Work out enclosure cooling requirement instantly with clear inputs, formula shown and shareable results.
A sealed steel enclosure dissipates roughly 5.5 W per square metre per degree of temperature difference. If the internal heat load exceeds that, active cooling is needed — a filter fan when the ambient is comfortably below the target, and refrigerated cooling when it is not.
Enclosure cooling
natural dissipation = 5.5 x area x (T_internal - T_ambient); active cooling = heat load - natural
A fan can only bring the inside toward ambient. If ambient is at or above the target temperature, no airflow will help and refrigeration is required.
Faces exposed to still air. A wall-mounted enclosure loses its back face, and enclosures in a row lose their sides, so effective area is much less than total area.