craigrouse/ha-solcast-solar

Solcast Integration for Home Assistant

Solcast Solar

Home Assistant(https://www.home-assistant.io/) Component

This custom component integrates the Solcast Hobby PV Forecast API into Home Assistant.

Solcast have altered their API limits for new account creators:

Solcast now only offer new account creators 10 api calls per day (used to be 50). Old account users still have 50 api calls

The integration allows users to disable the auto api polling. Users can create their own automations to call the update solcast service to poll for new data to adjust for the max 10 api poll limit.

Solcast Requirements:

Sign up for an API key (https://solcast.com/)

^Solcast may take up to 24hrs to apply the 50 API counter from the default 10.. give it time to work:) -this seems to not be the case anymore for new account creators that sign up

Copy the API Key for use with this integration.

Install

via HACS

Easy install by default on HACS. More info here.

or click on:

Manualy

1. Download the latest release zip file.
2. Unzip and copy the solcast_solar directory to your Home Assistant config/custom_components directory

Restart HA to load the new integration

In Home Assistant / Settings / Devices & Services click the Add Integration.

1. Search and add Solcast PV Forecast.
2. Enter you Solcast API Key.
3. Choose to either use the auto polling for data (not great if your stuck with only the new 10 poll limit), or disable and create your own automation to call the service solcast_solar.update_forecasts or solcast_solar.update_actual_forecasts when you like it to call.

Basic Installation/Configuration Instructions:

If you have more than one Solcast account because you have more than 2 rooftop setups, enter both account API keys seperated by a comma xxxxxxxx-xxxxx-xxxx,yyyyyyyy-yyyyy-yyyy

*This is you API Key not your rooftop id created in Solcast. You can find your API key here api key

Basic HA Automation to manual poll Solcast API data:

Create a new HA automation and setup your prefered triggers to manually poll for new data This is an example.. create your own to your own needs

description: New API call Solcast
trigger:
  - platform: time_pattern
    minutes: "0"
    seconds: "0"
condition:
  - condition: sun
    before: sunset
    after: sunrise
action:
  - service: solcast_solar.update_forecasts
    data: {}
mode: single

Set up HA Energy Dashboard settings

Go to the HA>Settings>Dashboards>Energy Click the edit the Solar Production item you have created.

Click the Forecast option button and select the Solcast Solar option.. Click SAVE.. HA will do all the rest for you

HA Views:

HA Energy Tab

Sensors

Name	Type	Attributes	Default	Description
Today	number	Y	kWh	Total forecast solar production for today
Tomorrow	number	Y	kWh	Total forecast solar production for today
D3	number	Y	kWh	Total forecast solar production for day + 1 (tomorrow)
D4	number	Y	kWh	Total forecast solar production for day + 2 (day 3)
D5	number	Y	kWh	Total forecast solar production for day + 3 (day 4)
D6	number	Y	kWh	Total forecast solar production for day + 4 (day 5)
D7	number	Y	kWh	Total forecast solar production for day + 5 (day 6)
This Hour	number	N	Wh	Forecasted solar production current hour
Next Hour	number	N	Wh	Forecasted solar production next hour
Remaining Today	number	N	kWh	Predicted remaining solar production today
Peak Forecast Today	number	N	Wh	Highest predicted production within an hour period today
Peak Time Today	date/time	N		Hour of max forecasted production of solar today
Peak Forecast Tomorrow	number	N	Wh	Highest predicted production within an hour period tomorrow
Peak Time Tomorrow	date/time	N		Hour of max forecasted production of solar tomorrow

Configuration

Name	Type	Attributes	Default	Description
Rooftop name	number	Y	kWh	Total forecast for today for this rootop item created in Solcast

Diagnostic

Name	Type	Attributes	Default	Description
API Last Polled	date/time	N		Date/time when the API data was polled
API used	number	N	integer	Total times the API has been called today (API counter resets to zero at midnight UTC)

Modified from the great works of

• dannerph/homeassistant-solcast
• cjtapper/solcast-py
• home-assistant-libs/forecast_solar