Dimplex Free-E User manual

Free-E User Manual

Heat water for free with solar PV.

8/60510/0 Version A

Millbrook House, Grange Drive, Hedge End, Southampton SO30 2DF

0844 879 3587

dimplex.co.uk | gdcgroup.co.uk

Dimplex R

Millbrook House, Grange Drive, Hedge End, Southampton SO30 2DF

0844 879 3587

dimplex.co.uk | gdcgroup.co.uk

Dimplex R

Manual Contents

1 Manual Information 1

2 Safety Information 2

3 Free-E Overview - How It Works 3

4 Using The Free-E Interface 5

5 Appendices 11

6 Consumer Information 16

2.1 Legionella Warning 2

3.1 Key Features 4

5.1 Appendix 1 - Technical Speciﬁcations for Energy Meter 12

5.2 Appendix 2 - Technical Speciﬁcations for Free-E 13

5.3 Appendix 3 - WiFi Connection Information 14

2.2 General Safety Guidelines 2

2.3 General Maintenance Guidelines 2

2.4 Electrical Safety Guidelines 2

2.5 Legal

2.6 Intended Use

4.2 Settings Menu 6

4.2.1 Boost Options 6

4.2.2 Disable Free-E 8

4.2.3 Set Date / Time 8

4.2.4 Light OFF Interval 8

4.3 Advanced Settings 9

4.3.1 Factory Reset 9

4.3.2 Load Diversion 9

4.3.3 WiFi Connection 9

4.3.5 RF Channel Selection 10

4.3.4 General Info 9

4.3.6 Update Firmware 10

4.1 Main User Interface Screen and Colours 6

4.1.1 Backlight Colour Indicators 6

4.1.2 Main Menu 6

THIS MANUAL REFERS TO THE FOLLOWING PRODUCTS;

Free-E Meter (certiﬁed as part number: 054722)

Free-E (certiﬁed as part number: 054739)

Please retain this manual for future reference.

1 Manual Information

Electrical Warnings

Indicates any hazard of an electrical nature.

General Warnings

Indicates a general warning against actions which could result in damage to the system or

personal injury to the installer and/or user.

Warnings and Icons Used

Information

Indicates tips and advice for the smooth operation of the system

Millbrook House, Grange Drive, Hedge End, Southampton SO30 2DF

0844 879 3587

dimplex.co.uk | gdcgroup.co.uk

Dimplex R

2 Safety Information

2.1 Legionella Warning

Legionella bacteria can be found in natural water sources in low concentrations. At this level it will not pose a

risk to human health, however the nature of domestic hot water storage tanks or boilers may allow the bacteria

to reproduce if the water is left stagnant for a long time.

Under normal circumstances, the frequent use of the hot water tank will protect against the growth of bacteria,

however if the tank will be left unused for a prolonged period, for example, if you are going on holiday, it is highly

recommended to ensure that any boiler controls are set to heat the water to 60°C+ at least once per week to

protect against Legionella.

2.2 General Safety Guidelines

This appliance is not intended for use by persons (including children) with reduced physical, sensory or mental

capabilities, or lack of experience and knowledge, unless they have been given supervision or instruction regarding

the use of the appliance by a person responsible for their safety. Children should be supervised to ensure that they

do not play with the appliance.

The Free-E has a software generated alarm which prevents it from running when an error has occurred.

2.3 General Maintenance Guidelines

Regular maintenance of the Free-E ensures a long operating life and optimal efﬁciency.

The Free-E fan and ventilation grids should be cleaned periodically using a vacuum cleaner.

The following procedure should be followed;

- Disconnect the Free-e on the AC side

- Wait 5 minutes until the residual voltage has been drained and the fan is no longer turning

- Gently clean the top and bottom ventilation grids with a vacuum cleaner

Never use cleaning agents containing sand, soda, acid or chloride, as these can damage the casing of the Free-e.

The display screen should be wiped clean with a soft, dry cloth.

2.4 Electrical Safety Guidelines

When using electrical devices, there is always a risk of ﬁre or explosion. To prevent this from occurring please

ensure that;

- The Free-E system is not placed close to any ﬂammable materials

- The Free-E system is not placed in any areas with potential for explosion.

2.5 Legal

The construction and design of the Free-E complies with all relevant EU directives.

2.6 Intended Use

This product is designed to redistribute energy generated by a PV system to an immersion heater, that would

otherwise have been exported to the grid, and is intended for domestic and light commercial use only. Any other

use beyond that intended by the manufacturer is prohibited. This requires the user to abide by the manufacturer's

product information. Please refrain from tampering with or altering the device.

Millbrook House, Grange Drive, Hedge End, Southampton SO30 2DF

0844 879 3587

dimplex.co.uk | gdcgroup.co.uk

Dimplex R

Millbrook House, Grange Drive, Hedge End, Southampton SO30 2DF

0844 879 3587

dimplex.co.uk | gdcgroup.co.uk

Dimplex R

3 Free-E Overview - How it Works

When PV panels generate electricity, the production is initially consumed by electrical appliances or devices

in the household that are creating a demand for energy. If the household does not consume all of the energy

produced by the PV panels, the surplus energy will be sent to the grid.

The Free-E uses this surplus photovoltaic energy instead to heat the water in a household water tank, and

therefore prevent this energy from going to waste. The Free-E can divert up to 95% of unused (otherwise

exported) solar PV electricity to an electrical water heating device. This maximises the consumption of self-

generated solar power and minimises the cost of buying energy for domestic hot water. It can be retrospectively

ﬁtted to homes already with solar PV and a hot water cylinder.

ABCD

E F

G H I

Grid

PV Panels

Description

Domestic Hot Water Cylinder

Distribution Box

PV Solar Electricity Meter

Import / Export Electricity Meter

Inverter

Free-E Meter and CT Clamp(s)

Free-E

Position

Millbrook House, Grange Drive, Hedge End, Southampton SO30 2DF

0844 879 3587

dimplex.co.uk | gdcgroup.co.uk

Dimplex R

3.1 Key Features

- Uses excess energy produced by your PV system to heat water

- Monitors and adjusts the power imported and exported to the grid, ensuring that the exported power remains at

virtually zero when the PV system is producing enough energy to cover the demand for domestic electricity and hot

water

- Timed boost function available, which can be set for multiple days of the week

- Back-lit LCD display with different Light OFF times available, which displays information about the operating mode,

settings, Wi-Fi connection and more

- The current imported, exported and diverted power level can be viewed.

- Compatible with most existing immersion heaters and underﬂoor heating systems

-Internal software alarm system, thermal protection, overload protection and soft start option - all of which prevent

damage to the system and give you peace of mind

- Approved CE product

- 3 Year Warranty

- The load diversion adjusted from 0-100%

4 Using The Free-E Interface

The Free-E interface is controlled using the three buttons located below the screen, as shown below;

ENTER

Export

Store

0.05kW

02/02/2015

08:23

Power being exported

Power being stored

Cloud upload status,

RF communications

and WiFi connection

icons

Back / Esc Button Navigation Button

Enter / Conﬁrm Button

Wi-Fi Connection

This symbol indicates that theWi-Fi is connected and operating correctly. If this symbol is not

displayed, please check your Wi-Fi connection.

Uploading to Cloud Storage

This symbol is not displayed permanently, but will ﬂash every few minutes as data is uploaded to

the Dimplex cloud.

RF Communication

Displays when the Free-E meter is communicating with the master module.

Downloading Updates

This symbol is not displayed permanently, but will ﬂash while a software update is being downloaded.

Millbrook House, Grange Drive, Hedge End, Southampton SO30 2DF

0844 879 3587

dimplex.co.uk | gdcgroup.co.uk

Dimplex R

The enter button is used to access the advanced settings menu from the main menu. It is also the conﬁrmation

button for selections made on the user interface. The left / back button is used to escape from menus or

selections.

All navigation up / down through the menus on the user interface will be carried out by using the right button.

This button allows scrolling down through the displayed options, and when the end of the menu is reached,

continuing to press the down / next button will return the user to the top of the menu.

The screen shown above in is the default screen saver on the Free-E user interface. It displays the current store

power being diverted in watts, the current power being imported or exported, the current date and time, and icons

for the connectivity status, which are;

Date and Time

4.1 Main User Interface Screen and Colours

4.2 Settings Menu

4.1.1 Backlight Colour Indications

If the Free-E is exporting energy and storing power, the backlight will be green. If no energy is being exported or

energy is being imported from the grid, the backlight will be blue. If there is a fault or error with the operation of the

Free-E, the backlight will be red.

4.1.2 Main Menu

To access the main user menu, simply press the enter button when on the default screen saver as shown below.

From the main menu, you will have access to the settings and advanced settings menus.

02/02/2015 08:35

Export

Import

0.00kW

ENTER

Press Enter Button

MAIN MENU

ADVANCED SETTINGS

SETTINGS

The settings menu allows access to boost set-up options, disabling the Free-E device, date and and time settings

and light off interval settings.

SETTINGS

Boost Options

Disable Free-E

Set Date / Time

Light Off Interval

4.2.1 Boost Options

The Free-E provides options for both a manual (ON/OFF) one-hour default boost, or for a timed boost, which can be

set for three different timer periods, up to 7 days a week.

Manual Boost

To activate the manual boost, simply select Boost Options, then Manual Boost. You will see the conﬁrmation screen

as shown below when the manual boost is activated, and the default display screen on the screen will display the

Manual Boost message shown below.

Manual Boost

Timed Boost

Boost Options

ENTER

Press Enter Button

Millbrook House, Grange Drive, Hedge End, Southampton SO30 2DF

0844 879 3587

dimplex.co.uk | gdcgroup.co.uk

Dimplex R

Boost function ON

Manual Boost

02/02/2015 08:35

MANUAL BOOST

The manual boost is automatically set to run for a duration of one hour, however you can also deactivate it

manually by returning to the Boost Options and selecting Manual Boost while the boost is still active. You will

see a conﬁrmation screen as shown below and the manual boost message will no longer appear on the default

main screen.

Timed Boost

The Timed Boost can be set for a speciﬁed time for multiple weekdays. The timer should be set ﬁrst using the

Timer Settings menu, then the Set Weekdays menu allows you to select which of the three programmable boost

timers will be activated for each weekday. You can set any combination of the three timers, for any or all weekdays.

Each timer must be assigned an ON time when set up, but you can also select the duration of the boost. The options

for boost duration ranges from 30 minutes to 2 hours.

The Set Weekdays menu will let you scroll across between the days Sunday - Saturday (SU - SA), and on selecting

each day, you will be brought to the menu for that day which will show a list of tick boxes for each timer that you can

enable.

Timer 1 - Duration

0.5h

1.0h

1.5h

2.0h

Set weekdays

SU MO TU WE TH FR SA

ENTER

Press Enter Button

ENTER

Press Enter Button

ON Time

Duration

Timer 1

ON Time

Duration

Timer 1

Millbrook House, Grange Drive, Hedge End, Southampton SO30 2DF

0844 879 3587

dimplex.co.uk | gdcgroup.co.uk

Dimplex R

Manual Boost

Timed Boost

Boost Options

Timer Settings

Set Weekdays

Timed Boost

ENTER

Press Enter Button

Timer 1

Timer 2

Timer 3

Timer Settings

ENTER

Press Enter Button

Manual Boost

Timed Boost

Boost Options

ENTER

Press Enter Button

Boost function OFF

Manual Boost

CANCEL

Timer 1 - ON Time

SAVE

00:00

Set weekdays - SU

for timer(s):

Timer 1

Timer 2

Timer 3

ABORT SAVE

Quick Steps for Using Manual Boost

Turning ON or OFF the manual boost can be carried out simply by pressing the Enter button 4 times.

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