The problem of data center hot spots is a constant concern for mission critical owners. In some cases when a hot spot occurs, the excess heat may cause equipment to fail. Without the proper tools, it can be impossible to see the cause and effect of changing floor tiles on the data center floor.
Recently, a client was having issues with hot spots in their data center. To resolve the problem they added more perforated tiles to the room and to their surprise, the more tiles they added, the more hot spots began to appear. Although counterintuitive to some, increasing the number of perforated tiles can exacerbate a low flow problem. The additional perforated tiles reduces the air pressure in the underfloor air plenum which reduces the air flow through the existing perforated tiles. This effect becomes particularly pronounced in data centers that are already operating with low underfloor pressure, caused by the poor management of perforated tiles and other openings in the raised floor.
