Return to self-consumption - Amps AI Documentation

Send auto.balance to hand control back to the battery. It stores surplus solar and covers the home’s load on its own, using the manufacturer’s self-consumption mode.

1. Check the battery supports it

The battery must list auto.balance in commands. It takes no parameters and can’t be windowed.

curl https://api.amps.ai/battery/device_abc123 \
  -H "x-api-key: $AMPS_API_KEY"

{
  "success": true,
  "data": {
    "id": "device_abc123",
    "state": { "currentMode": "charge" },
    "commands": {
      "auto.balance": { "parameters": {}, "execution": ["immediate", "scheduled"] },
      "auto.reserve": { "parameters": {}, "execution": ["immediate", "scheduled"] },
      "auto.export": { "parameters": {}, "execution": ["immediate", "scheduled"] }
    }
  }
}

2. Send the command

curl -X POST https://api.amps.ai/battery/device_abc123 \
  -H "x-api-key: $AMPS_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{ "action": { "command": "auto.balance" } }'

{
  "success": true,
  "data": {
    "id": "action_aHjkkbBGW4",
    "command": "auto.balance",
    "parameters": null,
    "state": "acknowledged",
    "links": { "self": "/actions/action_aHjkkbBGW4" }
  }
}

The API returns 202 Accepted. Add a start to switch modes later, for example after a morning charge. Sending a parameter or an end returns 422 DEVICE_NOT_CAPABLE. The other auto modes use the same body:

Command	Use it to
`auto.balance`	Use solar in the home first.
`auto.reserve`	Keep charge in reserve for a grid outage.
`auto.export`	Favour exporting to the grid.

3. Confirm

Listen for push.completed on your webhook. Once applied, GET /battery/device_abc123 reports state.currentMode: "auto.balance".

Next steps

Charge in a cheap-rate window

Charge overnight, then balance by day.

Push

Action lifecycle and timing.