Wine room

[Broge5]

I've seen pictures of wine cellars with tables and chairs and other things in them. I figure these people must have large cooling units to be able to keep up but my question is, Isn't it a bit cold in there to be able to enjoy company? Or are these rooms generally kept at higher temperatures?
I ask because I have a study I would like to make into a wine cellar but also be able to have space for a small barrel table and a couple of chairs so my wife and I can have dinner and enjoy our wine in a restaurant style atmosphere. Am I just better off walling off a portion of the room for a small wine cellar? The room is about 11 x 12ft

 

[jamesngalveston]

11 x 12 is a good size...you could always put a small walk in cooler on one side are in a corner..something like 4=0 wide and 8.0 tall...most come with there on cooling units...then you would have space for table/chairs, etc.

 

[olusteebus]

You need to leave enough room for an Italian violinist, maybe a mandolin player.

 

[FTC Wines]

Broge5, we are in the slow process of doing exactly what you want to do. Our room is the 4th bedroom, 10X14. We have the work table, chair, 12 carboys, 10 one gallon jugs, and almost 550 bottles of wine. Just ordered a 6K btu AC unit to chill the room down from 76* to say 68*, cool enough for store age, not too cold to work in or enjoy a glass or two. Not sure about Dinner though. Next project is a wood/laminate floor, then assemble the 4 Seville wine racks that are still in boxes. After that a sink, new work center etc. etc. slow & steady, just like making wine !! Roy PS couldn't afford the REAL wine room conditioners, or the space for say 800 bottles in a separate area in the room.

 

[Broge5]

Olusteebus, My six-year-old daughter plays the violin. She takes up less space than a full-size violinist plus she's a lot cheaper!

 

[Broge5]

FTC Wines, I'm so glad to hear you say that you using an AC unit. That's exactly what I plan to do. I would like to do the whole room that way but one of my walls is an exterior wall to get sun all day long. It also has two large windows. I'm afraid it would be a real bear to insulate. But your idea of keeping temperatures around 68 definitely opens up some possibilities. I've been thinking 55 to 60. What AC unit did you decide to go with? I've been looking at the same size. However, if I do the whole room, I probably need to go a little bit larger due to 12 foot ceilings.

 

[FTC Wines]

My wine room has 9'4"" ceilings & has an east facing wall with a large window. I covered the window with a piece of 1" foam on the inside then lowered the wood blinds, keeps out heat & light. AC is another saga! You can read the Thread "Winery AC gone bad" the short version is I purchased & installed a vertical portable LG AC unit, found out the fan runs 24/7 & discharges conditioned air to the outside 24/7!!! Next purchased a Fridgeire unit & rigged in the doorway, it also runs 24/7 & discharges air to the outside. Now with both returned I ordered a GE unit after 6 emails to GE customer service, they were VERY helpful & got ALL the answers I needed. In Energy Saver Mode it will not run 24/7, & it will not discharge conditioned air to the out side. Unit $147, Wallmart, free shipping to my door arrives tomorrow. I WILL be setting it up in the doorway & checking it out before I put a hole in the wall! I'll keep you posted. Roy

 

[Broge5]

I have mostly been reading up on reviews on the quietest units and of course reliability and efficiency. I did see some that have energy saving mode to not run fan 24/7. But, I never figured any of them discharge interior cool air outside!!! Hope this GE works for you.
You may have seen this already, but some of the helpful things I've seen were little capacitors to trick the thermostat to thinking it needs to be on because the units only go down so low in temp settings, and the other was a temp controlled power switch. The ac unit plugs into the switch which turns the power on and off at correct temp. This solves the 24/7 issue.
I look forward to hearing that the little GE unit is perfect! Good luck.

 

[jamesngalveston]

I can not understand why people do not use mini splits instead of the old fashioned expensive window units.

They leak water, exhaust hot air ,the fans break,thermostat hardly work and
none of them are made well.

 

[Broge5]

For me, it's a matter of cost. I've got a pretty good expense already in trying to set up this wine room and fill it. From what I understand the less expensive Specialty units are at least $1000 and Extremely unreliable and finicky. From what I've seen the mini split units start at about $800-$900 minimum. Then I have to get an AC specialist to come install for me. I don't see getting out of that for less than $1000. A simple wall unit however has great reviews for reliability. As well as only $100-$250 in cost, And I can install it myself. I can buy one of these every two to four years if I have to And fit it in the same slot. This is what I'm basing my decision on.

 

[jamesngalveston]

Understand that very well...window units here are not cheap...a unit that would cool 500 sqaure feet is about 400.00.

 

[pjd]

I do not understand this thinking! I have a room with 15 to 20 thousand dollars worth of fine wines and I am going to protect them with a $200 air conditioner from Home Depot! No Way, I will be using a Mitsubishi mini split, Absolutely silent and the perfect solution to maintaining the integrity of my wines. I make wine to enjoy a great bottle, not to save money. I will protect it with the proper equipment not some POS that blows cold air!

 

[jamesngalveston]

agree 100 percent...as a contractor where i live we encounter 2 and 3 story houses with no way to add duct work, the mini splits work great.
I put 2 in my house and 4 in my rentals...none have failed it 5 years...
and for me, it is just twice the cost of window units, which i absorb by peice of mind....I have a big walk in cooler for my wine, but for my wine making and my own home i have the mini splits.

 

[FTC Wines]

OK, I blew a hole thru the wall in my Winery, Today & installed the 6,400 btu GE. Unit. It lowered the temp from 76 to 70* in an hour, I'm holding it at 70 overnight & then will lower it to 68*. Possibly lower in a few days. Unit shuts OFF completely & comes back on to maintain desired temps. Units not too noisy & cost $148 delivered to my door. We live in a community with strict C&R'S , so the unit can't show on the exterior of our home. So I set the unit up discharging into the garage. No issues, but time will tell. May add attic fan to the garage/workshop in future to discharge hot air. I'll repost in a few days after its has a tract record. Right now the unit does NOT run very often. Roy

 

[Thig]

My basement was built with HVAC vents from the main house unit. Keeping the house at a comfortable 74 degrees and the basement is staying a constant 69. Wondering if that is really cool enough or if I need a separate unit to lower the basement even more. Thoughts?

 

[pjd]

My basement was built with HVAC vents from the main house unit. Keeping the house at a comfortable 74 degrees and the basement is staying a constant 69. Wondering if that is really cool enough or if I need a separate unit to lower the basement even more. Thoughts?

For my red wines that temperature is perfect.

 

[FTC Wines]

Thig, when we lived in N. Ga. Our basement was 68* with upper 2 floors at 76*, winters basement went down to 62*, I kept the heat off in the winery area. Those temps were perfect, we never worried about the wine aging there. Here in SW Fla it's a different story! 77* wine is TOO Warm. Winery is 70* this AM, will lower temp later today & trim out front of AC unit. Alls good, Roy

 

[Thig]

Thig, when we lived in N. Ga. Our basement was 68* with upper 2 floors at 76*, winters basement went down to 62*, I kept the heat off in the winery area. Those temps were perfect, we never worried about the wine aging there. Here in SW Fla it's a different story! 77* wine is TOO Warm. Winery is 70* this AM, will lower temp later today & trim out front of AC unit. Alls good, Roy

Maybe I am OK then, I have noticed when I am down there working with lights on it goes up to 70 but then drops back after I leave to a constant 69. I can shut the vents off this winter when the heat is running so it should be cooler down there then.

 

[Broge5]

FTC, sounds like the wall unit is doing well. Venting to the garage is my idea as well. I have the CCRs too. Please keep me informed as to how it does. I'm still quite a few months out from getting mine done.

 

[sdelli]

I was under the assumption that normal window air conditioning units do not get the rooms very cold.... Maybe 70 degrees? A wine room unit can get it down much lower.... 55-60.... Some are pretty cheap!

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