Illuminance levels in the battery room shall be designed to meet IESNA Lighting Handbook recommendations with a minimum illumination level of 300 lux (30 fc). The lighting design shall consider the type of battery rack and the physical battery configuration to ensure that all points of connection, maintenance and testing are adequately illuminated.
Battery rooms require adequate lighting since the recording of regular readings of voltage, specific gravity, and electrolyte level is essential. These are required to ensure the battery’s long lifespan. Therefore, the lighting used in these rooms must not only be sufficient but also resistant to corrosion from acid fumes.
For vented batteries, room lighting should be intrinsically safe to avoid explosions caused by sparks igniting hydrogen gas. For VRLA batteries normal lighting may be used. This does assume that the correct battery charging characteristics are used and correct ventilation has been provided.
️Please click on the links below to hear the podcast episodes related to battery room design: Regarding ventilation requirements, the battery room should be well equipped with sufficient windows or exhaust fans to ensure proper ventilation and the removal of gases released during charging.
The entire lighting installation within the battery room shall consist of explosion proof luminaires which shall be designed in such a way that all possible sources of ignition, such as arcs, sparks and excessive surface temperatures, can be closely controlled and the probability of an explosion occurring is reduced to an acceptably low level.
Battery room compliance can be interpreted differently depending on your battery type, amount of cells or multi-cell units in a common area, volume of electrolyte and voltage present. Although the code is specific about requirements, the local interpretation can vary depending on the end users experience or awareness.