Tag: classifier area cabinet cooler

NEMA 4X Panel Cooling Challenges

Published on by Russ BowmanLeave a comment

Electronic components don’t like heat, which is kind of ironic, considering they generate so much heat by themselves. Heat causes them to malfunction, and prolonged exposure can shorten their lifespan, or even cause them to fail RIGHT NOW. In any case, it’s important to keep them cool.

The computer that sits on my desk has a little fan in the back. This circulates fairly clean air from our climate-controlled office through the inside, keeping everything working just like it should.

It’d be great if ALL electrical & electronic component enclosures were situated in such ideal environments. Many, though, are subject to HARSH conditions: dust, oil vapor, high humidity, water spray for sanitation, high temperatures, corrosive elements – just to name a few. And EXAIR has panel cooling solutions for ALL of them.

Today, dear reader, we’re going to look at that last one: corrosive elements in the environment. Some of the more popular places where we encounter these are:

  • Paper mills use chemicals that create harsh vapors. If you’ve ever been around a paper mill, you likely know the smell of methyl mercaptan. Whether you know the name or not, it’s the source of that trademark odor that permeates the air for MILES around paper mills, and it’s a byproduct of pulp processing that’s corrosive in wet or humid environments . . .like paper mills.
  • Wastewater treatment plants use highly corrosive chemicals to make clean water out of — let’s just say, not-so-clean water. And, the process releases hydrogen sulfide gas, which is HIGHLY corrosive.
  • Chemical plants: they make corrosive stuff ON PURPOSE. To be fair, those harsh chemicals are used in the production of just about everything in the modern world.
  • Electroplating facilities use some of the strongest acids and bases in their plating solutions, which release harsh & corrosive vapors.
  • Food processing facilities have to wash down entire rooms within their buildings, and some of the sanitizing agents they use create corrosive conditions.

You obviously can’t use fans (like my desktop computer in our clean office environment) for cooling control panels in these environments. Panel air conditioners have filters that can get dirty in a hurry, cooling coils that get fouled and corroded, and electric motors that burn out quicker in harsh environments. These environments are where Cabinet Cooler Systems make the most sense. With no moving parts to wear or electrical components to burn out, they’ll run darn near indefinitely, maintenance free, as long as they’re supplied with clean compressed air. And since 100% of the cold air they make comes from the compressed air supply, when they’re properly installed on a sealed panel, the only thing the components inside are ever exposed to is clean, cold, moisture-free air.

EXAIR NEMA 12 (oil tight, dust tight, indoor duty) and NEMA 4 (splash resistant, indoor/outdoor duty) Cabinet Coolers are made of lightweight and fairly corrosion-resistant aluminum. When harsh corrosive elements are present, though, our NEMA 4X (corrosion resistant, indoor/outdoor duty) Cabinet Coolers are made of type 303 Stainless Steel. When PARTICULARLY corrosive elements are present, we also offer them in type 316 Stainless Steel as well.

EXAIR NEMA 4X Cabinet Coolers are made of Stainless Steel for corrosion resistance in the harshest of conditions.

If you’ve got electric panels in a harsh environment, EXAIR has reliable, durable cooling solutions. If you’d like to find out more, give me a call.

Russ Bowman, CCASS

Application Engineer
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Success! A Cabinet Cooler Story

Published on by jasonkirbyLeave a comment

The main production line of a high-capacity fiberglass insulation manufacturing facility faced significant challenges due to fine airborne dust and elevated ambient temperatures. This situation adversely affected the control cabinet, which contained delicate variable frequency drives (VFDs) and programmable logic controllers (PLCs), leading to recurrent thermal shutdowns.

The initial cooling system of the plant depended on standard intake fans and paper filters. However, within a matter of days, the filters became entirely obstructed by fine glass fibers and dust particles, leading to internal cabinet temperatures exceeding 115°F (46°C). In a bid to alleviate the situation, maintenance technicians often resorted to opening the cabinet doors and directing conventional floor fans at the components. Unfortunately, this temporary solution exacerbated the problem by dispersing highly conductive and abrasive dust onto the live circuit boards, significantly increasing the safety risks and jeopardizing the integrity of the components.

The engineering team, in search of a durable and maintenance-free solution, reached out to an application engineer and subsequently acquired a NEMA 4 NHP Cabinet Cooler System.

The plant staff swiftly installed the compact system within minutes by utilizing a standard electrical knockout located on the enclosure’s top. They effectively sealed the old, leaking fan vents and connected the cooler to the existing factory compressed air line using the provided automatic drain water and dirt filter separator.

The system completely transformed their operational reliability through two distinct phases of automated protection:

  • Active Cooling: When the internal cabinet temperature reaches the pre-set thermostat limit, the system’s internal vortex tube transforms the compressed air into a chilled, 20°F (-7°C) airstream without using a single moving part or chemical refrigerant. This cold, clean air was distributed directly onto the hot VFDs, quickly dropping internal temperatures back down to a safe 95°F (35°C).
  • Non-Hazardous Purge: Once the target temperature was met, the modified solenoid valve closed but continued to pass a minimal, continuous stream of 1 SCFM of compressed air into the cabinet. This constant airflow maintained a continuous positive pressure inside the cabinet. This positive pressure acted as an invisible shield, physically blocking the fine fiberglass dust from creeping inside through small door seams, wire conduits, or microscopic gaps.

The manufacturer successfully resolved their summer downtime issues by implementing the EXAIR NEMA 4 NHP Cabinet Cooler System. This system ensured that the cabinet remained sealed, free from dust, and maintained an optimal temperature. With no moving parts susceptible to wear, the plant was able to discontinue weekly filter cleaning, enabling maintenance teams to concentrate on ongoing production instead of managing malfunctioning electronics.

If you have questions about the Cabinet Cooler Systems, or anything regarding EXAIR and our products, please do not hesitate to reach out.

Jason Kirby
Application Engineer
Email: jasonkirby@exair.com
Twitter: @EXAIR_jk

Cabinet Cooler Systems Protect Against Heat Related Failure

Published on by Russ BowmanLeave a comment

Electricity generates heat — there’s no way around it — and heat is bad for electrical and electronic components. Studies show that an 18°F (10°C) rise in operating temperature will cut the average reliability of typical modern electronic components in half. If you’re concerned about the reliability of your equipment, it stands to reason that you should have that same level of concern for what’s protecting it.

Fans in the panel walls that pull outside air through are a cheap & easy way to provide a cooling airflow for the components inside. They work just fine as long as the fan is properly sized, AND the environment is clean enough (remember, anything in the air is going to get inside your panel), AND the ambient temperature doesn’t get too high. Filtering the air being pulled in can help with contamination, but you have to keep an eye on the filter to make sure it doesn’t get clogged. And, in humid areas, fans will draw that humidity (and the potential for condensation) right past all those current carrying devices.

Panel air conditioners are one of the most common methods when fan cooling won’t cut it for any of the above reasons. They solve the problem of humidity, but their cooling capacity is reduced by elevated ambient temperatures. Environmental contaminants can clog the filters and foul the coils, so keeping up on their cleaning & maintenance is crucial.

Heat exchanger type (air-to-air or air-to-water) panel coolers are also subject to failure if they’re not properly maintained. Air-to-water types rely on a refrigerant powered chiller for the water, which has the same drawbacks as a panel air conditioner. It just may not be in proximity to the panel.

Vortex Tube products, like EXAIR’s Cabinet Cooler Systems, have no moving parts to wear or electric motors to burn out. They just need a source of clean compressed air, and they’ll run darn near indefinitely, maintenance free. That’s really all you have to do to prevent their failure — and the failure of the electrical and electronic components in the panel they’re installed on.

Inside, outdoors, high temperature, dirt/dust/humidity, corrosive and classified environments are no problem for EXAIR Cabinet Cooler Systems

If you have an electrical panel with critical equipment in it, you’ve got a lot of options for heat protection. If you want the most durable & reliable method, you’re looking for an EXAIR Cabinet Cooler System. We can help get you the one you need with just a few key pieces of data. You can even use that data to select the right one yourself. If you’d like to find out more, give me a call.

Russ Bowman, CCASS

Application Engineer
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Resources for Finding the Right Cabinet Cooler System

Published on by John BallLeave a comment
From right to left: Small NEMA 12, Large NEMA 12, Large NEMA 4X

During the warmer weather, electrical panels will start to feel the “heat.”  Freon-based coolers can be less effective in higher ambient conditions; and opening the electrical panels to have a fan blowing air inside creates a dangerous hazard.  To reduce loss in production and premature equipment failures, it is important to keep electrical components cool.  The EXAIR Cabinet Cooler Systems are an easy choice for consistent, long-lasting results. 

Cabinet Coolers are powered by Vortex technology, which uses compressed air to generate cold air flow.  They do not have any moving parts to wear.  They do not require any Freon or a refrigerant compressor that can fail.  They require very little to no maintenance to keep them operating for a long time.  EXAIR offers a variety of types and cooling capacities to work inside some of the toughest of conditions.  We range from 275 to 5,600 BTU/hr (80 – 1641 Watts) of cooling power.  They are easy to install, and EXAIR has several ways that can help you start using our Cabinet Cooler Systems. 

At the start, we do have a Cabinet Cooler Sizing Guide to help determine the total heat load.  This can be sent to us for calculations and recommendations.  We also have a Cabinet Cooler System Calculator on our website if you wish to tackle this yourself. 

EXAIR does an excellent job of helping our customers purchase a Cabinet Cooler System.  We use multiple methods to make sure that you are getting the correct information and the best out of our system.  So, if it is your first time ordering a system, here are some areas to help you quickly and easily install your new unit. 

We have our Installation Guides on our website for instructions and troubleshooting.  If you are more visual, like I am, we also have informal videos to give some tips and tricks.  Here is a list: 

How to install a Cold Air Distribution Kit

How to install Side Mount Kit

The Electronic Temperature Controller upgrade

Using the Cabinet Cooler Sizing Guide

Measuring internal and external air temperatures

Installing the Dual Hardware Kit for Dual Cabinet Coolers

Installing NEMA 4/4X Cabinet Coolers

Connecting the Thermostat to the Solenoid Valve

Resetting the thermostat

If you still have any questions, you can reach us by phone at 800-903-9247 or contact us through Chat.  An Application Engineer is waiting to help you.  For our U.S. customers from now until the end of August 2026 with qualified purchases, you will receive an AC Sensor for free, a $77.50 value, as a promotional item.  As I mentioned above, EXAIR has a number of ways to assist you from start to finish.

John Ball
Application Engineer
Email: johnball@exair.com
Twitter: @EXAIR_jb