Peak Avoidance is a setting in the WeaveGrid dashboard that gives participants the option to exclusively charge their vehicle during off-peak times, even if that means they won’t hit their Target Battery Level by their Ready By time.
Currently, drivers participating in an Automatic Smart Charging program may receive an optimized schedule that includes on-peak charging if required to hit the Target Battery Level by the Ready By time, as set in the WeaveGrid dashboard settings. Consult Why is my car charging immediately rather than during Off-Peak hours? for a more detailed explanation of when this can occur.
However, some drivers on Time of Use rates may prefer to avoid on-peak charging at all costs. For example, say a driver needs 3 hours of charging in a particular charge session to reach their Target Battery Level, but there is only one 2-hour off-peak window between the plug-in and Ready By time.
If Peak Avoidance is enabled, the car would charge up as much as possible during the off-peak window but would stop charging during any on-peak times, resulting in the end state of charge likely falling short of the target for that particular session. (In this case, that might mean 70% instead of 90%.) Peak Avoidance ensures that overall charging costs are strictly minimized, but no longer guarantees that the battery will be fully charged by the set Ready By time for that day.
This feature is only relevant for drivers on a TOU utility rate plan that defines on and off-peak periods, and is only available to certain makes and models. Currently, Toyota and Lexus electric vehicles participating in Smart Charge Management are not compatible.
Note on Tesla top-off charging: Once a Tesla participating in Smart Charge Management reaches the target battery level, if it remains plugged in and naturally loses charge due to Sentry mode or other reasons, the vehicle may top off charge automatically to maintain the desired charge level. Top-off charging may happen on-peak, even if Peak Avoidance is enabled. Top-off charging is a Tesla feature that is outside WeaveGrid's managed charging controls. If you are concerned with the top-off charging activity, WeaveGrid suggests checking your Tesla app to see if Sentry mode, or other features that may drain the battery while the vehicle is plugged in, are enabled.