Cooling Units

[hotwine]

Rick, there are a number of factors to consider in selection of a cooling unit, beyond simply price and capacity. First, every unit generates hot air, which must be expelled into an adjacent cavity - another room, or the outdoors. If your cellar has a wall that is on the perimeter of the house, the unit can be vented outdoors. But if the cellar is in the middle of the house, then the hot air will have to be ducted outdoors. Suggest you review discussions on the subject under this thread for the last couple of years for more ideas to think about. Also highly recommend a little book called "How and Why to Build a Wine Cellar" by a Dr. Gold. He discusses the physics of wine cellar construction at some length, and includes cooling unit considerations. Even though your cellar has already been built, you'll find lots of useful information in there. You also might find it useful to track temperature and humidity fluctuations in the cellar over a period of months, before investing in a cooling unit. To help you do that, you can pick up a little battery-powered temp and humidity gauge from Radio Shack for about $25, that provides current, min and max values measured since the unit was last zeroed. (I've got three of 'em. Catalog #1013-63.) Simply set up a manual logsheet and record the measurements each day (or week) for a few months; I'd wait until mid-summer before making a decision on a cooling unit.<p>[This message has been edited by hotwine (edited 12-03-2002).]