[Project] Fault Detection: Power Quality

[Kathy]

Hey Justin!

I am responding to the thread about real time power quality data. I’m not sure if I need to insert a quote or if it will show up right below our little chat.

I am sorry you perceived my words as if I was projecting an attitude of dismissal or judging that the Sense team was just placating me.

I did not and do not feel that way at all. I was just focused on what I was pursuing and the reality said I should look elsewhere for additional information for awhile.

I surely understand the complexity of it, the work that goes into software developments and the time it takes especially when there is so much going on.

You and the Sense team are doing great things. I understand about the need to focus on priorities, whatever they may be, and then nature of limited resources.

I certainly don’t expect Sense to fulfill all my perceived needs and desires, especially given the complexity of my situation!

My comment was simply about recognizing that a certain component isn’t a part of the sense package right now; reflecting back the transparency.

Apologies if my words were not very graceful.

Thanks for taking the time to share the ‘level-setting’ clarification!

Best Wishes, kj

[eric4]

Is this normal?

I have had some appliances die over the last few months and got a sense to help me sort out the power quality. Now I am looking at these graphs and am unsure if this is normal or not. I regularly see light dim for a second, have fans slow down, etc during these dips. I am in a house built in the 1960s, towards the end of the line in my neighborhood. This is SDGE in San Deigo. They came out and re-terminated me to the main lines weeks ago but it hasn’t changed anything,

Looking at these pictures. It certainly looks worse than many other pictures up here but I don’t know if it is out of line.

Thanks for your thoughts!

[brianmccarron]

Hi there. I have noticed some lights flickering periodically in my home and just happened to look at my sense app and saw this. Now of course this data is 2 weeks old so I am not sure if the dips are still occurring. Is there anyway to dig further into this ?
It is not allowing me to upload my screen shots but I had voltage dips down into the 80’s

[drp]

Has this project been shut down? My PQ graph and historical data have not changed since March 4, 2023. The real time voltage is functional.

Please advise.

[kevin1]

@drp,

More info from Sense on what’s happening and wha to do in the more recent thread on this issues.

Power Quality Chart - not up-dating - Nov 2022

Hi all, I just wanted to address this power quality issue. This is an issue where some monitors/users are not updating the power quality data as quickly as many users expect. We are working on significantly improving this project, but it is still in process and not happening yet. To provide some context on how we handle this issue: If we have a very large or noticeable batch/majority / all of the users with failed power quality, it tends to mean something didn’t go through in the backend, an…

[vitan777]

@JustinAtSense

Voltage graph screenshot

I have a problem with my Voltage graph screenshot and I restore my sense device. I loss all my data and the date of my Power Quality not refresh actually . How updates this problems

[phil.garver]

I am having some very odd behaviors from the power quality. Last month, all of the sudden the graph went to this crazy view of spikes and dips. Then, on the 1st of Aug, it cleared itself up, now last night it went back to being crazy. Any ideas what is going on here?

[kevin1]

@phil.garver ,

Try power cycling your monitor using the breaker. Flip it off for at least 10 seconds. That seems to have helped the folks here with the same issue.

Power Quality - 1000+ Voltage Dips

Hi, I just wanted to chime in here with a few things. We looked into if there was a specific issue with the power quality section in Sense Labs and found that it is likely not the issue. Therefore any dips and spikes may be related to your environment. It may be worth looking into in your home and calling the power company. If your Sense stops recording data and you have to restart it to get data recording again, that may be a separate issue. I would suggest reaching out to support https://he…

Read the part from @JamesDrewAtSense

[phil.garver]

Hello, I don’t think its a power quality issue. I have also tried to cycle the breaker / unit. I have multiple UPS (APC Smart UPS) in the house across each of the incoming power legs and I do not have issues or data logged matching the condition of this unit. It had also been operating fine until about a month and a half ago before it started this, cleared up, and then started again last night. I will see what support says…

[adamchilders]

[adamchilders]

Having tons of power quality issues at my location. Can anyone shine some light on what might be going on? I contacted my electric co-op to see if they could check out my service drop. Let me know what you think @JustinAtSense

[kevin1]

Hi @adamchilders, welcome to the community ! @JustinAtSense isn’t at Sense any more. @JuliaAtSense is the community manager there, but I think she is out this week. Generally, power quality spikes/dips can stem from a number of issues - a weak neutral at your house or nearby (maybe due to poor screw on connection or corrosion), an undersized distribution transformer for your local cluster of homes using the transformer, or challenges by the utility in managing grid stability.

We have seen a few folks recently who saw an onset of spikes/dips that disappeared after they did a power cycle of their Sense monitor.

[Dcdyer]

To: @adamchilders
There are multiple past forum posts by different users on their experiences with Voltage dips/spikes. Use the SENSE forum ‘search’ feature and re-read their complete blog about “dips”, “spikes”, or “Power Quality”. There can be numerous reasons why you are seeing so many ‘dips’.

Here is an example from several years ago. Please keep us posted on your findings and your solution.

Power Quality - 33x Voltage dips in the last month

How was your issue detected?: Sense application had data, no notification of the issue Did you noticed any other signs of this issue around your home?: I do notice that when my Air conditioner kicks On, my lights start to dim and at times they continue to stay dim for a sustained period of time. [with the exception of bathrooms heating lights and landscaping lights, all are LED and I really didn’t expect those to dim given power requirements] Screenshots from Sense Lab [SmartSelect_2020081…

[adamchilders]

Ok will do. I will also upload my raw data if anyone wants to check it out
power_quality_raw.csv (32.4 KB)

[Dcdyer]

To: @adamchilders Another recent post in the SENSE forum with a similar voltage issue you are experiencing. See his picture and the solution.

Power Quality - 1000+ Voltage Dips

Well, the power company just came and found a melted wire on the pole, I’ll have to give Sense a day or two before I’ll know for sure that fixed the problem but thats what I think it was. They fixed everything very quickly. Im attaching pictures of the wire they cut off. [IMG_1247]