Set up Time-of-Use (TOU) on a Deye system

Time-of-Use tells the battery when to charge and discharge — soak up cheap off-peak power overnight, hold the battery for solar through the day, and run the home on stored energy through the expensive peak window. TOU runs on top of whichever base work mode you choose, and you can set it on the inverter or remotely from DeyeCloud.

Part 1 — On the inverter (LCD touch screen)

1. From the main menu, open System Work Mode.
2. Choose your base work mode — TOU layers on top of it:
   • Zero Export to CT — the most common setting in Australia: powers the home + backup, tops up from the grid if needed, and won’t export.
   • Selling First — allows export.
   • Zero Export to Load — powers backup loads only.
3. Tick the Time Of Use box, then fill in your time slots (up to 6). For each row set:
   • Grid Charge — tick it if the battery should charge from the grid in that window; leave it unticked for a discharge-only (solar-only top-up) window.
   • Time — the start–end of the window.
   • Power — the max charge/discharge watts.
   • Batt — the target SOC % the battery charges up to, or discharges down to.
4. Choose which days the schedule runs (Monday–Sunday).
5. Tap confirm to save. The schedule is now active.

Example schedule

Adjust the windows to your own tariff — this is a typical two-shoulder day:

#	Grid charge?	Time	Power	Target %	What it does
1	Yes	01:00–06:00	5000 W	100%	Off-peak: charge the battery from the grid up to full
2	No	06:00–15:00	5000 W	100%	Daytime: reserve the battery for solar (no discharge)
3	No	15:00–21:00	5000 W	20%	Peak: discharge to run the home, down to 20%
4	No	21:00–01:00	5000 W	30%	Evening shoulder: discharge down to 30%

How to read row 1: “between 01:00 and 06:00, if the battery is below 100%, charge it from the grid until it reaches 100%.”

Part 2 — Remotely in the DeyeCloud app

Same settings, from your phone. The inverter must be online and added to the plant, and installer access needs a Business account with “Can manage” rights.

1. Open DeyeCloud → select the plant → Device → Inverter tab → tap Professional Settings (in some app versions this is Remote Control, or under the ”…” menu top-right).
2. On the Batch Command tab, open System Work Mode-1. Tap Read first, then set the base System Work Mode, Solar Sell, the active days and power limits.
3. Open System Work Mode-2, tap Read, then tick Time of Use. For each slot (Time 1, Time 2 …) set Grid Charge, Start/End Time, Power and Batt % — the same values as the inverter screen.
4. Tap Setup to push the settings to the inverter, and wait for the success confirmation (it’s sent over the air, so give it a few seconds).

Three things to keep in mind

• Grid charge is optional per slot. A slot only pulls from the grid if you tick Grid Charge; otherwise the battery only charges from surplus solar in that window.
• The target % controls behaviour. The battery charges up to / discharges down to that number — set a 100% target to effectively “hold” the battery for solar.
• Match your real tariff. Line the off-peak / peak windows up with the customer’s actual electricity plan, or you’ll just shift power around at the wrong prices.

If the customer is on a spot-price (real-time market) plan, let DeyeCloud do the scheduling automatically — see Connect a Deye battery to Amber Electric. New to commissioning? Start with Commission a Deye system in 5 minutes.

Screens vary by inverter model and firmware version — exact labels, layout and values may differ from the menus above.