If you are a technical professional in the UK, you are likely to find yourself frequently needing to navigate between the metric and imperial systems.
Among the various units of measurement for temperature, Celsius (°C) and Kelvin (K) are standard in the majority of scientific and engineering contexts. However, the Fahrenheit (°F) scale is often used for equipment specifications, legacy documentation, and machinery imported from the United States.
So, when it comes to ensuring accurate specifications and seamless operations, it is vital for engineers to know how to convert between the different common temperature scales.
Why Do Engineers Need to Convert Quickly Between Temperature Units?
It isn’t just simple ambient readings that may bring with them a need for rapid and accurate temperature conversion.
That’s because such conversions can also be crucial for purposes like:
- The calibration of equipment to make sure instruments adhere to certain regional standards
- The reading of technical datasheets, with imported component specifications, such as those provided in Fahrenheit, often needing to be interpreted
- Process monitoring, given the need for electrical signals produced by temperature sensors to be conditioned and converted
- Documentation, to ensure the utmost accuracy, clarity, and consistency – particularly when collaborating across national borders or different disciplines.
How, Then, Can You Convert Celsius to Fahrenheit?
If this is the specific temperature unit conversion you need to make in an engineering environment, the good news is that you can easily perform a manual calculation for this.
To convert Celsius to Fahrenheit, you simply need to multiply the Celsius value by 9/5 (or 1.8) and then add 32. This formula can be expressed as °F = (°C x 1.8) + 32.
So, for example, if your starting figure is 25°C, multiplying it by 1.8 would give you 45, which – when you add 32 – becomes 77°F.
Don’t Overlook the Value of Online Temperature Conversion Tools
A reputable online tool can enable you to perform such workings-out even more quickly. It also gives you a convenient means of verifying the accuracy of any manual calculation you may have undertaken.
You could point your browser towards the website of electrical component supplier RS, for instance, and use the temperature conversion calculator for °C, °F, and Kelvin values alike.
Scroll down the same page below the calculator itself, and you will see a list of formulas for other temperature conversions you may need to make from time to time. The formula for converting from Fahrenheit to Celsius, for example, is: °C = (°F – 32) x 5/9.
The Engineer’s Quick Reference Guide (C/F/K)
We’ll leave you with this handy reference table of common temperatures in engineering contexts. This may be useful for confirming things you already know, or for situations when you require approximate values:
| Description | Celsius (°C) | Fahrenheit (°F) | Kelvin (K) |
| Freezing point of water | 0°C | 32°F | 273.15 K |
| Room temperature (approx.) | 20-25°C | 68-77°F | 293.15-298.15 K |
| Human body temperature | 37°C | 98.6°F | 310.15 K |
| Boiling point of water | 100°C | 212°F | 373.15 K |
| Common soldering temperature | ~200°C | ~392°F | ~473.15 K |
| Absolute zero | ~273.15°C | ~459.67°F | 0K |
Please feel free to bookmark this page, and perhaps the aforementioned RS temperature conversion tool too, so that you can refer to these in your future engineering projects.