As the servers are used constantly, they generate tremendous heat. When this heat increases beyond control, it may lead to damage of the devices and equipment. Being machines, the computers are delicate under the hood and are prone to damage due to carelessness. System crashes, reboots, hang-ups, untimely failures; poor performance and other problems can be created due to abnormal temperatures. Now, one way to keep these issues under control is to maintain the server room's temperature. Sufficient ventilation, cooling and maintained temperature are the efficient ways to protect computers and servers.

Maintaining the temperature

The computers used at homes and for small offices come with internal cooling devices, which usually keep the desktops and laptops cool. Nevertheless, the server rooms that manage a number of systems do not have sufficient internal cooling systems. They have to be kept cool using an external cooling source, such as portable air-conditioner. Secondly, increased humidity inside the enclosed area can cause corrosion or rust. The maximum humidity level of a server room should not exceed 40 to 50 percent.

Are portable air conditioners good solutions for cooling?

The temperature of the server room should be steadily cool around-the-clock. If the room or storage area is connected to the central cooling systems, they may be shut down during the weekends or sometime late at night, depending upon the company's working hours. If the cooling systems fail, the computer systems are prone to face the brunt.

Portable air-conditioners keep the server rooms cool, as the temperature can be controlled individually depending upon the outside temperature. There are few air-conditioners that adjust the temperature according to the outside temperature on certain modes. They are self-contained units which do not require permanent installation. Business owners can move these units anywhere as required.

A portable AC used in such places must have condensation tank to manage the humidity level, automatic restart function and proper ventilation to replace the hot air inside the room. These features not only keep the servers cool but also regulate fresh air and keep the machines working continuously. The automatic function keeps the air conditioners working continuously even when there is a power cut or failure.

When it comes to the size of the air conditioners it is never an issue. The server closet of size 9000 to 12000BTU will be sufficient for the unit to fit in. While a 12K BTU unit requires 9 to 12 amps a huge unit of 14000BTU requires 20 amps. The air-conditioner should be thoroughly checked for the necessary requirements before installation.