When your testing depends on controlling both temperature and moisture, a benchtop humidity chamber can be an effective and practical solution. These compact chambers make it possible to run precise, repeatable tests without taking up unnecessary lab space, whether you’re working with aerospace components, electronics, or other sensitive materials.
But humidity control isn’t necessary for every application. That’s why, as we discuss benchtop humidity chambers from Associated Environmental Systems (AES), we’ll also touch on other benchtop chamber options to help you understand the differences and choose the setup that best fits your testing needs.
What Are Benchtop Chambers?
What Is a Benchtop Temperature & Humidity Chamber?
Benchtop humidity chambers give laboratories a practical way to control temperature and moisture without sacrificing space. Teams can place them on benches or tables, or stack them to increase humidity testing capacity, all while keeping their lab layouts efficient. With interior volumes typically ranging from 1 to 13 cubic feet, these chambers work very well for testing smaller components and devices under test (DUTs).
Labs across many different industries use benchtop humidity chambers for a wide range of testing applications, including:
Battery Testing
Battery testing plays a critical role in evaluating battery safety, performance, and long-term durability. EV and consumer electronics manufacturers often use benchtop humidity chambers to expose batteries to controlled temperature and moisture conditions, helping teams understand how cells respond to real-world environments. These chambers also support research, product development, and battery conditioning throughout the testing process.
Temperature Cycling
In industries like aerospace, teams need to understand how products, materials, and components hold up under repeated environmental changes. Benchtop humidity chambers support temperature cycling while also allowing engineers to evaluate performance under controlled moisture conditions. This helps reduce the risk of mechanical or manufacturing failures once products move into real-world use.
Stability Testing
Pharmaceutical companies rely on stability testing to understand how products and packaging perform over time and under specific environmental conditions. Benchtop humidity chambers let teams evaluate shelf life, material integrity, and packaging performance by maintaining controlled temperature and humidity levels throughout the testing process.
Benchtop humidity chambers are part of a broader group of benchtop environmental test chambers designed to support many types of product testing. Depending on the application, labs may also use temperature-only chambers, laboratory or liquid-cooled ovens, and salt spray chambers to simulate environmental conditions at various extremes.
Temperature-Only Benchtop Thermal Chamber vs. Humidity Chamber
While benchtop environmental chambers are available in multiple models, they’re most commonly used as humidity or temperature chambers. A standard benchtop humidity chamber can cost around $14,700, while a temperature-only chamber starts at just under $14,000 for the smallest models.
Both models have similar workspace volumes ranging from 1.01 to 12.95 cubic feet and accommodate high and low temperatures ranging from -37°C to 180°C (-34.6°F to 356°F). Apart from the 500 series with single-stage refrigeration, AES additionally offers a 200 series with cascade refrigeration that lowers the temperature to -70°C.
Both temperature-only and humidity test chambers utilize vapor generator systems to give you precise control over extreme environmental conditions. However, a benchtop temperature chamber specifically can achieve controlled temperatures facilitated by open ceramic-core nichrome heaters and a self-contained, compact, mechanical, single-stage refrigeration cooling or cascade refrigeration system.
Humidity chambers also have the unique ability to expand the standard 95% RH humidity range with optional features. High humidity sensors with added options enable you to control humidity conditions up to 98% RH, while you can reach extremely dry air conditions with nitrogen purges, dry-air purges through a desiccant air dryer, or a recirculating desiccant air dryer. Certain benchtop humidity chambers, such as the LH Series, are also designed with steady-state testing in mind. Other models enable high-performance testing or cycling.Alternatively, the SCH Series (temperature and humidity) and SC series (temperature-only) offer the fastest rise and pull-down rates available in benchtop chambers—up to 5°C per minute—making them ideal for battery testing applications. They are also designed to integrate with battery testing fixtures, including high-amperage batteries EVs require. In short, stackability makes battery testing far more versatile since each chamber can run different tests independently with various temperatures, test profiles, and more.
The Benefits of Benchtop Humidity Chambers
Benchtop humidity chambers give labs the benefits of environmental testing without demanding a large footprint. Their stackable, compact design lets teams expand testing capacity over time, without needing to replace existing equipment. So, when testing needs grow, labs can add additional benchtop humidity chambers instead of investing in a single large system. Running multiple smaller chambers also lets teams isolate individual tests, which reduces downtime and limits the number of devices under test (DUTs) affected if an issue occurs, all while still ensuring accurate testing.
Lab space often limits how much testing teams can run at once. However, benchtop humidity chambers from AES allow teams to stack up to three chambers high, increasing testing capacity while preserving floor space for movement, power access, and safety. AES also works directly with customers to help improve lab design, prepare for future expansion, and support safe, efficient testing environments.
Which Temperature Humidity Chamber Benchtop System Is Right For You?
We’re here to bring you advanced testing solutions. Whether you’re interested in benchtop humidity chambers like our LH and SCH Series for battery testing or product testing, you can rely on us to meet your needs. Share your next big idea with an AES sales engineer today.
FAQ: Benchtop Humidity Chamber Solutions
What are humidity and temperature stability test chambers?
Humidity and temperature stability test chambers control environmental conditions to evaluate how products, materials, and packaging perform over time. Labs use these chambers to maintain consistent temperature and relative humidity levels during shelf-life, durability, and conditioning tests.
What do temperature test chambers test?
Temperature test chambers evaluate how products respond to controlled heating and cooling cycles. Teams use them to identify thermal stress points, material expansion or contraction issues, and performance limits when humidity control is not required.
How does a humidity and temperature chamber benchtop system work?
A temperature and humidity testing chamber benchtop system regulates heat and moisture using integrated heating, cooling, humidification, and dehumidification systems, all with the convenience of a benchtop unit. Sensors continuously monitor conditions and adjust the system to maintain precise temperature and relative humidity setpoints throughout the test cycle.
What is the purpose of a humidity chamber?
A humidity chamber allows teams to test how products perform when exposed to controlled moisture levels. Industries use humidity chambers to evaluate stability, material behavior, corrosion risk, and packaging integrity under real-world environmental conditions.
We’re here to bring you advanced testing solutions. Whether you’re interested in benchtop chambers for battery testing or product testing, you can rely on us to meet your needs. Share your next big idea with an AES sales engineer today.
