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Calcimator

Museum Climate Control Calculator

Calculate temperature and humidity targets, HVAC tonnage, and annual energy costs for museum conservation environments.

Inputs

%

Results

Target temperature (°F)

70

Target RH (%)

50

Temp range low (°F)68
Temp range high (°F)72
Max temp fluctuation (±°F)2
Max RH fluctuation (±%)5
HVAC tonnage needed4.8
Humidification (gal/day)2.4
Annual energy (kWh)30,275
Annual energy cost$3,633.00
Energy cost per sq ft/year$1.82
Ashrae ClassA (Tight)
How to Use This Calculator
  1. Enter Collection type, Gallery area (sq ft), and Ceiling height (ft).
  2. Set Outdoor design temp (°F), Outdoor design RH (%), and Electricity cost ($/kWh).
  3. Review Target temperature (°F) and Target RH (%).
  4. Use Temp range low (°F) and Temp range high (°F) to inform your decision.

What each input means

Collection type
1 = Paper/photos (65-70°F, 30-40% RH); 2 = Textiles (65-70°F, 45-55%); 3 = Oil/wood (68-72°F, 45-55%); 4 = Metal/ceramic (65-75°F, <45%); 5 = Mixed (68-72°F, 45-55%).
Gallery area (sq ft)
Total gallery or storage area to climate-control.
Ceiling height (ft)
Gallery ceiling height.
Outdoor design temp (°F)
Outdoor design temperature for peak HVAC load calculation (summer peak for cooling).
Outdoor design RH (%)
Outdoor relative humidity at design conditions.
Electricity cost ($/kWh)
Local electricity cost per kilowatt-hour.

What each result means

Target temperature (°F)
Recommended temperature setpoint for the collection type.
Target RH (%)
Recommended relative humidity setpoint.
Temp range low (°F)
Lower bound of acceptable temperature range.
Temp range high (°F)
Upper bound of acceptable temperature range.
Max temp fluctuation (±°F)
Maximum allowable short-term temperature variation.
Max RH fluctuation (±%)
Maximum allowable short-term RH variation.
HVAC tonnage needed
Estimated cooling/heating tonnage for the space.
Humidification (gal/day)
Estimated daily water volume for humidity control.
Annual energy (kWh)
Estimated annual electricity consumption for HVAC.
Annual energy cost
Estimated annual electricity cost for climate control.
Energy cost per sq ft/year
Annual climate control energy cost per square foot.

How this is calculated

Worked example, using the default values

  1. Identify Input Parameters
    4 parameters
    Collection type = 5, Gallery area (sq ft) = 2000, Ceiling height (ft) = 12, Outdoor design temp (°F) = 85 = 6 input(s) provided
  2. Calculate Target temperature
    Target temperature = (spec.tempLowF + spec.tempHighF) / 2
    70 = 70
  3. Calculate Target RH
    Target RH = (spec.rhLow + spec.rhHigh) / 2
    50 = 50
  4. Calculate Temp range low
    Temp range low = spec.tempLowF
    68 = 68
  5. Calculate Temp range high
    Temp range high = spec.tempHighF
    72 = 72

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