evcc.yaml
evcc requires a configuration file to describe the system and cannot be used without it. The file itself is written in YAML, which is a structured, human-readable, plain text format.
To create or edit the configuration file, we recommend using a text editor that understands YAML and thus helps with the formatting and shows any errors, e.g. instance, VS Code with the YAML extension.
The configuration file is called by default evcc.yaml and is either in the
same directory as evcc itself, or on POSIX (e.g. Linux) systems in
/etc/evcc.yaml.
For non-standard paths, the filename can be passed as a command line argument,
e.g. evcc -c /home/evcc.yaml
Structure
evcc's configuration file contains multiple sections. In order to refer to
elements in a different section, each device has a name parameter, which is a
free text field and is used for identification.
An example file with many parameters can be found here: https://github.com/evcc-io/evcc/blob/master/evcc.dist.yaml
Here is an overview of the relationship between the most important parts of the configuration:
How does evcc work? (A look into the innards)
In order for the system to function, an electricity meter is important. This allows us to calculate at any point in time the surplus power. Measuring the generated power is interesting, but has no effect on the function, with this exception
The surplus power is compared with the minimum power required to charge. If this is sufficient, the charging process is started.
The minimum power required to charge is calculated from the values minCurrent
and phases, defined per loadpoint (a group of colocated chargers)
See loadpoints for more
information.
For example: phases: 1 und minCurrent: 8
1 (phases) x 8A (minCurrent) x 230V (mains voltage) = 1840W (minimum power required to charge)
Manipulation Options
Normally, the surplus power corresponds to the available charging power. However, the available charging power can be individually adjusted using several parameters. These are:
- Site:
residualpower - Site:
prioritySoc - Site:
bufferSoc - Site:
aux - Loadpoint:
enable: threshold - Loadpoint:
disable: threshold
Please refer to the description of each respective parameter for the available settings.
Site
A Site describes the location with the existing and required devices of the home installation and is responsible for regulating the available power.
Loadpoint
A Loadpoint describes the charging infrastructure and combines existing Chargers, Vehicles, and anything else a charging point needs.
Chargers
Chargers include a list of chargers and their properties, such as how they are addressed.
Meters
Meters are a list of devices that measure various power flows. These include:
- Imported, Exported power
- PV-generated power
- Charging current of EV (if the charger does not support this directly)
- Power flow of house battery(ies)
Vehicles
To limit the state of charge (SoC) of EVs to a specific level, you can specify the existing vehicles and online access data here.
HEMS
evcc can forward the charging points and their charging currents to another Home Energy Management System (HEMS) so that it can use this information, for example, to control the house battery.
Messaging
In this section, you can define events for which you want to be informed. A variety of different systems are supported for message delivery.