United States climate exposure

Houston Climate Exposure: Humidity, Corrosion and Condensation Risks for Industrial Equipment

Houston represents a humid Gulf Coast environment where moisture, heat and industrial coastal context can affect field reliability.

Climate exposure summary
CE-4Severe Humid Exposure
  • Very high humidity exposure
  • Elevated condensation potential
  • Industrial coastal corrosion context

Humidity is the primary stressor. Heat and industrial coast is the secondary driver for reliability and field durability decisions.

CE classes describe overall environmental severity and are not equivalent to ISO corrosivity classes.

Dominant mechanismsHigh humidityCondensation potentialCoastal and industrial influence
Humid SubtropicalHigh humidityRegional coastal influence marine exposure
Houston29.760, -95.370
Engineering Climate Fingerprintâ„¢

Houston environmental load barcode.

A normalized 0-100 matrix showing which exposure mechanisms dominate the deployment environment. Scores describe environmental load intensity, not failure probability.

ECF patternPrimary: Humidity · Secondary: Condensation
Humidity78High
Condensation66High
Thermal58Moderate
Marine24Low
Pollution58Moderate
Freeze8Minimal
Humidity: RH80, RH90 and Gulf Coast moisture loadCondensation: Dew-point margin and overnight moisture periodsThermal: Heat hours and seasonal thermal loadMarine: North America V2 total chloride at Houston: 3.0 mg/m2/dayPollution: MERRA-2 sulfate deposition background at Houston: 6.2 mg/m2/dayFreeze: Rare frost exposure
Typical Applications

Equipment categories where this climate profile is relevant.

Industrial EquipmentOil & Gas ElectronicsBESSOutdoor ControlsTelecom EquipmentUtility Infrastructure
Why this climate matters

Why Houston climate matters

Gulf Coast humidity creates long periods of elevated moisture exposure that can affect electronics, battery systems and outdoor equipment.

The combination of warm temperatures, high dew points and regional industrial context makes Houston a practical stress case for infrastructure operators and product durability teams.

For qualification planning, Houston is useful because it is not purely tropical, but it can still create severe humidity-led exposure for outdoor assets.

Engineering metrics

Exposure metrics that matter before deployment.

Climetry-derived indicators summarize environmental severity. ISO-derived indicators estimate material-related atmospheric corrosivity for metals such as carbon steel, zinc, copper and aluminum.

Climate Exposure SummaryHumid subtropical

High moisture load with heat and coastal-industrial context.

Corrosion RiskHigh

Humidity and Gulf Coast influence increase exposure severity.

Condensation RiskModerate to high

Moist overnight and seasonal transitions matter.

RH80 Hours4,160 h/year

CEY10 long annual wet-hour exposure window.

RH90 Hours2,354 h/year

CEY10 frequent high-humidity stress periods.

Climate ClassificationHumid Subtropical

Warm, moist, and seasonally storm-influenced.

Monthly climate profile

Houston thermodynamic exposure by month.

Preview profiles show monthly min-max envelopes, P10-P90 percentile bands, and monthly means for the core thermodynamic variables.

Relative humidity

74 % annual mean

High humidity persists across seasons, with warm-season moisture stress.

51 %74 %97 %JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Min-max P10-P90 Mean
Air temperature

21.6 C annual mean

Summer heat combines with humidity for enclosure and electronics stress.

1.3 C21.0 C40.7 CJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Min-max P10-P90 Mean
Absolute humidity

14.4 g/m3 annual mean

Absolute humidity is high during the long warm season.

1.7 g/m314.9 g/m328.1 g/m3JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Min-max P10-P90 Mean
Dew point

15.7 C annual mean

Dew point rises strongly in summer, increasing condensation relevance.

-1.3 C15.5 C32.3 CJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Min-max P10-P90 Mean
Hourly CEY engineering statistics

Houston representative-year diagrams.

These figures are calculated from the local hourly Climetry Environmental Year and translate thermodynamic climate data into engineering-readable duration, cycle and moisture-risk views.

Houston CEY10 temperature duration

CEY10 temperature duration

Houston's 1 C temperature-duration histogram is calculated from the selected hourly CEY10 source months. It shows how long products experience each outdoor temperature band during the representative year.

Houston CEY10 relative humidity duration

CEY10 relative humidity duration

The RH duration histogram translates relative humidity into annual exposure hours. It supports moisture-sensitive electronics, coating, connector and enclosure screening.

Houston Temperature x RH occurrence

Temperature x RH occurrence

The joint duration heatmap shows which temperature and humidity combinations occur together. This is more useful for durability screening than separate annual averages.

Houston Psychrometric moisture density

Psychrometric moisture density

The psychrometric density view connects dry-bulb temperature with absolute humidity and helps identify moisture-rich operating conditions and drying limitations.

Houston P05 / P50 / P95 thermodynamic profile

P05 / P50 / P95 thermodynamic profile

The percentile profile summarizes the representative spread of temperature, dew point, relative humidity, absolute humidity and dew-point margin.

Houston Representative moisture-risk week

Representative moisture-risk week

The selected high-risk week highlights periods with elevated humidity, absolute humidity and small dew-point spread. It is a screening view for condensation and moisture-ingress relevance.

Houston Daily temperature cycle histogram

Daily temperature cycle histogram

Daily temperature-cycle statistics provide engineering input for thermomechanical reliability assessments, enclosure breathing and gasket stress screening.

Houston Heating-design cold-week histogram

Heating-design cold-week histogram

The cold-week temperature histogram is useful for heating-load screening in temperate and cold climates. In tropical climates it confirms low heating-design relevance.

Definitions

Terms used on this page.

CE class

A Climetry Exposure Class is a location-based environmental severity class for durability screening.

CE classes summarize humidity, condensation potential, marine influence, pollution context and thermal exposure. They are not ISO 9223 corrosivity classes.

RH80 exposure

RH80 exposure is the number of hours where relative humidity is at least 80%.

It is useful for identifying persistent moisture exposure relevant to electronics, coatings, connectors, enclosures and atmospheric corrosion screening.

Condensation potential

Condensation potential indicates conditions where surface wetting risk is elevated.

It is derived from temperature, dew point and humidity context. It is a screening indicator, not a measurement on a specific product surface.

Atmospheric transport screening

North America V2 chloride and MERRA-2 sulfate context.

Houston chloride is sampled from the current Climetry North America V2 land-only total chloride overlay. Sulfur exposure is represented by MERRA-2 sulfate deposition background because the internal SOx transport magnitude does not generalize robustly.

Annual Grid-Cell Chloride9.7 mg/m2/day

Annual mean sampled at Houston from the current North America V2 land-only total chloride overlay.

Chloride StatusV2 ISO screening

North America V2 combines NADP-calibrated marine wet deposition, dry-deposition uplift and a coastal aerosol tail. The current open-fetch logic keeps Houston in the low-S1 Gulf Coast corridor range.

Distance to Coast31 km

Houston is close enough to the Gulf Coast corridor for marine chloride screening to remain relevant.

MERRA-2 Sulfate6.2 mg/m2/day

Annual wet+dry sulfate deposition background sampled from MERRA-2. Use as regional sulfur-deposition context, not SO2 gas concentration.

Sulfate ConfidenceValidated background

MERRA-2 sulfate shows strong NADP wet-sulfate agreement in the USA; total wet+dry magnitude remains a background screening input.

ISO Input ClassesT4 / S1 / sulfate background

Approximate screening inputs: time of wetness, V2 total chloride and MERRA-2 sulfate deposition background.

Carbon SteelScreening only

Humidity remains the primary driver; sulfate is now represented with MERRA-2 background rather than uncalibrated SOx magnitude.

AluminumScreening only

Chloride-sensitive interpretation should use the V2 total chloride value and local site context.

Corrosion DriverHumidity + coastal chloride

For Houston, wet hours, Gulf Coast aerosol influence and regional sulfate background jointly define the screening context.

Monthly atmospheric transport profile

Houston chloride and sulfate screening by month.

Monthly chloride values are sampled from the current North America V2 total chloride overlay at the Houston grid cell. Sulfate values are sampled from MERRA-2 2020-2024 monthly wet+dry deposition background.

Chloride deposition

9.733 mg/m2/day annual mean

Monthly V2 total chloride estimates remain in the low S1 screening range at the sampled inland Houston grid cell. The value is visible as Gulf Coast transport context without treating Houston as an exposed surf-zone site.

5.732 mg/m2/day9.850 mg/m2/day13.968 mg/m2/dayJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Min-max P10-P90 Mean
MERRA-2 sulfate deposition

6.212 mg/m2/day annual mean

MERRA-2 sulfate background is moderate for Houston and provides the preferred sulfur-deposition context for corrosion screening.

4.029 mg/m2/day6.430 mg/m2/day8.831 mg/m2/dayJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Min-max P10-P90 Mean
Plastic ageing context

Houston UV and ozone exposure for polymer screening.

Houston has a strong warm-season UV signal and moderate ozone. Plastic ageing exposure is high in summer and remains meaningful outside the peak season.

Mean UV Surface Dose61.7 kJ/m2/day

ERA5 2015-2024 monthly climatology sampled at the city grid cell.

Peak UV Month86.6 kJ/m2/day

Highest monthly mean daily UV dose in the representative climatology.

Mean Surface Ozone29.8 ppb

CAMS EAC4 surface ozone climatology for elastomer and rubber ageing context.

Plastic Ageing Index79 / 100

Partial Climetry v0.1 screening index from UV and ozone only; not a lifetime prediction.

Engineering interpretation

For Gulf Coast products, polymer ageing should be evaluated together with humidity and corrosion exposure. UV alone is not the full story; moisture, heat and ozone-sensitive elastomers can act in parallel.

Monthly plastic ageing profile

Houston UV and ozone exposure by month.

Monthly profiles show UV surface dose, surface ozone and a partial Plastic Ageing Exposure Index. Thermal oxidation, hydrolysis and moisture ageing will be refined with CEY thermodynamic channels.

UV surface dose

61.7 kJ/m2/day annual mean

Mean daily UV surface dose by calendar month. Useful for photo-oxidation screening of plastics, coatings, cable jackets and exposed polymer housings.

19.8 kJ/m2/day59.9 kJ/m2/day100.1 kJ/m2/dayJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Min-max P10-P90 Mean
Surface ozone

29.8 ppb annual mean

Monthly surface ozone climatology. Relevant for ozone-sensitive elastomers, seals, rubber parts and strained polymer components.

12.7 ppb30.2 ppb47.7 ppbJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Min-max P10-P90 Mean
Plastic ageing exposure

79 score annual mean

Partial Climetry Plastic Ageing Exposure Index v0.1 from UV and ozone channels only. Thermal and moisture ageing channels will be added from CEY.

61 score78 score94 scoreJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Min-max P10-P90 Mean
Environmental Data Confidence

ERA5 climate data show consistent long-term environmental agreement.

The environmental indicators presented on this page are derived from ERA5 climate data.

ERA5 thermodynamic variables have been compared against long-term airport weather station observations across multiple climate regions.

The comparison demonstrates good agreement between ERA5 and measured environmental conditions.

TemperatureRMSE 1.15 °C
Dew pointRMSE 1.20 °C
Relative humidityRMSE 5.48 %-points

These comparisons evaluate long-term environmental representativeness and not individual weather events.

Local Station Consistency

Houston: ERA5 vs Weather Station Observations

Monthly thermodynamic comparison against Houston Intercontinental (KIAH) weather observations for 2025.

TemperatureRMSE 0.99 C
Dew pointRMSE 0.58 C
Relative humidityRMSE 5.89 %-points
Meteostat monthly valuesERA5 monthly values
City-specific comparison against Houston Intercontinental (KIAH). The chart is schematic; the RMSE values above are calculated from monthly station-versus-ERA5 2025 data.Read methodology
Report preview

Houston exposure report structure.

The full report combines climate classification, corrosion screening, condensation exposure, RH80/RH90 hours, marine context, monthly profiles, and reliability implications.

Climate ClassificationHumid SubtropicalClimate zone
Climetry Exposure Class (CE)CE-4Environmental severity
Corrosion ScreeningHighISO-derived indicator
Condensation RiskModerate to highMoisture
RH80 Hours4,160 h/yearWet-hour proxy
RH90 Hours2,354 h/yearExtreme humidity

Reliability implications for Houston

High humidity and condensation exposure may result in a severe Climetry Exposure Class even if atmospheric metal corrosivity remains moderate. CE classes indicate environmental severity and qualification relevance, not failure probability.

  • Treat humidity and corrosion as recurring field stressors, not rare edge cases.
  • Review coating, gasket, venting, and inspection assumptions for outdoor cabinets and infrastructure.
  • Consider regional pollutant and marine modifiers for more advanced corrosion screening.
Learn More

Engineering context behind the city exposure pages.

Interactive assessment

Understand your own environmental exposure.

Analyze any location worldwide and compare humidity, condensation and environmental severity.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

What does CE-4 mean for Houston?

CE-4 is a Climetry Exposure Class. It describes overall environmental severity for durability screening and qualification support at this location.

Is this a corrosion prediction?

No. The page provides environmental exposure screening. Corrosion indicators are engineering screening outputs, not failure probability and not a product-specific lifetime prediction.

How reliable are the climate data?

The indicators are derived from ERA5 climate data. ERA5 thermodynamic variables have been compared against representative airport weather observations and show good monthly agreement for temperature, dew point and relative humidity.

What is the difference between CE class and ISO corrosivity?

CE classes describe overall environmental severity. ISO 9223 corrosivity classes describe material-related atmospheric corrosivity categories. They are related but not equivalent.

How does Climetry use ERA5?

Climetry uses ERA5 temperature, dew point and pressure fields to derive relative humidity, absolute humidity and environmental exposure indicators for engineering interpretation.