Most teams choose the battery first and the cabinet last. That order is backwards. The site decides the enclosure, and the enclosure decides whether the battery gets sensible cooling, usable service access, and enough room for the rest of the power system.
We build these cabinets in Shenzhen for integrators, EPC contractors, and distributors. The practical question is not “Which cabinet looks right?” It is “What must survive inside it, where will it be installed, and how will a technician work on it at 2 a.m.?” Our 48V telecom battery lineup only works well when the cabinet is sized around the complete installation.
What the site tells you before any cabinet is chosen
Start with the load. Multiply the operating demand in amps or kilowatts by the required autonomy hours. That gives the battery energy target, before allowing for conversion losses, reserve margin, battery aging, and the fact that a radio site rarely behaves like a neat laboratory load. A 48V, 100Ah unit stores 4.8kWh and occupies 3U, with a listed height of 133mm. A 50Ah unit provides 2.4kWh and weighs 29kg. The 150Ah and 200Ah formats provide 7.2kWh and 9.6kWh respectively.
Once the energy target is known, calculate how many 48V units are needed. Then calculate U space, not just battery U space. Rectifiers, distribution, breakers, monitoring hardware, cable bend radius, and finger clearance all need somewhere to go. A cabinet that fits the battery on paper can still fail during installation because the breaker section has been treated as decorative furniture.
Battery communication and charging settings also belong in the early check. LINEX standard series batteries use RS485 and RS232, with a 51.0V floating charge setting, 53.3V equalization, and a 40.5V cut-off. The battery’s charge and discharge temperature range matters at exposed sites as well. Use the detailed guides on choosing a 48V telecom battery for a base station and estimating telecom backup duration before fixing cabinet height or quantity.
Outdoor vs indoor: what actually changes
An outdoor enclosure has to separate the battery and power electronics from rain, dust, insects, ultraviolet exposure, and temperature swings. LINEX outdoor cabinets use galvanized cold-rolled steel, 45mm EPS insulation, and IP65 protection. Thermal management is active: the temperature-controlled exhaust fan includes AC power redundancy. The 650mm cabinet uses a 600W fan; 750mm and larger cabinets use a 1500W fan. The enclosure is doing real environmental work, not merely hiding cables.
An indoor cabinet assumes the room provides most of that protection. LINEX indoor cabinets are 19-inch floor-standing designs made from powder-coated SPCC cold-rolled steel, with a tempered glass front door and IP20 protection. Cooling comes from the room and the building’s HVAC design. That can be perfectly adequate in a controlled equipment room, but it is not a substitute for an outdoor thermal system at a roadside or exposed signal site.
Access is another practical difference. The outdoor cabinet has a front single door with a mechanical lock as standard. A front-and-rear double-door arrangement with an electronic lock is optional. A door-controlled LED light helps with inspection inside the enclosure, especially when the site lighting has decided to stop cooperating. Outdoor sizes run from 6U through 26U, in 600×450mm or 600×600mm footprints. Indoor sizes run from 10U through 47U, in 600×800mm or 800×800mm footprints. Review the IP65 outdoor telecom cabinet range and the indoor telecom cabinet range against the actual room or foundation space.
| Comparison | Outdoor cabinet | Indoor cabinet |
|---|---|---|
| Protection | IP65 | IP20 |
| Cooling | Temperature-controlled exhaust fan with AC redundancy | Room cooling |
| Size range | 6U-26U | 10U-47U |
| Footprint | 600×450 / 600×600mm | 600×800 / 800×800mm |
| Typical site | 5G base stations, roadside and rail sites, renewable and IoT projects | Controlled indoor equipment rooms |
| Door & lock | Mechanical standard, electronic lock option | Tempered glass door |
IP65, IP20, and what the numbers actually buy you
IP ratings use two digits. The first describes protection against solids and dust; the second describes protection against water. IP65 means the cabinet is dust-tight and protected against water jets. In practical terms, that covers rain, a hose-down, and dusty outdoor conditions such as a dust storm, within the limits of correct installation and sealed cable entry. The outdoor cabinet also specifies insect-proof construction. That detail is not cosmetic: insects can bridge contacts on outdoor boards, and a tiny visitor can produce a surprisingly expensive fault.
IP20 means something much narrower. The first digit provides protection against access with a finger, while the second digit provides no water protection. In an indoor telecom cabinet, the room supplies the real environmental barrier: a dry floor, managed humidity, stable temperature, and no direct spray. Put an IP20 cabinet outdoors and the label has not misunderstood the assignment; the installation has.
- IP65: dust-tight and protected against water jets.
- IP20: finger-safe against solid objects, with no water protection.
- Outdoor sites need enclosure sealing, insect control, and active thermal management.
- Indoor sites still need sensible room cooling and enough service clearance around the cabinet.
Battery + cabinet pairing: making them fit
U-space is the first reality check. A 100Ah 48V battery is 3U high, or 133mm, and the 150Ah and 200Ah models are 4U, or 178mm. A 12U cabinet can take three 3U 100Ah units, leaving 3U for a rectifier, breakers, and the hardware that prevents a tidy drawing from becoming a wiring puzzle. A 9U cabinet is tight with two 3U units once the rectifier and protection devices are included. A telecom cabinet with battery compartment needs room for connections and service access, not just enough vertical space to close the door.
Depth can defeat an otherwise sensible selection. The 100Ah battery is 420mm deep, but reaches about 482mm with handles and terminals. The 200Ah model is 610mm deep. Match the deeper battery to the 600×600mm outdoor cabinet footprint; use the 600×450mm format for slimmer builds where the battery depth and cable bend radius allow it. Outdoor cabinets are available from 6U to 26U, so extra U-space can be used for rectifiers, breakers, communications hardware, or future battery capacity rather than dead space.
Some RRU and AAU pole sites have no cabinet position at all. For those sites, the IP65 pole-mounted 48V 50Ah unit provides 2.4kWh in a 298.3×170.2×311mm enclosure weighing about 22.2kg, with an operating range of -20°C to 60°C. See the pole-mounted 48V 50Ah lithium battery for this compact arrangement. For parallel systems, use the same battery model across the bank and matched cables; our parallel rack and cabinet planning guide covers the practical layout.
Heat, access, and the details that bite later
Cycle life is rated at 25°C. A cabinet that quietly bakes its batteries accelerates cell aging and can shave years from the installation. Insulation slows heat transfer, placement avoids direct heat sources, and ventilation removes heat when the cabinet interior rises; none of these is a substitute for the others. LINEX outdoor cabinets use 45mm EPS insulation and a temperature-controlled exhaust fan, with 600W cooling on the 650mm cabinet and 1500W on 750mm and larger cabinets. Both arrangements include AC redundancy.
Access is part of thermal and electrical design. The standard outdoor cabinet has a single mechanical-lock door, while dual doors with an electronic lock are optional. A door-controlled LED light helps during service, but it does not create clearance where none was left; allow working room for terminals, breakers, fan service, and battery removal. Before the site goes live, verify telemetry from every battery, including communications through RS485 or RS232. Our guide to keeping base stations online with 48V lithium batteries covers the commissioning logic in more detail.
What to send us for a cabinet + battery quote
Send the site load in amps or kW, required autonomy in hours, indoor or outdoor location, expected climate, preferred rack or cabinet format, rectifier interface, fleet size, and destination. Add the available footprint and any height or depth limit; those two measurements often decide the enclosure before the battery does. For remote installations, the telecom remote-site application information helps frame the selection. For a project-specific cabinet and battery review, send the brief through LINEX contact.
Quick answers
Check IP65 protection, galvanized steel construction, 45mm EPS insulation, temperature-controlled exhaust, and enough U-space for batteries, rectifier, breakers, and service access. Confirm the footprint, depth, lock arrangement, and cooling capacity rather than choosing by cabinet height alone.
For an outdoor site exposed to dust and water, IP65 is the appropriate enclosure target in the LINEX outdoor range. Indoor cabinets use IP20 because they are intended for a controlled room, not weather exposure.
A 100Ah battery occupies 3U and is 420mm deep, reaching about 482mm with handles and terminals. The 150Ah and 200Ah models occupy 4U; the 200Ah version is 610mm deep, so depth and cable clearance matter as much as U-space.
Choose the indoor format when the equipment is installed inside a protected technical room and does not need IP65 weather protection. LINEX indoor cabinets range from 10U to 47U, use SPCC steel with powder coating, and have a tempered glass door.
Use a 600×450mm outdoor cabinet for a slim build, or 600×600mm where deeper batteries need more room. If no cabinet fits at the pole, the IP65 48V 50Ah pole-mounted unit provides 2.4kWh and operates from -20°C to 60°C.
LINEX rack batteries charge from 0°C to 65°C and discharge from -20°C to 65°C; the pole-mounted 50Ah unit operates from -20°C to 60°C. Design cooling around the actual cabinet temperature, since the 6000-cycle rating is specified at 25°C and heat accelerates cell aging.
The battery lineup described here is 48V LiFePO4, and its charging, communications, dimensions, and protection settings are specified for that chemistry. Lead-acid installation requires separate confirmation of weight, charging equipment, ventilation, and mounting compatibility before selecting the cabinet.
Use the standard mechanical lock or specify the optional electronic lock and dual-door arrangement where access control requires it. Leave clearance around terminals and breakers, keep the fan path unobstructed, and use the door-controlled LED to support inspections without turning the cabinet into a dark cupboard.