Bioreactor not charging power reserves at night with solar panels

ssutcliffessutcliffe United States Join Date: 2016-11-01 Member: 223565Members
As of version 55310. You can see an example by building a base with a solar panel, bioreactor and fabricator. Let everything charge, then at night (when solar is offline), use the fabricator to build anything. The power reserves will drop, and they won't recharge until morning.

Comments

  • 0x6A72320x6A7232 US Join Date: 2016-10-06 Member: 222906Members
  • KurasuKurasu Join Date: 2017-06-24 Member: 231322Members
    edited October 2017
    Can confirm this happening. I have three bioreactors running and one solar plant. I am getting 0 power from the bioreactors while it ticks down constantly due to my scanning room.

    As before, I built the solar first, then the bioreactors.

    EDIT: I stand corrected. It's just the energy from the solar panel that wasn't being taken back. I'm at 1500/1575, and the energy goes up until then. Apparently it just drains the solar energy first. :)
  • BelgarelBelgarel Join Date: 2017-07-03 Member: 231570Members, Subnautica Developer
    @sutcliffe, I think it's just the confusing nature of the power system. Each power-producing module has its own individual power storage and what you see as total base power is just a summation of those. So 1 empty solar panel in the dark + 1 active and full bioreactor = "POWER: 500/575".
  • KurasuKurasu Join Date: 2017-06-24 Member: 231322Members
    To test: I took all the batteries out of my battery charger (so that's not interfering with the testing). The only thing draining power is the scanner room.
    Collected a bunch of stuff in order to prepare a craft-fest, then I waited for night, until the solar panel was listed as 0%.
    Used the crafter until I was below 1500.
    Once at 1500, the power continued to recharge itself until it stayed at an even(ish) 1500.
    Power is at a 'First In, First Out' basis; if your solar panel was built first, it will drain first and the bioreactors won't pick up again until after it's been drained.
    There really needs to be some kind of panel or setting so people can tell how the power is working. Perhaps even to manually set the order in which power sources are drained. :P At the very least it would stop this confusion from happening!


  • 0x6A72320x6A7232 US Join Date: 2016-10-06 Member: 222906Members
    Kurasu wrote: »
    To test: I took all the batteries out of my battery charger (so that's not interfering with the testing). The only thing draining power is the scanner room.
    Collected a bunch of stuff in order to prepare a craft-fest, then I waited for night, until the solar panel was listed as 0%.
    Used the crafter until I was below 1500.
    Once at 1500, the power continued to recharge itself until it stayed at an even(ish) 1500.
    Power is at a 'First In, First Out' basis; if your solar panel was built first, it will drain first and the bioreactors won't pick up again until after it's been drained.
    There really needs to be some kind of panel or setting so people can tell how the power is working. Perhaps even to manually set the order in which power sources are drained. :P At the very least it would stop this confusion from happening!


    Agreed.
  • ssutcliffessutcliffe United States Join Date: 2016-11-01 Member: 223565Members
    There are quite a few things that could be listed on such a panel. Current power and the current drains on the power system is one. Current structure points is another one that needs a decent way to be displayed. I hate having to disassemble a window to find out what is left, or even worse when I build something have the whole base suddenly spring leaks everywhere. Such a panel could be used to turn off the base lights too, which would be nice in a biome like the Grand Reef or Jellyshroom Caves.
  • baronvonsatanbaronvonsatan TX, USA Join Date: 2016-12-01 Member: 224415Members
    edited October 2017
    If your bioreactor's power storage is full, then no-- it won't generate anything at night until the solar cells are empty. Why would it? Power generators don't fill up any storage but their own, even within a class of identical power generators.
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