Plan States and Status Lines
The Overview page shows user-facing device state, not raw planner internals. This page explains the mapping so you can interpret what PELS is doing.
Only managed devices are included in the plan snapshot. Unmanaged devices are treated as background usage and do not appear as managed-device cards.
Overview State Words
The redesigned Overview uses a compact state word on each device card:
| Overview label | What it means |
|---|---|
| Running | The device is on, charging, heating, or otherwise active. |
| Idle | The device is available and on (or has no binary switch), but currently has nothing to do. |
| Off | Homey explicitly reports the device off, and PELS is not currently limiting or resuming it. |
| Limited | PELS is currently lowering, pausing, turning off, or making the device wait for power — to stay within the grid import limit, the hard cap or daily budget pace, or because a scheduled smart task has power reserved. A limited device also names what Homey reports: Limited · Off when it is off, or Limited · Low (its reported level) when a stepped device still runs lower. |
| Resuming | PELS has decided to bring the device back and is turning it on, raising its level, or counting down a short restart wait. A device still waiting for power reads Limited. |
| Manual | The device is managed, but PELS cannot use power-limit control for it right now. |
| Unavailable | PELS has no usable device observation, or Homey reports the device as unavailable. |
The state row pairs that word with the current power fact. Cards add one modality fact where useful—such as temperature and target or charging level—and reserve the reason line for a single exceptional explanation.
Common Status Lines
Chips stay short. The status line below a chip explains why a device is waiting, limited, or resuming.
A device card tells you what that device needs. It does not repeat which limit the whole house is up against — the hard cap, the current period's pace, or today's budget — because that is the same for every device, and the Overview hero states it once under Power now (Safe pace now 1.9 kW · set by today's budget).
| Status wording | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Waiting to resume — 0.8 kW more needed | The power that would actually bring this device back. Reserves are already counted, so freeing that much is enough. A stepped device already running and asking for a higher level reads just Waiting to increase. |
| Waiting to resume — this capacity period's budget is spent | This capacity period's energy budget is used up, so freeing power will not help. |
| Waiting to resume | The device is waiting for power, but PELS cannot put a number on it yet. |
| Waiting for available power | Shown when a device has been waiting on power long enough to be flagged, with no number available. |
| Held 2 h — 0.8 kW more needed | The same power fact as the first row, for a device PELS has been holding back long enough to flag. The elapsed time is why this card offers Let it run now and its neighbours do not. |
| Manual action needed. Hard cap may be exceeded. | Device detail and log: PELS projects a hard-cap breach in the current capacity period and cannot limit any more load. The card itself shows the power the device still needs. Use the Hard cap breach imminent — manual action needed trigger for alerts. |
| Waiting to resume — 50s | A resume cooldown is running and this is the device PELS resumes first when the timer ends: turned-off devices go before stepped increases and thermostat raises, and priority orders each group. An active stepped device says Waiting to increase — 50s. |
| Waiting to resume — other devices are ahead | The same cooldown holds this device, but another device is ahead of it in that order. Active stepped devices say Waiting to increase — other devices are ahead. |
| Waiting for power meter to stabilise (50s) | PELS recently changed or observed a device and is waiting for meter readings to settle. |
| Waiting for a new power reading | The whole-home meter stopped reporting for over 10 minutes, so PELS limited every managed device to be safe. This happens in every mode, even with every limit turned off, and lasts until a new reading arrives. |
| Delaying restart after recent failed attempt | A previous resume caused new pressure, so PELS is waiting longer before trying again. |
| Waiting for cheaper hours | A smart task booked this load into cheaper hours. More power would not start it. |
| Smart task done, held until its ready-by time | The smart task reached its target. Until its ready-by time, the device runs only in the hours the task booked. |
| Waiting for solar surplus | A "run on solar surplus" device, waiting for the home to export enough. |
| Turned off elsewhere — turn it on to resume | The device was switched off outside PELS. |
| Holding at 6 A — cannot increase while 2 devices are limited | A stepped device may not climb past its lowest useful level while other devices are still limited. Resuming those devices lifts it, not more power. |
| Waiting so … can start | A device is about to start and has reserved the power it needs, so this one waits its turn. The power is there — it is spoken for. |
Raw Planner Fields
The raw plan still uses older internal identifiers. These are implementation terms, not preferred UI copy:
| Raw field/value | User-facing meaning |
|---|---|
plannedState: "keep" | Usually shown as Running or Resuming, depending on current device state. |
plannedState: "shed" | Usually shown as Limited. PELS may turn the device off, lower temperature, or reduce a step. |
plannedState: "inactive" | Shown as Idle while available/on, or Off when Homey explicitly reports the device off. PELS is not limiting it. |
shedAction: "turn_off" | The limit this device may go down to: off. PELS goes only as far as it needs, so a device with steps can be left running at a lower level instead. |
shedAction: "set_temperature" | The limit this device may go down to: its minimum target temperature. |
reason: "staying off until turned on again" | Off — the device was turned off elsewhere and PELS was asked to leave it off. |
reason: "shed due to capacity" | Limited; the card shows the power the device still needs. |
reason: "shed due to grid import limit" | Limited to keep import under the grid import limit; the card shows the power the device still needs. |
reason: "shed while the meter is silent" | Limited because the whole-home meter stopped reporting; the card shows Waiting for a new power reading. |
reason: "shed due to daily budget" | Limited by today's budget pacing; the card shows the power the device still needs, or offers Let it run now. |
reason: "restore (...)" | Waiting to resume, with the required and available power shown internally. |
reason: "shortfall" | Manual action needed. Hard cap may be exceeded; the card shows the power the device still needs. |
reason: "waiting for solar surplus" | Held off until the home exports enough solar. |
These raw strings may still appear in diagnostics, logs, tests, or older Homey capability values. Normal docs and UI should use the user-facing wording above.
EV Availability
For EV chargers, PELS keeps capacity suppression separate from charger availability:
| Situation | Overview result |
|---|---|
| Charger is unplugged | Off or Idle, with an unplugged or not-charging explanation where available. |
| Charger is discharging | Off or Idle, with a discharging explanation where available. |
| Charger state is unknown | Idle or Unavailable until the state becomes usable. |
| Charger power estimate is missing | Idle or Manual until PELS observes or is configured with a usable estimate. |
| Charger is paused and can resume | PELS may resume it when the plan allows and there is available power. |
Why Devices Do Not Resume Immediately
PELS resumes carefully:
- Higher-priority devices resume first.
- Previously limited devices, binary or stepped, may resume in a small batch (up to three) when fresh readings show ample available power. A running stepped device may also jump several levels at once: as far as the available power allows when it is the first increase in that pass, and within half the available power, counting earlier increases, when another device already resumed in the same pass. With grid import control on, it steps up one level at a time.
- Extra available power is required beyond the device's expected draw.
- Recent limiting and recent failed restart attempts delay another resume.
- A lower-priority device may stay limited until a higher-priority device has successfully resumed.
That deliberate cadence is what keeps the home stable: no rapid cycling, no chasing a stale meter reading, every resume grounded in what the meter actually reports.