Deploy & Ops · 3 min read
Site survey — can this room host a liquid cabinet?
Before any vendor call, walk the room with this survey. Five of the six items kill micro-DC liquid deployments in rooms that "look fine": floor, power, heat egress, water, access, noise. Every item links to the math or the check that settles it.
| # | Check | Pass condition | Tool / formula |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Floor loading | As-built slab rating ≥ filled rack print (often 7+ kN/m²) | Floor loading calc + structural sign-off |
| 2 | Electrical | Feed capacity ≥ IT × 1.2 + AC; redundant path or UPS as required | TDP → rack kW |
| 3 | Heat egress (L2A) | Room AC ≥ 1.1 × IT with margin, air path in/out of the cabinet row | 1.1× rule + worked guide |
| 4 | Water (L2L only) | Facility loop capacity, temperature class and quality documented | W-class lookup |
| 5 | Access & delivery | Door widths, lift capacity, corridor turns for a ~1 t crate on a pallet | Measure on site; photograph the worst turn |
| 6 | Noise | Room/adjacent use compatible with fan and pump noise at full load | Ask vendor for full-load dBA at 1 m; check room use |
Climate check
Room design temperature drives capacity: an L2A cabinet rated at 25 °C air delivers roughly half at 35 °C (approach temperature). In the tropics the survey includes the room's worst-case temperature with AC failure margins — see hot & tropical climates.
Red flags
- "The floor is raised, so it's data-center grade" — raised ≠ reinforced. Get the as-built rating.
- "We'll add AC later" — the day-one AC is what the cabinet derates against. Size now (calculator).
- Untested condensation margin — cold coolant below room dew point sweats onto live hardware; verify supply temperature vs worst-case dew point.
Related
Room load calculation · RFQ scope checklist · Commissioning
Sources
Survey structure from this site's engineering pages; thresholds link to the formula pages where each number comes from. Nothing on this page replaces a licensed structural and electrical review.