The cooling of any refuge chamber is essential to counter the potentially fatal affects of heat stress. Aside from ambient mine temperatures, occupants themselves will generate between 120-180W of metabolic heat every hour, leading to potentially fatal levels within just a few hours, depending on conditions.

All MineARC Electrically Powered Refuges are therefore fitted with quality reverse cycle (split system inverter) air conditioners featuring hand held remote control operation (9000 to 36,000 BTU model ratings available).

The air conditioning system is designed to run off a mine's mains power supply but automatically switches to the battery backup system if mains power is lost.

Many industry guidelines and regulations around the world now recognize the importance of cooling and state that the internal (apparent) temperature of a refuge must not exceed 35°C (27°C at 100% humidity) Even at low external temperatures the internal temperature and humidity can quickly exceed this limit. For this reason all MineARC Refuge Chambers include a cooling system.