Wine cooler questions - drawer setup and general ...

[JCinPA]

Gentlemen,

I am about to place an order with John Nelson for a set of drawers for the NewAir 280-E, and my main question is this. Why is the 3-drawer, 2-shelf setup so popular? I am thinking I may have more unopened boxed cigars than loose sticks and am thinking of asking for a 3-drawer, 3-shelf setup, basically, what you see below minus the top drawer with another shelf in its place. Have any of you done that or wished that you had?

Photo below originally posted by Smoqman

I would love as many responses to that question as possible, so thanks in advance. I am leaning toward one less drawer and another shelf, but I don't want to be making a mistake and will listen to you more experienced wineador guys.

Other general questions on Wineadors:

Wine Cooler Brand
It seems that many wine cooler brands and sizes are used by you folks, but the NewAir 280E or 281E (only difference I am aware of is black versus stainless front?) seems to be the most popular cooler by far. I've chosen that only because of this popularity, I have not done any research (and frankly, don't much care to--I'll follow the crowd). Is there a compelling reason for me to look for another cooler? I don't want smaller on the grounds that I'd rather have more space and not need it than be wishing I went bigger later. I don't want larger, if I need more space that would be a coolidor project. From a quality/operation/suitability standpoint are there other brands I should consider? This will be located in either Chicago or Philadelphia, so temperate, 4-season cities, and it will be in air-conditioned homes, so maintaining temp between 65-75* will be assured. I have not ordered it yet, so I can react to your comments.

Humidification--Are fans really needed?
While beads or KL seem to be very popular for these, I am a Boveda guy and not about to rethink that. I recharge them and don't care about economy, I love the things, they are absolute no-brainers. I don't even futz with hygrometers in my desktop humidors any longer since I've found Boveda. I understand humidity levels can vary from top to bottom, I just don't know by how much. I'll have a dozen Boveda bags in there, two per drawer and two per shelf. A fan seems to me to be an unecessary complication, except that almost all of you have them, which makes me think I'm wrong. Has anyone loaded these things up with Boveda packets and actually tested it without a fan? It's possible everyone is assuming they are needed and perhaps they are not? I'm not trying to be argumentative here, just looking for advice. I'd love to know if some folks have these without fans and are satisfied with performance. If I'm being foolish, please tell me that.

Where are you finding that terrific glass art?
That Liga Privada 9 on the glass above is awesome! Is that a decal? Etching? Sources and ideas for glass artwork?

Tell me anything else I should know/consider I'm not asking about.
Anything at all.

Thank you, in advance, gentlemen! If you can't tell I'm a bit anal-retentive and I want to do this right the first time. I'm getting tired of doing things like this and then changing half my choices later at great expense. I appreciate the help. I have read the Wineador 101 sticky, BTW, these are questions I have after that.

Cheers,

John

 

[knw247]

Hi John,
Welcome to the community. I'll anser what I can. Unlike, you, I tend to over research things. I also went with the 281E from New Air. I chose this one because of the many claims of reliability and that getting drawers for them was a super easy. This was afterall the first unit that Forrest started building for and he was in my understanding the first one to commercially supply drawers for these. I say get the drawer set up that you think will work best for you. I have (in my first unit) Four drawers with a false bottom to cover my fan. I did get a fan. I have it set to run (via the ISY94 that runs my smart home features) for two minutes every 5 minutes. I honestly don't know that it helps. The logic of the fan is move the air. The cooler air holds a higher RH in the unit. So the cooler air at the bottom of the unit can have up to 7% higher RH than the bottom. When I had my unit in the middle of the room, the temp varied by 5 deg. Moving the unit to the corner of the room with a cabnet next to it seems to keep the temp variance to about 3 deg from the top of the unit to the inside of the bottom drawer which in my case has a 6% varianc in RH (63-69 RH). I plan to tint my door window to try to reduce this variance. Again, I have not run it without the fan, so I don't know if it helps for sure. I run Kitty Litter so I don't know how to answer your Bolivia questions.

If you look around in the storage area, I have my two stacked units posted. Shoot me a line if you have any more questons.

 

[slicer]

Here is good info on the difference between the 2 units
http://www.winecoolerexpert.com/newair-28-bottle-wine-cooler/

Drawer/Self setup is personal preference. If you have alot of boxes, have enough self space to accommodate them.

I run fans on a timer setup in my coolidors to help circulate air/humidty thought out the day.

Humidity: I use 2lb of HF beads per cooler but, IMO bovedas could work if you had alot of them 12+, just ensure you have a calibrated hydrometer to ensure you're at the desired humidity. Bovedas will take alot longer to recover from opening and closing.

Hope this helps you out. Wineadors can be dangerous, once you have one fully setup, you'll be looking for another one

 

[EHV]

The Boveda solution to humidity I feel is impractical given the size of the cooler. They will need recharging, which means having replacements on standby and for rotation in and out. They are expensive. However, a few here or there throughout the drawers is also a practice I use to keep any irregularities with high or low humidity to a minimum. Not a big deal to pull two or three to rehydrate them. Having the false bottom gives you the space to load up with KL and a fan, and if you humidity starts to drop, a spritz or two of DW and you are done. I have HCM beads as well, but not enough to keep the humidity up as needed. If you like Boveda, stick with them, I think with a properly seasoned drawer setup and keeping opening and closing to a minimum, they will suffice, they just aren't for me.
I ran mine without a fan for a few months, however, the difference between the top and bottom humidity wise was roughly 3 to 5 points different. My fan which runs most of the time has kept consistent humidity top to bottom now.
I have the 280 with all drawers, vented, and slotted on sides. My temp control is outta whack and not sure how to fix it. The fridge reads 62 which is set for 65 but my thermos read 68. Minor problem, but nonetheless, a problem. Like knw said, get what suits you for setup. I liked the idea of storing boxes, but as my interest grew, those boxes were taking up more space. Good luck and my apologies for my unstructured babbling, merely my experience on the situation.

 

[knw247]

EHV. Regarding the temp. These unite only cool the units from the rooms ambient temp. So it will never be the temp it's set at. Mine also reads a different from the internal temp. They all do by design.

 

[EHV]

I've read it only drops 7 degrees or so from ambient and my room temp is 70. It used to hold 65 like clockwork, but bout 6 months or so ago, it went on the fritz. Not a deal breaker but something has changed for my setup.

 

[StogieNinja]

Most of us have a lot of singles, but not a ton of boxes. Therefore, having more drawers makes sense for a lot of people, with just enough space on top for a few special boxes. Honestly if you have lots of boxes but not a lot of singles or fivers, I would maybe go with two drawers, and three shelves.

For a long time, I had ONLY drawers, as I didn't start buying boxes for several years after I started. Now in my two 28-bottle Vinotemps, I have drawers top to bottom in one, and shelves only in the other, and I'm about to remove two of the empty drawers in favor of a new shelf for more box space!

One of the things I did differently that you might want to consider was to go with a false front single drawer instead of a false-front double where you have the drawer up top and an empty space below. This allowed me to later remove the false-front all together when I spread my rH media through the wineador, so I didn't waste any space on the bottom. You don't have that option when he makes the false-front double with the empty space below.

I'll try to post some pics tonight if I remember.

 

[StogieNinja]

As for the Bovedas, they work great in mine, in conjunction with a small cigar coffin of KL next to them.

When the Bovedas feel a little less-plump or the rH dips, I spritz the KL really well, and the ambient rH climbs. Once it climbs over 65%, the Bovedas recharge themselves by absorbing the extra rH, et voila! - rock solid 65% within a pretty quick timeframe, and the Bovedas no longer need to be recharged or replaced.


Also, I don't know what the ambient temps are where you are , but where I am the weather is largely moderate, so I don't even plug my wineadors in most of the time. With my current rH media set up, a fan isn't necessary at all because I don't have any variance top to bottom in mine, because I have my rH media spread out. If you go the false-front with a large tray of KL behind it at the bottom, I would think you would need a fan to circulate things. With the KL and a Boveda spread out evenly, they regulate top to bottom pretty well, and since the entire unit is at an even rH, the humid air isn't rising or falling.

 

[JCinPA]

@knw247
Nope, I am JUST like you! I over research everything I get into! I'm trying no to here by learning from you folks. I'm just too tired to do this with another hobby. I'm just tuckered out. Sounds like the NewAir is fine, though, no reason to consider others.

I'm hearing that with Bovedas spread throughout the unit in a temperature controlled apartment, I may be OK without a fan. With beads or KL in the bottom only, I guess a fan makes sense. My suspicion is in an air conditioned environment the Bovedas may be fine without a fan. This is good info. Thanks all!

 

[knw247]

@knw247
Nope, I am JUST like you! I over research everything I get into! I'm trying no to here by learning from you folks. I'm just too tired to do this with another hobby. I'm just tuckered out. Sounds like the NewAir is fine, though, no reason to consider others.

I'm hearing that with Bovedas spread throughout the unit in a temperature controlled apartment, I may be OK without a fan. With beads or KL in the bottom only, I guess a fan makes sense. My suspicion is in an air conditioned environment the Bovedas may be fine without a fan. This is good info. Thanks all!

If your like... you can try to avoid over researching, but you will fail. The calling of Google is just too great.

 

[JCinPA]

Ah,you are right, Google is calling to my ocd.

First I found while boveda are great for desktop humis they are not the best for wineadors. I will likely go with beads. Second I found the handful of guys who ran without a fan were generally satisfied. I will experiment and decide on a fan after I get it stabilized and read top/bottom with caliber IV units. A +/-3% difference won't make me crazy but more will.

How about glass art?

 

[knw247]

Do a little more searching in KL and beads. They are both 100% silica. They both do am amazing job at maintaining RH. They both cost about $ 1.50 a lb. wait I think I got that last on wrong. HF beads are a Bit more.
When I did my research I decided to give the KL a try and change them out if needed. The need never came.

 

[knw247]

How about glass art?

I have not gone their yet but I have been considering getting some windo tint and cutting out a design. My complete lack of artistic talent is the thing holding me back.

 

[knw247]

Here are my winos the bottom one is a work in progress waiting on the shelves and one drawer/w false bottom. That unit will be for bids and coffins.

 

[EHV]

I had a decal gifted to me by a generous Brother here. Most brands do not have stickers for whatever reason, so keep an eye on here. You may get lucky and find someone who does vinyl art.

 

[knw247]

Actually, Now that you mention it... I do know a guy. Well a couple that owns a vinyl biz. I'll have to reach out to them.

 

[EHV]

Actually, Now that you mention it... I do know a guy. Well a couple that owns a vinyl biz. I'll have to reach out to them.

If you keep it low key and small scale with no intent of selling, you shouldn't have an issue. Copyright and Trademarks get people worried when copying items.
JCPA, it's worth mentioning the unit does have a fan that cools the unit so if it's not jam packed full and allows optimal circulation, you may get by. Keep us posted.
All this talk. I may have to get another wineador. Damn you guys.

 

[slave2theaxe]

Where are you finding that terrific glass art?
That Liga Privada 9 on the glass above is awesome! Is that a decal? Etching? Sources and ideas for glass artwork?

I did all my decor using my wife's Silhouette Cameo. Bought some vinyl sticker sheet from Michael's and found high quality logos online...imported them into the Silhouette software and bam!

I've got Tatuaje, Illusione, Liga, Padron, and My Father logos on the front of mine.

 

[herfdog]

I used window car tint on my vinyl cutter.

Works great

It looks better in person than pictures



My wino is a 35 bottle; there was 5% difference top to bottom. I added a circulation fan and it's now even.

Another cool and easy mod is to add led lights.

Here's my own build.
http://www.botl.org/index.php?posts/1611665

 

[JCinPA]

I did all my decor using my wife's Silhouette Cameo. Bought some vinyl sticker sheet from Michael's and found high quality logos online...imported them into the Silhouette software and bam!

I've got Tatuaje, Illusione, Liga, Padron, and My Father logos on the front of mine.

Nice! That machine is $270 and I don't need a new hobby, though. Does your wife have any interest in doing these for cash? I'd love a DE Undercrown band art like that.