Tips You Need in Choosing the Right California Wine Cellar Refrigeration Systems

Wine cellar construction should focus on efficiency before considering the overall look.   One important aspect of wine cellar efficiency is the wine cellar cooling unit.  A wine cellar cooling unit should be installed properly to provide the right environmental setting for your wines.

Most wine collectors do understand the importance of having the right wine cellar environment, so it is imperative for them to ensure the installation of a wine cellar cooling unit in their wine cellar construction.

So if you are a wine collector yourself, and want to have your own wine cellar, we offer you these tips in choosing the right wine cellar refrigeration system.  

Wine Cellar Construction and Cooling Tips

Wine cellar refrigeration systems are the most important factor when it comes to storing wines. They will give your wine collection the ideal temperature and humidity settings, which are both essential to the proper aging of your wines inside the cellar.

Quality refrigeration systems are able to provide 55 – 59 degrees Fahrenheit for the temperature and 60-70% for the humidity.  Here are some tips to remember when choosing the right wine cellar cooling unit for your collection.

Choose the Most Ideal Type of Wine Cellar Cooling System

First, you need to determine what type of wine cellar cooling system is the most ideal for your wine room.  To ensure that you choose the right one, you may consult a wine cellar expert and ask for advice.  Try Coastal Custom Wine Cellars, which offers a free wine cellar design consultation.

Here are the types of wine cellar refrigeration systems that you can choose from:

Ducted System – this is considered the most comprehensive type of cooling system.  It can be placed through-wall or it can be located away, say, in another room, from the cellar, with the use of ducts into and out of your cellar.

California Wine Cellar Cooling Systems

Ductless Split – This unit’s evaporator is separate from its condenser.  It also needs a drain for the excess water (condensation).  This type of system works best when used with a humidifier.

Through-the-Wall – this type of wine cellar cooling system is very similar to a ductless-split type.  The only difference is that it is mounted on the wine cellar and the exhaust is located or points towards another room, where dissipation of heat takes place.

For self-contained cooling units, two fans are being utilized.  This is known as forced air cooling.  The first fan functions for the circulation of cool air within the wine cellar, while the second fan forces the air out of the cellar, through the coils of the condenser located outside.

It will then exhaust the warm air, which rises to the upper area of the storage room.  This type of configuration for wine cellar cooling has high efficiency, especially when your wine room is located in a place where the outside temperature is 30 degrees Fahrenheit higher or lower the right wine storage temperature array.

Self-Contained Wine Cellar Refrigeration System

In addition, your wine cellar also needs the proper humidity.  This can be achieved through the installation of a humidification system. Ideally, 60 to 65% Relative Humidity (RH) should be maintained to keep the health of the wines and corks, and to prevent the premature loss of the wine.

Choose the One with a Temperature Control and Display

Specific types of wine need specific temperature ranges:

Sparkling wines and Champagnes: 43 -47 degrees F

Red wines:  59 – 66 degrees F

White wines: 46 – 57 degrees F

Light red wine: 55 degree F

High quality California wine cellar refrigeration systems come with electronic controls for the temperature and digital displays.  These are very helpful features, because of convenience and accurate temperature and humidity level monitoring.

The electronic control helps prevent temperature fluctuations.  Aside from displaying the temperature inside the wine cellar, the digital display can also give signal if your wine cellar cooling system is out of the range of the standard temperature.  This signal will prompt the cooling unit to re-adjust the temperature automatically.

Find a Virtually Quiet Wine Cellar Cooling Unit

One of the major factors is the noise level of a cooling unit.  Ideal wine cellar refrigeration systems operate quietly, and are vibration-free. Some units use absorption technology, wherein compressors are no longer needed; hence, vibrations are prevented.

Consider Easy Maintenance and Repair or Replacement

California wine cellar cooling units are as much of an investment as the wine collection itself.  These cooling units will make sure that your wines are aging appropriately.

See to it that the type of cooling unit you choose is easy to maintain.  In cases where in the cooling systems wear down or break, easy and convenient replacement or repair is necessary so that the wines do not suffer much from the temperature and humidity change.

So now that you can decide on the type of cooling unit to install, you cannot just go ahead and simply install a newly purchased wine cellar cooling unit on your storage room.  You need to undertake the right preparations for your wine cellar construction first, before setting up the cooling unit.  Here are the factors you need to consider and discuss with your wine cellar cooling unit installer before directly installing the cooling unit:

1. Cover the interior as well as the exterior walls of your wine cellar with insulating material.
2. Add a vapor barrier on your wine cellar walls.  These vapor barriers have polyethylene plastic sheeting make. It should be installed on the warmer side of the wine cellar wall, to serve as barrier in between the wall of the wine cellar and the condensation that collects from your wine cellar cooling unit.
3. Also add vapor barriers to your flooring.  For concrete wine cellar floors, place a vapor barrier with the use of a concrete sealant.  For other types of floor materials, place a vapor barrier as protection from condensation.

Simply put, the temperature and humidity maintenance of your custom wine cellar is the main function and objective of the California wine cellar refrigeration systems.

This is what makes it important to purchase a California wine cellar cooling unit specifically appropriate for your wine cellar.

A normal air conditioning system or any other normal refrigeration units can dry out the air inside the wine cellar while cooling it, and will highly likely malfunction when installed inside a wine cellar.  Hence, to maintain the ideal and appropriate environment for your wine cellar, purchase the right cooling equipment to regularly monitor and keep the standard temperature and humidity for your collection inside your wine cellar.