Total time outside temperature limit

Two short events and one long event can produce the same total duration.

29 June 2026Updated 28 September 2026

Short answer

Split the outside-limit intervals in the logger data into separate events, add up their durations and report the event count, the longest continuous period and the sampling interval next to the total. The same 60-minute total can be one event or six ten-minute events, and their causes and fixes differ.

Total time is useful but tells only part of the story without the event count and the longest continuous period: a 60-minute total can be one event in one record and six ten-minute events in another. So extract each outside-limit interval separately and write down start, end, peak and recovery.

State the sampling interval and which measurement the limit applies to as well. With a coarse interval the true crossing time is uncertain: if k consecutive readings are outside the limit, the real duration lies somewhere between one interval less and one interval more.

Event count
Total and longest duration
Sampling interval
Measurement point

If the event count is rising, look for repeated contact points in the process; if one long event dominates, look for a continuous equipment or waiting cause.