.
In a similar way, I have the thermostats with set-points on the Dashboard with a VaiableContainer to monitor actual temperatures, while the boiler/floor heating switches are “hidden” under the DEVICES tab
And I do not specify “energy usage” in the root device.
It all works well now. All devices show their energy consumption.
Now let’s see how this will be reported under “Energy” in the coming days
Great,
I am getting the “historical usage” and “live usage” (the latter only as long as there is at least one device ON).
As the Fibero’s do not measure energy but allow specifying the power per switch, it still gives a good approximation of the energy used.
It does however not take into account dimming levels, so dimmable devices are taken into account at full power usage when they are ON.
Odd as devices that I have that dim, the energy values will adjust based on the level. So if a light that is hooked up to a dimmer uses 100watts at 100%, it will report 30watts when at 30%.
Is that based on actual measurement or on a power level you provided under the device’s Settings/Energy used ?
Interesting though. Checking the Dashboard, the power usage is indeed adjusted proportionally with the percentage of dimming as you indicate.
But under energy usage I could not see a difference. Maybe need to monitor over a longer period.
Correction:
Garrett was right.
After filling in the “energy used” field with the number of Watts of the connected light, energy usage monitoring is based on the specified number of Watts AND is adjusted proportionally to dimming levels.
Gives a good approximation of usage.
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