# bottled, need storage device.



## jcnoren (Nov 18, 2005)

require suggestions for an inexpensive way/device to hold my wine bottles...now that they are supposed to be on their sides.





JC*Edited by: jcnoren *


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## jojo (Nov 18, 2005)

i have no rack - yet. iuse old wine boxes from V. Sattui tilted on their side against the cement wall in the basement. i hear milk crates work. i want to build a diamond rack this winter.


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## MedPretzel (Nov 18, 2005)

Okay, here's my idea, which I used, and it hasn't broken yet...


I had an old bookshelf. I took the shelves out, and made an "X" with some old boards I had. There was one long board, which I cut to fit diagonally. I had two others, which I cut to fit. I fitted the two short ones to the middle of the long one, and fastened them with 2 L-brackets for stability. I put the "X" into the bookshelf and screwed them from the outside to stabilize them. From the back, I also screwed it, so that it doesn't sag.


Then I painted the whole thing, and , like I said, it works. I also did another one with 2x4's which is a disaster. It's a big balancing act. I'd stick with the boards that have more surface contact...


Here's a pic.


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## bilbo-in-maine (Nov 19, 2005)

Ingenuity, as Martina shows, can probably help you devise a number of 
different solutions. Being rather lazy, I looked for something that I wouldn't 
have to put together too much. As jojo mentioned, I figured that those 
plastic 4-gallon milk crates on their sides would be just about right and they 
stack nicely. Each one holds 15-16 bottles I think. They're down in my cool 
crawl space.

Bill*Edited by: bilbo-in-maine *


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## darrenlm (Nov 19, 2005)

I foresee myself having the same issue. I have a kit bottled right now and I have the bottles in the cardboard boxthey came in and just wrote the name of the wine on the side of the box. The cardboard boxes stack nicely and dont take up much room. Martina's idea obivously is more eye appealing, and sturdy than a cardboard box with sharpie writing on it but I havent gotten around to planning out anything permanemt yet.


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## MedPretzel (Nov 19, 2005)

Oh, I offered my "best piece" as a solution. Of course, you don't see where I store most of my wine.


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## PolishWineP (Nov 19, 2005)

And where is that? We want to see! Go upstairs, get the camera, go downstairs, take some pictures, then go upstairs to download the pictures. Who needs the Stairmaster? We have stairs!


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## PolishWineP (Nov 19, 2005)

When we have long-term bottle aging to be done, we sometimes use the cardboard boxes from bottles we actually had to pay for or we use boxes from the liquor store. We close them up and slide them under the shelves in our wine cellar/pantry. 


*Note to self, get kids out of house, quit buying food to store downstairs. Will then have more room for wine.*


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## MedPretzel (Nov 19, 2005)

PolishWineP said:


> And where is that? We want to see! Go upstairs, get the camera, go downstairs, take some pictures, then go upstairs to download the pictures. Who needs the Stairmaster? We have stairs!







You see me, don't you?!?!?



Where are the cameras you put up?





But then you know, I have to clean up that area before any pictures will be taken...





Oh, okayyyyyyyyyyyyyy.....





Let me go downstairs...



*Edited by: MedPretzel *


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## MedPretzel (Nov 19, 2005)

Alright... (out of breath!!)


Somehow I feel so ... unorganized!


A little background first: I have a very damp basement in the summertime, even though the dehumidifier is constantly running. The basement used to be an old coal cellar, so conditions are usually not great for storing wine. I had problems (especially this year) with moldy corks and mold growing on just about everything except my cats. So, I transferred all my wine to the dining room for the very humid months, sprayed everything with a bleach/water spray, and got rid of the mold. And I moved the dehumidifier closer to my wines. That worked very well.  So, in trying to think of how I could better shield my wines from the humidity of the basement, I came up with the following idea. It works great, and haven't had any problems with mold near my wine-station after that. And we even had more humid days after I did all this.


But before I post the pictures, I wanted to give you my reasoning on the choice of wine storage I have now. 


<LI>I love to drink my wine. Unfortunately, I love to drink it when I have bottled it, and I forget that I have older, better wines (maybe). So, I wanted something that was closed off from my view. 
<LI>I wanted something that was dark, so that light wouldn't change the colors of my wine. Plus, it would be hidden from my view (see #1). 
<LI>The mold problem was already discussed. I wanted it shielded from the humidity in the air, and even sort of a closed (although not perfect) enviroment. 
<LI>Since the basement was actually an old coal cellar, there are temperature swings throughout the year. I wanted something that would shield the wine, allbeit not ideal (I know), but something a little more constant. 
<LI>If I should have an "exploder" (which I have had before), I wanted something that wouldn't cause the whole basement to be cleaned up. I have done it twice now already, and I didn't want to do it a third time. More importantly, however, since the cats' room is the basement -- they spend most of their time down there -- I wanted to be sure that they were safe from glass and corks with bullet-like properties. 
<LI>It had to be cheap.</LI>


So those were the considerations I was dealing with during the summer. This is what I came up with:














At Target, I found these bins on sale. I have 2 30-gallon ones on the bottom, and I have 3 18-gallon ones on top of them. The 30-galloners hold a lot of bottles, I don't know how many, but quite a few, and plus I can put in the smaller, 187 ml bottles, beer bottles etc, etc in them. They are at the bottom. Yes, I was so stupid that I stacked them first on top of one another, and no, they are not stable enough to hold the wine on the lid.


The 18 galloners are a perfect size for a 750 ml wine bottle (nothing fancy), I have found. They get wider at the top, so if you have ones that are longer, you can store them more to the top. It's a tight fit at the bottom, but it *does* work. I get about 30 bottles in one of these. Of course, it depends on the size of the bottle.











This picture shows how I put them in there. The picture is a little distorted: There are 30 bottles in there, and there is no room for another row of 750 ml bottles. Just so you guys get an idea.





Another shot of my slobbiness....











Here's the other shot of 2 wine-racks I "made." I'm such a stingy person, and used only what I had at home. The "X" one is the one I previously mentioned using 2x4s. That is a huge balancing act, and although the 2x4s are very strong and have a lot of stability, I soon came to notice that wine bottles come in all shapes and forms, and unless you use the same kind over and over, you're in for disaster.


Above it, to stabilize the whole thing from falling over (there are other stabilizing factors you don't see), I use crates filled with my little 187 ml bottles. I doubled the bottles up, and that is quite a bit of weight. So far, so good.





Now here is where you'll find that I'm such a garbage-picker.









In the springtime, my husband and I worked on our side-entrance and ended up replacing the railing. Of course, I immediately got a bottle of wine and tested if it would fit. It did. So, I constructed this thing out of the 2 sides of the railing. I used that for the wine-rack on the right. I put a 2x4 in between, screwed it with 2 inch nails and painted it with latex paint. My husband was not impressed, but my parents were, and it does the trick.









In front of the right wine-rack are the fermenting wines that are really taking off. I initially had only 2 there, which are on the piece of lattice. The reason I have the lattice is because I needed something that would keep my wines off of the hard, cold, cement floor. I'm only 5'5" and not a wimp, but on some days, those 5 gallon carboys seem heavier than others. So, it's a little buffer-thing for me when I set the carboys down.


In the first picture, I have to remind you that this is not cleaned up at all. I looked at all those cases and thought, nah!!!!! They'll understand!!!



Yes, the Gazelle is being used but obviously not currently.



Oh, I almost forgot: The bins (on sale) were bought at Target, and cost me about 6 bucks for the large ones and 3 bucks for the smaller ones. I think I will stick with the smaller ones eventually, because they fit exactly 1 5-gallon carboy in them (when bottled). Eventually I will fill each with 1 batch, I can label them with masking tape and they don't look horrendous.





So there you have it. I feel like you have delved into my deepest dungeons and secrets.






I hope you guys still like me.
























Wow, I'm not out of breath anymore!!! 


*Edited by: MedPretzel *


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## jcnoren (Nov 19, 2005)

JoJO....Milk crates.... Where does one acquire these??? I like the idea of them being sturdy.


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## MedPretzel (Nov 19, 2005)

jcnoren and I were posting practically at the same time.



Just so you know, there's a big long post (with pictures!) for my cheapo way of storing wine on the first page of this post. 





M....


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## jcnoren (Nov 19, 2005)

Martina.... Yep we seemed to be posting at the same time. Love your photos, I especially like your ingenuity, on a limited budget no less!!



I applaud your resourcefullness .



You have given me a few ideas. 


I now feel the need to "scout around the neigbourhood". See what I can locate and put together. Cheap is also one of my criterias when it comes to a "wine/rack/storage device".


Thank you for your time, effort and imput!


JC


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## MedPretzel (Nov 19, 2005)

Thanks, JC.


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## Waldo (Nov 19, 2005)

" In water, one seesone's own face, But, in Martina's basement, one see's her love of makingwine"


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## MedPretzel (Nov 19, 2005)

You crack me up, Waldo...


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## PolishWineP (Nov 19, 2005)

Martina, You have provided a great service today.



If we always straighten up before we shoot pictures then everyone else thinks we're always that way and feel they should do the same before shooting. What a waste of time! I explained to Bert a few months ago that we can either have a house that is always picked up and nice looking or we can have a house in which we do many things. He chose the fun. I too create things that "don't impress the husband" but as Rhett said to Scarlet...






To help in the humid months with the moisture issue in the basement, try adding 1 or 2 fans to the equation. We also run the cirulating fan on our furnace all summer to help with the air exchange. I love the tub idea. We use tubs for a lot of storage because we're prone to flooding here and you never know when you too could have a pool in your basement. And so much more sturdy than cardboard in water.


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## NorthernWinos (Nov 20, 2005)

MEDPRETZEL WROTE:

In the first picture, I have to remind you that this is not cleaned up at all.  I looked at all those cases and thought, nah!!!!!  They'll understand!!!



 Yes, the Gazelle is being used but obviously not currently. 



  Oh, I almost forgot:  The bins (on sale) were bought at Target, and cost me about 6 bucks for the large ones and 3 bucks for the smaller ones.  I think I will stick with the smaller ones eventually, because they fit exactly 1 5-gallon carboy in them (when bottled).  Eventually I will fill each with 1 batch, I can label them with masking tape and they don't look horrendous.


 


So there you have it.  I feel like you have delved into my deepest dungeons and secrets. 



 



 I hope you guys still like me. 






Wow, I'm not out of breath anymore!!! 


 [/QUOTE] 
MedPretzel[Martina]Had a good laugh when I saw your Gazelle in your photo. I finally found a good use for the treadmill...see photo...storing some of my empties on it. So, treadmills do have a use other than clothes racks. Got a good workout getting it into the sewing room...will get another workout getting it out of the house if anyone should ever want it.



I have GREAT EXPECTATIONS and hope to get all these bottles filled soon. I am an odd one, more bottles than wine....get them from a supper club and resort.
Things I have learned about getting empty bottles.....
I can fit 217 bottles in boxes in my car.
I can get home 125 miles without having to explain my 'cargo' to a Trooper or anyone else.
Pick them up soon after they set them by the dumpster [cardboard boxes don't last outside.]
Turn empties up-side-down as soon as you get them, less mold and funky dried on stuff...bugs..
People are happy when you take their empty bottles...more dumpster space,
and...people who save you bottles like wine.
*Edited by: Northern Winos *


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## MedPretzel (Nov 20, 2005)

I love your treadmill!!!


I always justify not working out when I lift a 5 gallon carboy 2-3 times a day.



*Edited by: MedPretzel *


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## jcnoren (Nov 20, 2005)

jojo said:


> i have no rack - yet. iuse old wine boxes from V. Sattui tilted on their side against the cement wall in the basement. i hear milk crates work. i want to build a diamond rack this winter.




Whatis a "diamond rack"? 


Milk Crates...I googled plastic crates, colapsible crates in hopes to find some at a local store in Edmonton, Alberta Canada.Has anyone in my neck of the world seen them? If so where? Cost?


I have one old milk crate...my parents got "no idea where". I useit for hawling my filled bottles from one location to the next. I like the size (able to handle it easily), strength (doesn't break, or bend)and weight (light weight even with filled bottles in it). Thus my determination to find a couple more of these milk crates.


Martina...are the plastic binds you use sturdy? Is there an equivlent business (Target) in western Canada that sells similar plastic bins?


JC


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## MedPretzel (Nov 20, 2005)

I don't know... Do you have a walmart? You could probably find them there. I've seen milk crates in walmart too. Any department store that sells storage bins for anything proably would have them (K-mart, Target, Walmart, Woolworths, etc...). Kids going to college ususally use them for transport and storage here in the States.





The plastic bins are _pretty_ sturdy. The big ones should be on the floor, the smaller ones (18 gallon) could be stacked on each other - at the most 2, though. Otherwise, I think the weight would be too much for the bottom lid. They are so heavy, though, that you almost never move them.


*Edited by: MedPretzel *


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## jcnoren (Nov 20, 2005)

MedPretzel said:


> Do you have a walmart? (K-mart, Target, Walmart, Woolworths, etc...). Kids going to college ususally use them for transport and storage here in the States.
> 
> 
> The plastic bins are _pretty_ sturdy. The big ones should be on the floor, the smaller ones (18 gallon) could be stacked on each other - at the most 2, though. Otherwise, I think the weight would be too much for the bottom lid. They are so heavy, though, that you almost never move them.




Of the places you listed we have only Walmart, so I will take a look there. I can see why the college kids used them for transport and storage. I was wondering about plastic bins and their weight with filled bottles....






Thanks JC


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## MedPretzel (Nov 20, 2005)

Well, I read that a 5 gallon carboy weighs roughly 50 pounds (22 kg). So, I'm assuming that since 30 bottles goes in there, the weight would be about 25 kg, depending on how many bottles (what size, kind etc) you have in there. 





Just a guestimate, though. They seem sturdy enough to stack 2 on top of one another.





What other Walmart-type stores do you have? Whichever you have, look there. I've seen similar ones in various dollar stores too.


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## NorthernWinos (Nov 20, 2005)

[/QUOTE] 


What is a "diamond rack"?  


Milk Crates...I googled plastic crates, colapsible crates in hopes to find some  at a local store in Edmonton, Alberta Canada.  Has anyone in my neck of the world seen them?  If so where?  Cost?


I have one old milk crate...my parents got "no idea where".  I use it for hawling my filled bottles from one location to the next.  I like the size (able to handle it easily), strength (doesn't break, or bend) and weight (light weight even with filled bottles in it).  Thus my determination to find a couple more of these milk crates.


Martina...are the plastic binds you use sturdy?  Is there an equivlent business  (Target) in western Canada that sells similar plastic bins?


JC


 


 [/QUOTE] 
Plastic milk crates are heavier than the plastic storage crates from WalMart. Milk Crates you will see in piles behind WalMart stores, they get deliveries in them...not for sale...I got 10 at a garage sale this summer...asked no questions. 
Home improvement stores like Home Depot and Menards[USA] have those plastic storage cubes, but they are a bit more flimsy. With the weight of the bottles the sides kind of bow outward, but if you place them close to each other they will be fine. 
The straight sided bottles [Claret/Bordeaux] stack best in cubes, the slope sided [Burgundy] bottles tend to slide out. When you stack your cubes put a little strip of wood under the front of the cube, slopes the bottles backward a bit and you are sure they won't slip out.
Up in Canada try a store like Canadian Tire...I use to love those stores, they were in Ontario when I lived there. I was raised near Edmonton, but that was a long time ago and don't recall names of the chain-stores that sold Home Improvement items. 
Good Luck in your ventures.*Edited by: Northern Winos *


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## jcnoren (Nov 23, 2005)

Northern Winos said:


> Up in Canada try a store like Canadian Tire...I use to love those stores, they were in Ontario when I lived there. I was raised near Edmonton, but that was a long time ago and don't recall names of the chain-stores that sold Home Improvement items.
> Good Luck in your ventures.




Googled Canadian Tire... they have the colapseable plastic crates ...will check them out....thanks..


JC


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## NorthernWinos (Nov 23, 2005)

Googled Canadian Tire... they have the collapsible plastic crates ...will check them out....thanks..


JC
I looked at the Canadian Tire OnLine Site, after you said Collapsible Crate...I wondered about it....those might be too flimsy. I see they carry the Rubber-maid totes with lids like Med Pretzel [Martina]uses for storage. Those WalMart would also carry. The crates that stores sell are like those in this photo....You can see the weight of the bottles on the side of the crate is bowing the side inward. I think if you put the crates close together and kept the crates all full they would support each other. They are not near as strong as the milk crates that are used for deliveries [like the one in the right of the photo]. If you know anyone at a food store or restaurant they may be able to slip you a few. Also you can see I put some scraps of wood under the front of the crate, it kind of slopes the bottles back a bit, less worry about them slipping out. Good luck in your search....



*Edited by: Northern Winos *


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## MedPretzel (Nov 23, 2005)

Northern Winos said:


> Also you can see I put some scraps of wood under the front of the crate, it kind of slopes the bottles back a it, less worry about them slipping out.







Ingenious! You see? it's these small things that help out so much. 





Thanks!


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## jcnoren (Nov 23, 2005)

Northern Winos... Kind of difficult to tell from the Can Tire web site as to just how thick the collapsible crates are. I wasn't looking for collapsible...I actually dislike the fact that they do collapse, I was thinking those might be courting disaster.


Like the look of your Walmart crates, even tho you state they are thinner than the milk crates, at least those are designed to remain intact. I did notice that Can Tire had bins similiar to Martinas come the weekend might get around to checking the out. 


I agree with martina...your simple wood wedges works wonderfully.


JC


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## AAASTINKIE (Nov 23, 2005)

I use these crates from Walmart, they are $3 each and hold 12 bottles each standing up or laying down.


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## bilbo-in-maine (Dec 3, 2005)

For anyone interested in using standard 4-gallon milk crates (I picked
up 12 for no cost last month), here are two photos of how I've used
them in my unheated crawl space. It is insulated from the floor above,
with plastic sheeting over the dirt floor, and the space stays between
45-55 degrees with humidity above 70%. It's my wine cell'ah!



Each crate can hold 14-15 bottles, with no flexing or bending. Looks like I need to make a lot more wine!!


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## Harry (Dec 3, 2005)

Looks like AAASTINKEY shops inside Walmart &amp; Bilbo-in-Maine shops behind Walmart ROFLMAO. Good job guys i am going to get me some milk crates to


Harry in Alvin Tx


P.S. I am about 10 minutes from Walmart LOL


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## NorthernWinos (Dec 4, 2005)

Good deal!!! Saw on another Forum lately that the guy wires them together and said not to go more than 3 high. Think I would secure the whole lot to a wall or post on the back or sides, and maybe tilt them backward a tad, just to be sure that the bottles don't shift. Good job. Fun for free!!!


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## jcnoren (Dec 4, 2005)

milk crates are much harder to come by in my neck of the woods.


JC


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## Steve (Dec 20, 2005)

Here are some plans for a pretty simple 72 bottle wine rack. I drew these up today and they are not perfect, if you have a little "handy man" in you you will not have a problem. This is not something that you would want in a tasting room, it uses plywood not all grade A lumber but, could be easily modified to use good lumber. I will post a picture in a few days when I finish mine, I am just waiting to get a 3" hole saw, it is a hot item right now, all the stores are out...


 [url]http://home.comcast.net/~pittss001/Miscl/72%20Bottle%20Wine% 20Rack.doc[/url]


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## Steve (Dec 29, 2005)

Here is the wine rack I made for storing my empties in the garage. Turned out pretty good considering the small amount of time that I spent on it...


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## PolishWineP (Dec 29, 2005)

Nice job, Steve!


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## bilbo-in-maine (Dec 29, 2005)

Very nice Steve!


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## Steve (Dec 29, 2005)

Thanks, this is just for empties. I am going to get some quality wood and build a nice one for in the house...


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## MedPretzel (Dec 30, 2005)

Steve said:


> I am going to get some quality wood and build a nice one for in the house...




You _*made*_ this?








A *nice* one for the house? 

















(just kidding, as always!)





Good for you, they look great!


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## masta (Dec 30, 2005)

Nice Job Steve.....a rack for empties...now that is Style!


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## PolishWineP (Dec 30, 2005)

Now that make our cardboard boxes for empties look so tacky...


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