wine cellar Archives - CellarCool® https://www.cellarcool.com/tag/wine-cellar/ Tue, 19 Oct 2021 00:11:01 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0.4 https://www.cellarcool.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/cropped-CC-32x32.png wine cellar Archives - CellarCool® https://www.cellarcool.com/tag/wine-cellar/ 32 32 Cellar Humidity & Condensate https://www.cellarcool.com/educational/cellar-humidity-condensate/ https://www.cellarcool.com/educational/cellar-humidity-condensate/#respond Wed, 13 Oct 2021 12:07:06 +0000 https://whisperkool.com/?p=13349 Some of our clients are unaware of why their cooling system will produce water condensate through the drain line. This water is a byproduct of your cooling system stripping excess humidity from the air inside your cellar. This feature was added to protect your collection...

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]]> Some of our clients are unaware of why their cooling system will produce water condensate through the drain line.

This water is a byproduct of your cooling system stripping excess humidity from the air inside your cellar. This feature was added to protect your collection from the side effects of long-term storage in a high humidity environment.

How CellarCool Systems Manage Cellar Humidity.Humidity Control

The key difference between CellarCool systems and traditional air conditioner units is the maintenance of well-conditioned humidity. Regular air conditioning units are designed to cool as quickly as possible. As a result, humidity is removed below acceptable wine storage levels. CellarCool achieves optimal results by gently cooling the air within your cellar at a slower rate, thus maintaining optimal humidity levels for the long-term storage of fine wines.

Producing Too Much Water?

If you are experiencing abnormally high volumes of water dispensing from your system’s drain line, your cellar is more than likely suffering from improper vapor barrier applications.
Relative Humidity

In high humidity areas (75%-90% relative humidity) of the country, moisture will frequently travel through the walls (especially in underground applications where materials like concrete or cinderblock are used) and enter the cellar. When creating your wine storage area, it is crucial to research your area’s climate to identify potential areas of concern. We suggest maintaining humidity levels near 55% since higher humidity levels can contradict the cooling process and make it harder to maintain temperature.

What Can You Do To Prepare Your Cellar For Humidity?

Vapor Barrier – 

When building your cellar, a vapor barrier is necessary for the efficient cooling of the cellar environment. The barrier acts as a defense to unwanted moisture coming in or escaping out of your wine cellar environment.

Sealing Your Cellar –

Properly sealing your cellar environment will prevent unwanted humidity from leaking into your cellar and causing your unit to expend more of its capacity to work to strip this excess moisture. Areas of concern are as follows: doors, wall joints, and the cellar’s flooring, & ceiling sealing seal. These areas should all be properly sealed with recommended materials.

An Important Note To Keep In Mind.

When a cooling unit strips excess humidity out of the air within the cellar, it is using a percentage of its overall capacity to do that. For example, if your system was rated to run 50% of the time to cool the heat load of the cellar, it will use an additional 10%-20% of its capacity to work to strip the unwanted humidity from the air, when proper humidity prevention methods are not taken. This is extremely important to note when pertaining to the runtime of your system and the amount of liquid drainage from your cooling system.

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]]> https://www.cellarcool.com/educational/cellar-humidity-condensate/feed/ 0 Extending Cooling System Longevity: Unit Runtime https://www.cellarcool.com/educational/system-runtime/ https://www.cellarcool.com/educational/system-runtime/#respond Fri, 01 Oct 2021 11:18:05 +0000 https://whisperkool.com/?p=13188 Selecting the proper system based on the recommended BTU rating for runtime will have by far the most significant effect on your cooling system’s longevity. Unlike any other appliance you may own, your cellar cooling system will operate regularly throughout the day. These cooling cycles...

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Selecting the proper system based on the recommended BTU rating for runtime will have by far the most significant effect on your cooling system’s longevity. Unlike any other appliance you may own, your cellar cooling system will operate regularly throughout the day. These cooling cycles are necessary to keep your wine at the optimal storage temperature.

Putting It Into Perspective.

Your Cellar Is Like A Walk-In Fridge –

When you build a wine cellar, it is like building a walk-in refrigerator. The cooling unit will operate as needed based on the amount of heat that leaks into the cellar’s surroundings. Unlike your home’s fridge, the area required to cool your wine cellar has a much higher volume and is often not appropriately insulated or sealed.

Operates More Than Typical Appliance –

Typical household appliances, such as microwaves and water heaters, are used for a fraction of an hour or minute per day and only operate a few hours in total a week. In comparison, wine cooling units continuously operate to cool and monitor cellar conditions. Like an industrial walk-in refrigerator, each time a door opens, a cooling cycle will start to compensate for the hot air seeping into the cellar. Therefore, while a typical household appliance would not require much, if any, maintenance. A wine cooling unit, on the other hand, that operates for a more extended period would require some level of maintenance down the line to ensure optimal performance.

Operates More Than Typical Appliance –

Typical household appliances, such as microwaves and water heaters, are used for a fraction of an hour or minute per day and only operate a few hours in total a week. In comparison, wine cooling units continuously operate to cool and monitor cellar conditions. Like an industrial walk-in refrigerator, each time a door opens, a cooling cycle will start to compensate for the hot air seeping into the cellar. Therefore, while a typical household appliance would not require much, if any, maintenance. A wine cooling unit, on the other hand, that operates for a more extended period would require some level of maintenance down the line to ensure optimal performance.

Sizing Your System For Desired Runtime.

Before the purchase, to ensure the longevity of your cooling system, you must choose the appropriate system BTU runtime rating for your unique cellar environment. For example, by selecting a system with a 25% runtime rating in your environment, you can expect your unit to last 300% longer than if you were to choose a system with a 75% rating.

 

Think of your unit like a car.

Instead of comparing your wine cooling system to a typical household appliance think of it like a car. Much like a car, a wine cellar cooling system operates on a daily basis and should follow a maintenance schedule. After such consistent use, parts maintenance is often required to keep the car (or cooling unit) running in top shape. For example, after a vehicle reaches the 3,000 miles, it will require an oil change. At the 60,000-mile mark, parts maintenance is often necessary to inspect and sometimes replace the car’s brake pads, or air filters. Like a car, after a cooling unit consistently operates for 20,000 hours (about five years), parts maintenance is also often required to inspect and sometimes replace some system components. Make sure your system is set up for success. Oversizing your cooling system will put less stress on the unit and, therefore, reduce the need for system maintenance.

 

What Else Can I Do?

Understanding all of the various components that factor into the performance of a cooling system will help you make an informed decision when selecting the proper cooling system for your cellar environment. Learn more about these factors and building an efficient cellar environment by watching our “How to build a wine cellar” video on youtube. You can also check out our website for more great wine cellar resources.

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