Shelly 3EM and Home Assistant

[@herbtan4627]

Hi Jimmy, great tutorial, I also got the Shelly 3EM here in Switzerland - was easy to setup - great thanks to you! You said something that you provide a link with the sensor configuration in the description - I was unable to find it. (would like your graphs and so on) Many thanks ;-)

[@bennylloyd-willner9667]

Good video, @6:15 you edited the video, was there some error or long delay until the power meter went down? BTW I live in Sweden but have family Down Under, that and mostly the fact that I like your style has gotten you one more subscriber 😁

[@SparkyJames]

Thanks Benny, I do edit the videos, I to try to keep them moving along so as not to waste your time, while still providing useful and relevant information... hopefully

[@bennylloyd-willner9667]

@@SparkyJames fair enough, I just thought the value stayed up while you turned stuff off for a bit longer compared to the on-time just before and was wondering if the Shelly got hiccups 😁

[@SparkyJames]

@@bennylloyd-willner9667 There is a delay in displaying load power, but there needs to be or it would fluctuate to much from minor load changes that occur all the time in a property. It’s possible the way I edited it may unintentionally have made it appear exaggerated.

[@bennylloyd-willner9667]

@@SparkyJames thanks, I do appreciate your quick responses 👍 I will probably get me one. We have a phase that often is overloaded and that along with Shelly power metering plugs would help to pinpoint the situations and load combinations that trigger the fuse. I have a suspicion that the electrician who did the installation (in previous owner times) saw the kitchen as "a room" while it uses a lot more power than other rooms so he/she got the load balancing wrong. The main T phase fuse (In Sweden we call the three phases R, S, ans T) is always hot when an inhouse fuse has been triggered. Thanks again. Looking forward catching up on your videos!

[@christophhaug]

Isn't it overkill to download the entire csv file every 5 minutes? Do you even need it at all if you can get instantenous values via MQTT? How often are the values broadcast over MQTT?

[@Mknybel]

Hi Jimmy , can you place a picture how to connect 3 phase VA, VB and VC. Mean 4 breaker total to be installed.

[@CoolKoon]

It doesn't matter. You just have to make sure that you connect the current transformers to the same phase as you connect the voltage input to i.e. IA to VA, IB to VB and IC to VC. And no, this still makes only 3 breakers, not 4.

[@MFG485]

Can I use this device for protection purposes, such as overvoltage and undervoltage protection? For example, can I trigger its contactor if the phase voltage exceeds 240V or drops below 200V?

[@rossr6616]

Is the kWh useage not easily viewed? just Amps and Voltages?

[@imremolnar7230]

Great video, thank you for sharing. It has a maximum value 3x120 A. How does it work in a very lower range, let say 1-10A? Do you recommend it? Thank you in advance

[@hillebrandstreet1882]

I just bought one also I'm glad you did a video as I am about to setup next week once my Cousin the electritain comes over ..I might have a few questions how to use in HA tho ... I understand you connect to the wifi SID on shelly , but what do you use in HA ( Home assistant to communicate to the Shelly please , I was hoping to use in My Energy section in Home Assistant also is that possible to use as consumption entity ! Great Video Jimmy James ( I found your other videos :) its how everything we need to know Your Champion )

[@mrreese4408]

Hi Jimmy! Great video! I also have.a.three.phase energy installation. Very much appreciated. I'm planning to install solar power on one phase to coup up with kitchen appliances day time consumption, about 1500W photovoltaic solar panels. Do you have solar power installed?

[@SparkyJames]

Hi Peter, Thanks. My current house doesn’t have panels, I don’t like solar panels on tiled roofs, to much risk of roof leaks. I used to install systems, when I had a small contracting business. It’s just me know and so I don’t do solar anymore, you need one or two helpers/apprentices. They are very good the Shelly 3em and it is my understanding that they will be Australian Certified by the end of the year, which would be good then I can actually offer them to people to supply and install.

[@mrreese4408]

@@SparkyJames lol, that's a good reason to not install roof top solar panels! But, you down here on southwest Europe, 0,15 EUR per kWh energy price! Let's throw some solar panels up there to bring the energy invoice down!

[@2308fire]

Hey cool Video. Can you make a video about the hookup? And do i need to connect the 3 Phase to VA VB and VC? thats a lot of more work.

[@SparkyJames]

Yes, I am going to make a install video for it, and the simple answer is yes you do need to connect 3 phase to VA VB VC for it to work best. There are other monitors that don't use the voltage from each phase, however it not possible for them to be as accurate as they use the voltage from the one measurement point only.

[@filipesantos429]

@@SparkyJames still waiting for that vídeo........

[@antoinejeanrichard8226]

Hi Jimmy, Thank you very much for this precise video! I noticed that the CSV file generated by the 3EM was updated every 5 minutes. Could it be possible to have a higher update rate? Something closer to 10 seconds? Thank you very much and best regards,

[@sotoss7377]

Hi Jimmy, thanks for the great video. I have a 3 phase property in Cyprus. Planning to get the same Shelly 3EM. My question is : will the physical electricity meter Kwh figure correspond with the total Kwh on the shelly or will I need a custom Home Assistant combine calculation code? The reason I ask is that I was told that the electricity meter doesn't add up all the 3 phases kwh, it can only use the highest phase ampage at any one time during the kwh calculation.

[@beckyschwantes5287]

I am from the us. Typically 3 phase 240 or 480 is reserved for machinery. Where are you from where your energy provider provides 3 phase residential power?

[@SparkyJames]

Yes, it quite common to 3 phase power 240v to Neutral 415 phase to phase, in residential in Australia. It only adds about $1000 max to the cost of building a house to have it installed over 1 phase 240v. I have to say the way the US power supply works seems quite different, the main advantage I see that US system has is 110v is safer a zap from 110v is not nearly as bad a 240v

[@beckyschwantes5287]

@@SparkyJames yes I agree the us single phase grid is built with safety in mind. You would be amazed at how difficult it is to get 3phase in some places. It can get so expensive machine shops are using phase converters to try and run 3P machinery. And bringing 3p into a residential area is almost unheard of. It’s all about making as much money as the power company can. This year the state of Texas almost completely shut down because the temps dipped below freezing and their grid just wasn’t winterized. They just never prepared for the possibility that one day temps might drop below freezing. Then when no one had power , the price gouging began. So do you have 3 phase appliances or do you simply use one leg and a nuetral to create a single phase circuit?

[@SparkyJames]

We have 3 phase appliances including spas, instantaneous water heaters, air conditioning, induction cook tops, water pumps/ground water bores, but you can get all those in single phase, and we usually do just run most things off 1 leg and neutral, 3phase mains best advantage is smaller cables to run more power longer distances, you have more volt drop available 21v compared to single phase 12v

[@bennylloyd-willner9667]

In Sweden I think all houses have 3 phase input, the phases are divvied up evenly throughout the house. Electric stoves use all 3 phases since it draws a lot of energy. We have two 3-phase outlets for industry-type washing machines even tho it's a regular residential home, but I don't think that is too common.

[@janbednar5453]

Hi Jimmy I would like to know, whether the WiFi connection will be realiable in case, when my Shelly 3EM will be placed on the DIN-rail and closed behind the metalic door within the home switchboard. An external antena could solve this problem, but does it have one?

[@SparkyJames]

It’s work better than I thought it would, I’ve install a few in meter boxes and have had no problem.

[@lensmith2194]

Hi James, excellent video. Just had one installed, could not find the link for the graph in Home Assistant, can you share please. Len

[@Rooib0s]

It's called the mini graph card. If you google this you'll find it.

[@beckyschwantes5287]

Can you monitor 3 separate appliances running on 120vac as opposed the monitoring each phase of a 3 phase power system?

[@AfarMK]

Good video. Could it be installed in single-phase with a clamp for power grid and another for photovoltaic energy, and that each phase can be made a different "Shelly device", and labeled as "Home" and "Solar" and not as Phase A and Phase B?

[@SparkyJames]

Yes it is effectively 3 separate single phase devices, that also has a combined total channel as well, however if you have single phase the em with 2 channels and 1 voltage reference is probably a better choice. Both Shelly EM and 3EM are net totals so it counts up and down if you are feeding solar back to the grid. It is just a matter of where in your power circuit you place the clamps that dictates whether you measure the house load or load less the solar power generated or just power generated.

[@bennylloyd-willner9667]

Late to the party so you prob know this already: Shelly has a diagram for just that on their website: shelly.cloud/knowledge-base/devices/shelly-3em/#tab_6211f1dfc7ca5

[@9a4gl]

You said you ordered with 50A clamps. I wanted them as they are smaller and probably have better accuracy in up to 32A range. I called support and they said only 120A supported. Are you sure you got 50A clamps ?

[@SparkyJames]

It possible that has changed since I did the video, I have just bought and installed one a week ago and they came with 120a clamps. They appear to be quite accurate even at low current. I was going to try and test the shelly EM3 against my supplier meter and see how close they are.

[@n.r.2258]

Thanks for the tutorium …. one question : it has a batterie ..so does it displays (and transmits) . 0Volt when the power goes down ? or does it, like most of the others just turns down and keeps the last recorded value ?

[@SparkyJames]

The battery keeps the time when the power goes off, so it can keep accurate records when the power is on again without wifi

[@n.r.2258]

@@SparkyJames Thanks for you’re reply … but that means, Wifi will be interrupted and a power failure will not be communicated to a management system (i.e. Home assistant). Hmm… too bad.

[@bennylloyd-willner9667]

@@n.r.2258 It would have been nice for sure, I think they didn't want to put more cost into it, it would need a bigger battery than the CR button one to make that happen. I'm not sure but it may have also made the unit a lot bigger due to bigger batteries and mains voltage separation regulations (I haven't checked but I can imagine it exists in the EU)

[@MatthewBayard]

What about single phase?

[@beornbayliss9586]

There is a wiring diagram for single phase, also for single phase with a solar input.

[@istvaniakabhazi3914]

Hi James If the house has a solar system, will the values show negative when there is overproduction? Can the relay be programmed to be activated when there is overproduction?

[@SparkyJames]

Hi Istvan , yes it does show negative when the house is over producing power. I believe that to make the relay come on you would need it to be connected to Home Assistant or a similar system to have an automation to do that(it would be pretty easy), on its own it has no logic to do that.

[@istvaniakabhazi3914]

@@SparkyJames Thanks for the quick response. I am not experienced in programing, after I purchased the 3EM do you have possiblity to help with the set up? Tem viewer?

[@jamest999]

Hi! The example config is missing infos like you need the Shellies Discovery script etc. Took me quite a while and I'm still not finished.

[@SparkyJames]

Sorry, I did skip over a step, the only missing part is in the Shelly admin you need to setup the connection to home assistants Mqtt broker, the same method as for the other Shelly devices, discovery: is not required with the sample configs although that is another way to setup the EM3. I am planning to make a more detailed installation video once i'd played with in for a while.

[@jamest999]

@@SparkyJames ah thx, actually I like the Shellies discovery script, everything is available in the dashboard etc.

[@zacsonskaria]

How long would the battery last? Is it replaceable by the user?

[@SparkyJames]

Hi Zacson, I would consider the battery not user replacable, and it's a lithium battery so I would last at least 10 years, it's pretty common for digital time clocks with battery backup to have a similar battery and they last a long time, usually.

[@zacsonskaria]

@@SparkyJames Thanks Jimmy. 10 years in really awesome. I guess it helps to maintain the time and log the data correctly after a power outage and when the internet is down. Any idea how that battery is connected to the ESP chip?

[@SparkyJames]

@@zacsonskaria Yes, it provides the time if the device is not connected to the internet for a period, to continue to accurately track power use, and the battery would be connected to a real time clock IC and that in turn would be connected to the esp via i2c or serial.

[@neilbrookins8428]

This looks like a great device. The description says it would also work for monophase. I have a single phase split into two legs and a neutral. But my main is 200amp. This device only goes up to 120amps. So I’m not sure it would work for me. If they could provide a CT with half the turns and then double the amps with a software update that might work for me and provide the correct numbers.

[@SparkyJames]

Yes you could use one clamp on each of the legs, as they operate independently. I have installed it in the mains of my house but you could simply monitor 3 sub circuits with it. Is the 200a rating the main switch rating or is that your maxium demand? As while it's quite possible, it would be a little surprising for a house to use more than 120a. Especially if you had split with 2 legs and there was one current meter on each leg.

[@neilbrookins8428]

Jimmy James my legs are only 120v to neutral. But the two legs are 240v to each other. So my stove/range that pulls 50 amps is pulling that current on both legs. That’s why it’s possible to go over 120 amps if stove, water heater, clothes dryer and air conditioning are all running at once because they each put current on both legs. All the smaller loads like lights and outlets are only one leg with neutral but they are still double the current at 120v compared to what you would see at 240v. So, in summary my current is about double what your current is when counting each leg.

[@howiegrapek]

Well, I love what you've done and it really should be easier than what I am doing... which is obviously incorrect. I am working with a shellyem, not the em3, but it is basically the same idea. Only 2 channels, but has same csv file to grab. I really was hoping you could share your sensors yaml file - complete!! I cannot get mine to work properly. Additionally, it would be helpful if you were to share your lovelace card configuration (code) for your charts. Be a mate, and help us out. I'm really stuck. Thanks!

[@zecarlos638]

Hello Jimmy, congrats for this video. Can you please explain how you calculate the energy consumption (kWh)? I didn´t understand that. Thank you very much.

[@emil1472]

The CSV file was showing energy usage (Wh) for each 5 min period, which you could see at the top of the file. So you can simply just sum up the values from each 5 min period for an entire hour - and then you know the Wh usage in that hour. He mentions "700 Watt", where he should have said "700 Watt-hour". Which then equals 0.7 kWh. Hope this clarifies :) ....and to be extra picky then he should not have included the last cell as he then looks at more than one hour (11:00 to 12:05).

[@pokemon6292]

Does this device work? easy to use?. I tried z-wave energy meter and its fucking horrible, almost impossible get to work.

[@SparkyJames]

Yes it does work, its very easy to use. The only downside it I feel the case could have a more sturdy construction.

[@willdwyer6782]

How about showing us a US hookup?

[@heinzg.7290]

Hello, a tutorial on connecting would be cool.