A wine cellar cannot function properly without the right components installed in it. A professional builder, who has the appropriate knowledge about proper wine storage and racking, can help you in your wine room conversion project. In Ramona, California, Vintage Wine Cellars has transformed an unused storage space into an elegant wine cellar. Check out the features of this wine room.  

Custom Wine Cellar Installation Project in Ramona, California

The primary goal of your chosen builder must be to create a place that can maintain the perfect environment necessary for the proper maturation of wine. Poor storage conditions can affect wine’s quality.

A well-built wine cellar must be able to maintain a stable temperature and humidity level that will preserve the desirable characteristics of wine for years to come.

Your builder should also make sure that your wine rack system will display your collection impressively. If you are a homeowner and a serious wine collector, investing in a climate-controlled wine room is a smart idea. It can increase the lifespan of your precious vintages and enhance the beauty of your home.

Vintage Wine Cellars, a master builder in California, always makes sure that your wines are safe by installing the right insulation, cooling system, racking, and flooring in your storage space. Their design team uses their creativity and passion to create beautiful wine storage displays that will sweep your guests off their feet.

Converting an Unused Storage Room into a Stylish and Functional Home Wine Cellar

Recently, Vintage Wine Cellars has completed a construction project in Ramona, California. As a standard procedure, they first created 3-dimensional drawings before installing the essential components. These images showed the different elevations of the wine room, dimensions of the storage racks, and the bottle capacities.

They started preparing the room after the client approved the drawings. The large room measures 14’x10’x8’. They added features that would maximize the storage space and allow for ease of cleaning of the wine racks.

Combining Racking Styles to Create an Eye-Catching Wine Display and Added Functionality

When designing their customer’s storage racks, Vintage Cellars California incorporates various racking configurations to create a display of wine that would capture the eyes of the viewers and add functionality to the home wine cellar. To maximize the storage capacity of the room, custom features were added. The entire racking was constructed from Premium Redwood, with wine barrel features.

Elegant Wood Wine Rack System

The left wall as you enter the wine cellar consists of double deep racking with a double-high stemware storage rack at the center. This feature allows the owner to store the wine glasses upside down. A tabletop was added to provide space for decanting and serving wine.

Made from Fontenay wine barrel, the tabletop is an eco-friendly feature in the wine room. Reclaimed wine barrels can also be utilized to create other “green” features in California home wine cellars, such as flooring and storage racks.

There is also a double high reveal display row on both sides of the tabletop, and in the middle section of racking on the rest of the walls. The top and bottom sections of the left wall have openings intended for storing magnum bottles individually.

The back wall was originally a window made of glass. Vintage  Cellars removed it and added the proper insulation. The back wall is the focal point of the wine room because it consists of a visually appealing storage unit – the waterfall display rack, which goes down to the center of the cellar.

This type of racking stores the client’s magnum bottles in a cascading manner, leading down to a horizontal storage unit. The waterfall wine rack is double-sided for additional bottle slots.

Above the horizontal display wine rack is another wine barrel tabletop, where the owner can serve and drink wine, and display other accessories.

Like the left wall, the back wall also consists of double deep single racking and a high reveal display row, both for magnums. There was a dead space behind the waterfall wine rack, so Vintage Cellars decided to utilize it by adding case storage slots. This racking style allows for collectors who want to buy and store wines in bulk.

The single-deep wine racks on the right wall consist of a high reveal display row in the middle section, with horizontal magnum storage openings above it. The top and bottom racking provide individual storage slots.

California Home Wine Cellar Insulation and Cooling Solution

Vintage Cellars always makes sure that every client’s wine room is constructed with proper insulation and a cooling system to keep wine safe. Proper insulation and installing the right wine refrigeration system will prevent a waste of investment by maintaining the perfect environment for the graceful aging of wine.

Spray Foam Insulation

Poor insulation can result in wine spoilage. It will allow the warm air from the outside to interfere with the cooling of your refrigeration unit. Additionally, your wine’s quality will be damaged because the cold air will leak out of the cellar. When this happens, the chemical properties of wine will be altered, resulting in an unpleasant aroma and taste.

Sealing a refrigerated wine room will also prevent moisture build up that can wreak havoc with the desirable qualities of your wine. The wrong humidity levels can cause bacteria and molds to grow in the ceiling, walls, bottles, and racking of your wine cellar.

Hiring a professional to seal your wine room will protect not only your wine collection but also the structural integrity of your cellar.

Additionally, your climate control system will have a longer lifespan because the warm air cannot pass through the walls, ceiling, and door. Warm air will force the equipment to work harder than it should and may result in higher energy consumption.

Vintage Cellars used spray foam insulation in this wine cellar. One of the advantages of this type of insulation is that it can also act as a vapor barrier. It eliminates the need to use plastic sheeting to wrap the entire room.

Efficient Wine Cooling System

After the room had been insulated, Vintage Cellars installed a 1-ton split ducted cooling unit by Wine Guardian. The return vent and air handler were hidden in a soffit above the doorway.

To maintain a quiet operation, the compressor was installed outside the cellar, and covered with a metal housing to protect the unit. For easy monitoring, the thermostat was placed on the wall right beside the door.

Your Dream Home Wine Cellar Can Be Yours. Contact an Expert.

If you have a space that you want to transform into an elegant home wine cellar, Vintage Cellars California can help you. Call them today at 1-800-876-8789 or request a custom wine cellar design for FREE!

In 2007, many people lost their homes because of the wildfires in San Diego, California. A couple, who were victims of this tragedy, approached Vintage Cellars to help them build a wine cellar that would store their new collection. They needed to bump out a wall in the kitchen to add space to the tiny room on the second floor. Find out the turnkey solution for this project. 

An Expert Helped a Couple Rebuild their Wine Collection

Vintage Cellars, one of the trusted builders of home wine cellars in California, has been in the industry since 1990.

They design and install custom wine rooms that fit their client’s budget and space. Since every customer’s needs are unique, they always use their creativity, passion, and expertise to design and build the perfect wine storage facility for each collection.

In this room conversion project, they had to work with the architect of the couple’s house. The design team encountered some challenges, including the limited space and the visible support beam on the left wall of the room.

The clients also had their own requests for the racking design and material.

They wanted their wine cellar to be installed on a limited area on the second floor of their home and to create a classic appeal using wooden wine racks. Despite these challenges, Vintage Wine Cellars were able to come up with an excellent design for a small wine storage room.

Overcoming the Challenges in Wine Cellar Construction

Lack of space is a common problem faced by wine room builders, including Vintage Cellars. This issue did not stop them from completing the installation of the couple’s wine cellar.

The design team of Vintage Cellars reviewed the construction plans and found a solution that could add space to room. They bumped a wall out of the kitchen to create additional space (80 square feet more) for the wine room. The room was 11.5 feet wide, 4.5 feet deep and 8.5 feet high. They also maximized the space by combining various racking styles. The wine cellar can accommodate 750 bottles in total, with enough space to move around in.

Vintage Cellars decided to conceal the support beam that goes up to the roof. They covered the beam with a piece of Redwood Fascia (the same wood used in the wine racks), to achieve a clean look and complement the whole racking.

Sealing and Cooling the Custom Wine Room

After framing the room, Vintage Cellars installed the room insulation and vapor barrier, which are essential components in achieving the right environment in California home wine cellars. Without the proper insulation and a vapor barrier, there will be temperature fluctuations.

Temperature must be maintained between 55-65 degrees Fahrenheit. Too much heat can cause the cork to shrink. When this happens, an unwanted amount of oxygen can pass through it and mix with the wine. The chemical properties of the wine will be altered, resulting in spoiled wine.

Humidity levels must be within 60-70 percent. Humidity higher than the normal range can trigger mold growth, which can damage the cork and the wine.

Another advantage of sealing the wine room is that the owner can save energy and prevent breakdowns of the cooling unit. In this project, the flooring had to be insulated too because the room is located on the second level of the house.

The wine cooling system also plays a vital role in the aging process of wine. Every wine cellar needs the right size, type, and capacity of refrigeration unit. Vintage Cellars used a 3600 BTU Rack Mounted Coil by LRC for this small wine cellar. The unit was concealed in a wooden grill on the right wall.

Check out other wine cooling systems recommended by an expert for residential wine cellars.

Wine Rack Features for a Home Wine Cellar in California

At Vintage Cellars, one of their goals is to create an elegant wine display, regardless of the room’s size and shape. When designing wine racks, they always take into account all of the functional and aesthetic requirements of the owner. They allow customization options to achieve a unique racking system.

The clients can incorporate their own design to add a personal touch to the wine room. The racking material can be the owner’s choice or a recommendation from the builder. In this case, the wine racks were constructed from Redwood, as requested by the client.

Redwood is highly resistant to rot, shrinking, mildew, and warping. It has the ability to withstand the humid conditions that can develop in California wine cellars.

Functional and Stylish Racking System

The left wall is where the support beam is. Both sides of the beam consist of individual bottle storage racks. Vintage Cellars added a 3-level display area for the client’s whiskey and scotch bottles. The lowest shelf is a cigar humidor. Above this display area is an LED light, which highlights the client’s favorite bottle of wines.

The back wall consists of various styles of wine racks including the horizontal display rack at the center of the racking. This area is intended for storing 3-5 liter magnum bottles. Other large format bottles can also be placed in the display rack because the shelves are adjustable. Below this display rack are both the standard and half-case storage racks. There are diamond bins on the left and right sides of the back wall. The top section has wine storage slots for individual bottles.

Vintage Cellars added an eye-catching rounded tabletop above the case storage. It provides an area for decanting and serving wine. A few bottles and accessories can also be displayed on the tabletop.

The top of the right wall is where the cooling unit was installed . The rest of the racking has openings for single bottle storage. A high reveal display row was added in the middle section.

You can Have a Stylish Wine Room in a Small Space. Contact a Specialist.

You can transform any room into a California home wine cellar. Request a FREE wine cellar design, or contact Vintage Cellars today at +1-800-876-8789

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Los Angeles Residential Wine Cellars – The Niche Transformation When someone said, “Los Angeles is the city of dreams,” they were probably referring to Culver City! This is the city where respected entertainment conglomerates were born and bred, and it was also gaining reputation recently as a viable hub for the higher arts. So, it should only follow that many of its residents were also sophisticated people. Indeed, the proof we have of this is the Los Angeles wine cellar project that the Whole Cellar designing team had just completed.

So, what do you need to know about this certain project, then? Well, for one, the clients who contracted us for this job, Rob and Erin, meant to carve a wine cellar area from a niche that was located between their dining room and kitchen. The challenge there, as with most of the projects the Whole Cellar team had dealt with in the past, was the question of how they could utilize the limited space in the niche to create a wine cellar space that was truly functional.

Sure, the project was difficult, but it could be done. Below is how the team pulled it off.

A Matter of Spacing

Since the area that the Whole Cellar team would be working on has been a “common area” of sorts in the household for some time (as evidenced by the picture here), the first step was to perform an extensive demo of the existing wall coverings. That means they had to strip off the wall coverings, reroute electrical outlets and switches in the area to make sure that nothing ever gets “covered” by accident. This was code and observed strictly, since the walls of the area would have also needed preparation for refrigeration.

With the clients having a pretty extensive 632 wine bottle collection, the team made sure that the wine rack they would create for this purpose should be deep enough to hold that massive wine set. So, they set out on making a rack with an enclosure that measured 7’ wide and 2’ deep. In effect, this allowed wine bottles of all sizes–including champagne and pinot–to be slotted snugly into their respective openings that measured 3 ¾” by 3 ¾” .

Of course, since one of the purposes of a wine cellar is to display an owner’s prized wine bottle collection, the team included horizontal display rows that were meant to evoke a “label forward” philosophy. The lower half of the rack was meant for storing double deep square bins, so the design also accounted for bulk storage of the client’s other wine bottles.

Many hours of collaboration between the Whole Cellar team and the client eventually led to the creation of a blueprint for the wine rack that the clients found satisfactory. But as any wine enthusiast would know, that is only half of the design process. Up next: cooling.

Refrigeration is the Key

It might be easy to crack open a wine bottle straight from an ordinary pantry shelf, hoping the decant might help the flavor. However, one could only enjoy the full taste of it when said wine is stored in a highly temperature-regulated area. Passionate wine geeks would know that and, of course, so did our clients.

The problem the Whole Cellar team had to solve for this aspect was to suggest a cooling unit that is not just reliable, but also portable and easy to install since the space it would be occupying is only minimal in the first place.

They eventually decided on using the CellarPro 1800, a self-contained cooling unit that could be installed in any area of the room. For this project, the system was mounted thru the wall with its back facing the pantry and its exhaust going through a designated hole in the cellar created for this purpose.  Fresh air was pulled in from the pantry and the hot air exhausted to the crawl space above the cellar.

The Finished Project

The residential Los Angeles wine cellar project in Culver City was officially completed in August 2015, three months after the clients contracted Whole Cellar for the job. If anything, this only proved that any area in the household can be made to serve another purpose, and we are not just talking in reference to wine spaces.

If you believe we could help you in any way, then do visit our official Houzz page so you could check out our past projects. We also offer free 3D design consultation for anyone interested in our expertise, and you could start by calling us at +1 (949) 355-4376.

There are projects that the Whole Cellar team is particularly proud of, not just because of how they were able to implement it, but because of the difficulty they experienced in achieving that perfect job. The Playa Vista wine cellar under stairs project is one of those jobs.

Why was it singled out among the many projects the team completed, you might ask? Well, it has to do with the “unusual” wine cellar area proposed by this client to be turned into a wine cellar: underneath the stairs of his house. Yes, the picture you are seeing above really was the area where he was asking the team to set up a wine storage area in his home. As you can imagine, there were a lot of structural hindrances that the team had to consider before drawing up a plan for the project in the first place.

But hey, Whole Cellar did not win the Best of Houzz 2015 awards for nothing; the team is well-accustomed to accepting challenging jobs that require a high quality of craftsmanship, and the Playa Vista project proved no different. Read on to discover how they took up  the challenge; the process is documented below!

Is it ‘Cool’ Enough?

Even though this was the first time the client had requested that contractor provide him with a wine cellar, he had an impressive knowledge of wine storage principles that he was already portraying. For one, he already owned a standalone refrigerated cabinet by Le Cache, and he knew that a standing temperature of 57-degree Fahrenheit was needed to ensure that his fine wine collection matured properly. Of course, it just so happened that the space underneath the stairway was the only place available for this purpose.

Los Angeles Home Wine Cellars – Playa Vista Project Wine refrigeration systems can be notoriously bulky. The original idea of making a glass wall enclosure–on which the front of it was supposed to be refrigerated–in the area underneath the stairs was quite improbable for this project. And, not to mention, very costly too.

However, since the client already owns a single refrigeration system, the team suggested he move 200 of his fine wine bottle collection to the Le Cache refrigerator and leave the rest of his collection to be stored “passively”–that is, to be put inside the wine cellar for the sole means of displaying it to visitors.

The client agreed to the idea, and then the team set about designing the wine racks that would be used for the cellar.

A Mix-and-Match of Racks

As you can see from the picture above, the Whole Cellar team had to account for the slope of the stairway above the area, in order to design the wine rack accordingly. They also decided to include some “elements” from popular wine rack designs like diamond bins and rectangular storage bins to create a custom wine rack that is truly one of a kind.

Since one of the main purposes of this wine cellar project was to display the client’s wine bottle collection, having a high-reveal display row was of the utmost importance for the rack. Pitched at a fifteen-degree angle, this angle afforded the wine rack a sleek and thoroughly modern look.

All openings in this wine rack were also made to be “universal”; in other words, it has been designed to be wide enough for just about any large wine bottles like champagnes or burgundies to be stored inside it.  A modified countertop was also included in the design of the wine rack so as to allow people a simple “table” where they can set wine bottles or glasses, in case they would like to have an impromptu wine tasting session.

Finally, the wine rack came in an Alder wood design, and it was finished off with a rustic stain look that perfectly matched the flooring in the rest of the house.

A Unique Addition to the Whole Cellar Portfolio

The client was very pleased with how the Playa Vista wine cellar under stairs project turned out after three months of hard work. If you have a similar idea in mind, but do not know how you can go about it, then you can always call Whole Cellar’s toll-free number at +1 (888) 735-8889 and get a FREE 3D wine cellar design!

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San Clemente is one of the most beautiful and peaceful communities in California. That’s why so many people are looking to move there recently. One of our clients recently did, by buying an old home next to a gorgeous seaside view, and he was satisfied with his purchase of it so far—well, except for that musty wine cellar inside his newly purchased home. With 856 wine bottles comprising his own collection, he was looking for the room to be renovated quickly. Fortunately for him, he contacted Whole Cellar to build his San Clemente home wine cellar project.

When we first arrived at the client’s home in February 2015, we were greeted with the dismal sight of an old wine cellar that had major insulation problems. The single pane glass installed on its windows and doors were only compounding this problem even more.

Custom Built Wine Cellars San Clemente California Coastal ProjectWe decided that nothing less than a complete overhaul was necessary for this job. So, not only did we strip the wall coverings bare, we also removed all of the old wine racks that were previously held there. The purpose for this was to properly re-seal the walls so the room could be tightly insulated. As for the single pane glass, we replaced them with dual pane.

Custom Wine Cellars CA, Wine Rack Installation & Wine Guardian Cooling Units One challenge we were presented with during the course of doing this job was deciding on the ideal cooling system for the wine cellar in question. It needed to be a standalone unit, and it should look “compact” enough to be stored inside an enclosure that only measures up to 400 cubic feet.

We eventually found the one we were looking for in the Wine Guardian Ducted System. Its in-system humidification module is extremely user-friendly since it allows the unit’s temperature and humidity levels to be adjusted with the use of a remote control. It’s ideal for limited spaces, and it also performs just as well as any of its “bigger” refrigeration counterparts.

We then went to what is perhaps the most important facet of the whole project: the wine racks that will store the client’s wine bottle collection. He was aiming for a classic wood look, so we had the wine racks fashioned with Alder wood as the primary material. We finished the construction of the custom wine racks with a chestnut stain and finished with clear lacquer.

The San Clemente home wine cellar project went on for three months, and it was finally completed on April 2015. Thankfully, the client liked our work so much that he practically allowed us to “use” his home for documentation purposes. To see more of the projects we did, you can check out our recent jobs at Florida and Coto de Caza, California.

 

Closet conversion is becoming popular in the design and construction industry.  Many home owners are considering having a vacant small or large space in their home converted into something useful.

One residential owner in Newport Beach contacted a California wine cellar builder to request help in converting his closet into a custom wine cellar.  The client wanted a wine storage and display space that was both functional, and elegant.

Vintage Wine Cellars, the California wine cellar builder that the client contacted, came up with a gorgeous custom wine cellar design.  It featured a stunning wine rack design to store and display wine bottles, a wine cellar cooling system to cool the wines, a glass wine cellar door, and matching wine cellar flooring.

Wine Rack Design Features

The wine storage and display racks are a combination of several different wine rack designs, including:

• Single bottle storage wine racks
• Horizontal display wine racks
• High reveal display rows
• Arched tabletop
• Diamond bin cases
• Rectangular bins

 

The single bottle storage wooden wine racks store 750 ml wine bottles individually, in cubicles with 3 ¾ inche openings, which are perfect for easy bottle access.  The bottle holders on each cubicle are hand sanded, to protect wine labels from scratches.

The horizontal display storage with a high reveal display row runs on the entire length of the walls.  This feature angles the wine bottles at 15 degrees, keeping the corks moist and the bottle tightly sealed.  An LED lighting fixture was also added, to illuminate the angled wine bottles on the display row.

At the center of the wine closet is a tabletop with an archway, where wine pouring or decanting can be done.  It features a lovely art piece, which is highlighted by a puck lighting.

At the bottom of the tabletop are solid diamond bins, which store wine bottles one on top of the other.  Diamond bins are ideal for bulk wine storage.

At the side of the wine closet are rectangular bins, which maximize the small storage space.  This wine racking style gives the wine collector an option to store wines by group (by variety, origin, size, age, etc.). This wine rack design is a wise option for storing 1.5L and 3L bottles.

The wooden wine racks are made of Premium Redwood, one of the best wood types used in the wine racking industry.  A dark walnut stain was applied to the wooden wine racks.  The natural aesthetic appeal of the stained redwood adds beauty to the wine cellar.

The total storage capacity of this wine closet is 840 wine bottles.

 Efficient Cooling using a Fully-Ducted Wine Cellar Cooling Unit

This Newport Beach California wine closet is highly functional, as it is equipped with a wine cellar cooling system.  This maintains the right balance of temperature and humidity inside the wine closet.

Vintage Wine Cellars installed a fully ducted wine cellar cooling unit from Wine Guardian.  It is a self-contained wine cellar cooling system, and it can be installed either indoors or outdoors.

For this Newport Beach California wine closet, the cooling unit was installed indoors, in the attic located just above the wine cellar.  The wine cellar cooling system is assembled in a platform with a drain pan.

The duct system of this wine cellar cooling unit supplies cool air into the wine cellar and exhausts hot air outside. A louvered grill that matches the wooden wine racks covers the cooling unit.

Wine Cellar Entryway and Flooring that Attractively Matches with the Wine Racks

The cellar door used is a Barolo style dual-paned glass wine cellar door.

This entryway has two door openings, and it has certain features that ensure a tight seal to the room, and these include weather stripping and a concealed door bottom.

The wine cellar door was coated with a Chestnut wood stain, creating a beautiful contrast against the Premium Redwood wine racks.

To enhance the look of the wine cellar, the owner chose a unique tile flooring. The color scheme of the flooring matches charmingly with the wooden wine racks.

Get Started with your Own Wine Cellar Design!

Vintage Wine Cellars did a great job completing this Newport Beach California wine closet renovation project, considering the limited space their team had to work on. Vintage Wine Cellars specializes in wine cellar design, installation, renovation, and even maintenance, for both residential and commercial locations.

If you have a custom wine cellar project in mind, whether in Southern or Northern California, just contact Vintage Wine Cellars California Wine Cellar Builder for a free design consultation. Visit their page at http://www.vintagewinecellars.com/.

Meeting the Client and Starting the Project

The Coto de Caza Golf and Racquet Club is among the finest private clubhouses in Orange County, California.  The 36-hole country club features a 44,000 square foot clubhouse thatis an ideal setting for weddings, business meetings, and private parties.  The club recently remodeled Preserve, their upscale dining room, to include a 1,380-bottle capacity wine enclave, where members can store and display their private collections.

In November 2013, Coastal Custom Wine Cellars was contacted by an architectural firm in San Diego, California.  They wanted to add a glass covered custom wine enclave to the newly remodeled Preserve Dining Room.  The room measures 11’ wide, 2’ deep and about 9’ tall.  After several consultations, and a couple of site visits, Coastal prepared a three dimensional design.

A 3D wine celalar design work from Coastal provides a three dimensional illustration of the proposed wine cellar design.  The wine cellar design package includes plan views (elevations and 3D views), total bottle capacities, construction guidelines, and an audio/video tour of the design.

The Wine Cellar Design Features

Stunning Metal Wine Rack Displays

Coastal Custom Wine Cellars, SoCal’s leading expert in wine cellar design and construction, created a climate-controlled commercial display wine room, encased in glass, that features VintageView metal wine rack displays.

Three sets of seamless 1/2″ glass doors provide access to the wine enclave.  To stabilize the climate conditions inside the wine storage space, the Coastal team recommended a Model D088 from Wine Guardian.

Unlike wood-based wine racks, metal wine rack displays provide a contemporary look that will go well with any modern interior.  VintageView metal wine rack displays are designed to hold bottles in a label forward orientation, allowing for ease of product recognition.

The horizontal placement of the bottles also helps maintain the continuous contact of the cork with the wine, thereby ensuring its sealing quality.

To increase the total bottle capacity of the custom wine enclave Coto de Caza CA, the Coastal team installed metal wine displays in single and triple deep configurations.

Triple depth wine racks can hold three bottles in a single row; two wine bottles are stored behind the visible bottle.

The metal wine racks are mostly label forward horizontal displays.  A presentation row running the width of the racking system was also installed, for showcasing the finest wine bottles in the collection.

The metal wine rack displays come in a black satin finish, to give them a stainless steel effect.  A three deep configuration wine display rack is located right in front of the series of glass doors that lead to the wine enclosure.

Single deep display racking is installed on the rear, fixed glass panel.  The wine rack design is set up in such a way that the bottles appear as if they are floating when viewed from the outside.

Tempered Glass Walls and Doors

The Coto de Caza Golf and Racquet Club contemporary wine cellar display is encased in seamless 1/2″ tempered glass walls and doors.

The glass covered custom wine enclave is an aesthetically pleasing addition to the clubhouse’s Preserve Dining Room.  The heavy duty glass doors are hinged on self-closing, commercial grade pivot sets.

Installating the Wine Cellar Cooling Unit

To maintain the ideal wine storage temperature of 58 degrees Fahrenheit and a relative humidity between 50 to 60 percent, the Coastal team recommended a self-contained air duct handler, by Wine Guardian.

After conducting a heat load calculation, it was determined that the Model D088 wine cellar cooling unit would most efficiently cool the glass encased wine cellar.

Wine Guardian is a world-renowned manufacturer and provider of wine cellar cooling solutions.  Their wine cellar cooling products provide whisper-quiet operation and superior cooling performance.  They offer different types of cooling systems, including through the wall units, split cooling systems, ducted units, and humidifiers.

The Model D088 is a self-contained, fully ducted wine cellar cooling unit, that is ideal for medium to large residential and commercial wine cellars.  This cooling unit not only provides optimum temperature and humidity control, but also adds to the aesthetic quality of the wine storage space.

Since this wine cellar cooling unit can be ducted up to 25 feet away from the wine enclosure, it eliminates the presence of mechanical equipment in the room, thus promoting a quiet storage environment.

For this particular project, the cooling unit was placed in the ceiling.  Installing the climate control unit out of sight eliminates any presence of mechanical equipment in the custom wine enclave Coto de Caza CA, and allows the wine cellar builder to maximize available space.  Ceiling mounted units also provide better air distribution and circulation.

About the Wine Cellar Builder

Coastal Custom Wine Cellar Builder has over ten years of experience in designing and building commercial and residential wine cellars in California, and throughout the country.  They provide all aspects of wine storage needs, including wine cellar cooling systems, wood and metal based wine racking, wine cellar doors, and wine cellar flooring.

If you have a wine cellar project in mind, just contact Coastal Custom Wine Cellars. Click here.

US Cellar Systems, a California based wine cellar manufacturer that we work closely with recently announced an important new innovation in one of their commonly used components. The LRC Expansion Valve is now externally equalized. Learn how this is to be installed and some of it’s performance advantages.

New Expansion Valve

The LRC Expansion Valve looks almost like a pressure regulator, mounted inside one of the US Cellar Systems refrigeration system for wine cellars. It is a common component in all of the series offered by US Cellar Systems, except for the CC series.

Wine Cellar Refrigeration Technical Update – New LRC Expansion Valve Saves Time and Effort This valve is now externally equalized. This gives the system better performance on all of the systems and makes it more convenient to adjust.

Installation of the New System by LRC

When installing, add a T with an access shrader. This has a key advantage. You will be able to measure your evaporator coil pressure at the evaporator, instead of having to go all the way out to the condensing unit to look at your gauges. This makes adjustments to your system much more convenient.

Wine Cellar Refrigeration System Adjustment

Use a 3/8” nut driver or a ratchet and a 3/8” socket.

You can adjust the valve by turning the head on the top of the regulator. To increase pressure you turn clockwise. To decrease pressure you will turn counter-clockwise.

Caution! Remember to make small adjustments. Never go all the way in with the adjustment. If you go too far in you can damage the diaphragm and then the expansion valve will no longer adjust. This damage will not be covered under warranty, so be very cautious when making adjustments to prevent such harm to the system.

Contact US Cellar Systems for Support and Advice

If you’re in need of technical support for your wine cellar refrigeration system, contact US Cellar System here: +1(562) 728-5774.

If you’re interested in purchasing one of their systems, feel free to contact sales and customer support: +1(562) 513-3017.

This new expansion valve has important advantages; they can give you more information about it if you’re interested in learning more.

Wines are one of those rare commodities that require a consistent and stable environment, in order to preserve and improve their quality over time.  Wine cellars are specially designed to provide the best climate conditions for storing and aging wines.  To maintain the ideal wine storage temperature of 55°F to 58°F, a wine room must be outfitted with insulation and vapor barriers, as well as equipped with the proper wine cellar cooling system.

A wine cellar refrigeration unit is engineered to help stabilize temperature and humidity levels in a wine storage environment.  There are three main categories of climate control systems:  through-the-wall self-contained cooling units, ducted self-contained refrigeration systems, and split systems.  Each make and model has its own unique features, but all are designed to efficiently cool a wine cellar.

To ensure optimum wine cellar climate conditions, it is crucial to have your wine room fitted with the right type of Orange County wine cellar refrigeration system.  There are several factors that should be taken into consideration when deciding on a climate control system, such as size and location of the wine cellar, amount of insulation, ambient conditions, and the number of wine bottles intended for storage.

This recently completed Orange County wine cellar refrigeration replacement project shows the importance of providing your wine cellar with the proper wine cellar cooling system.  This project was serviced by Arctic Metalworks, Southern California’s leading manufacturer and supplier of commercial grade wine cellar refrigeration systems.

Initial inspection of the wine storage space shows that the existing cooling unit, a through-the-wall breeze air style refrigeration unit, is not capable of cooling a large wine cellar (10’ x 6’).  The homeowners also complained that the unit was blowing hot air and noise into their living space.

The Arctic team recommended removing the existing refrigeration equipment and replacing it with one of their wine cellar refrigeration systems, Arctic 0050 ½ HP split system.  A split system wine cooling unit is considered as one of the most efficient cooling option.  This type of climate control system is designed to be unobtrusive and quiet.

A split wine cellar refrigeration unit houses the evaporator coil and the condensing unit separately.  Separating both components allows for flexibility in installation and helps eliminate noise.  The evaporator coil is mounted in the wine cellar, while the condensing unit can be located outdoors or in a well-ventilated adjoining room.

For this refrigeration replacement project, the Arctic team installed the condensing unit outdoors.  The unit sits on a 24 x 24 air conditioning pad.  Arctic Metalworks created a custom-designed sheet metal cover to protect the condensing component of the refrigeration system against the rain and other harmful outside elements.

The Arctic team used refrigerant lines to connect the outdoor unit to the indoor evaporator coil.  Refrigerant lines are a set of tubes or pipes that transport refrigerant through a wine cellar cooling system.  The suction line is responsible for transporting gaseous refrigerant, while a liquid line carries refrigerant in its liquid form.  A drain line is also needed to remove water that is produced during the dehumidification process.

Arctic Metalworks installed a digital room thermostat with backlit display.  Thermostats are control systems that help maintain the correct temperature in a wine room, and at the same time allow wine collectors to regularly monitor the climate conditions inside their wine cellar space.

The entire climate control system runs on 115 volt/ 20 amp electrical receptacles.  After inspecting the refrigeration equipment for leaks, the Arctic team started the system and charged it with R134a, a type of refrigerant that is non-ozone depleting and is completely safe for the environment.

When deciding on a wine cellar refrigeration unit, always consult with a wine cellar refrigeration expert.  They will perform a heat load calculation to determine the best cooling option for your wine enclave.  Professional refrigeration experts will also take into account any constraints in your storage space, as well as your specific preferences to ensure that the cooling unit will suit the conditions of your wine room.

Arctic Metalworks is a family owned and operated multi-division company that designs and builds Orange County wine cellar refrigeration systems for both residential and commercial applications.  The company also specializes in wine cellar construction and renovation, as well as handmade wine racking systems.

The Arctic team has carved out a name for themselves as a leading manufacturer of commercial grade quality climate control systems and providing professional prompt service.  They have a full service team of refrigeration specialists and technicians on standby should your cooling system require maintenance or repair.

Wine Cellars by Coastal & Arctic Metalworks Yorba Linda California Project – A Processed Video Transcription

 

 Custom Wine Cellar Yorba Lina CA by Coastal with Wine Cellar Refrigeration by Arctic .

Hello!

I’d like to take you on a short video tour of a custom wine cellar Yorba Linda CA project recently completed by Coastal Custom Wine Cellars.

The project is located in Orange County, Yorba Linda, California, actually.

We partnered with Arctic Metalworks who provided the wine cellar refrigeration components for the enclosure; and, we also partnered with David Lincoln Construction who provided all the general contractor services.

So, as you can see we had a small niche to work within this home.  This is about roughly eight-foot wide, I believe eight-foot tall and 30 inches deep.

I’ll take you to a series of photographs that will show you the progress as we move forward towards completion and I’ll also take you on a tour of our three-dimensional design package that’s offered to everyone who visits Coastal.

As you can see, we had a niche here; we took this particular niche, we demoed it, we sealed the area to protect the home from dust.

Before this beautiful brick veneer was placed on the walls, behind the walls we have our vapor barrier, our insulation, all the electrical was roughed in as well as the mechanical line set, the refrigeration lines and the condensate drain line.

Wine Cellar Refrigeration Yorba Linda CA Installation

Now, this particular enclosure called for a split wine cellar refrigeration system.

So, outside the wine enclosure is a remote condenser; inside the wine enclosure is your fan coil, cold air supply and the cold air return.

This also has a remote LED controller or thermostat, that one can monitor the temperature inside the wine cellar.

The Wine Cellar Design 

Let’s take a look at the actual wine cellar design.

Once we have a consultation with the customer to determine how many bottles they want to display, some of the features that they want to include in the display, we created a three-dimensional wine cellar design package.

This is an overhead view of the small area.  Actually, it’s just under 6 feet wide, 28 inches deep and the height is just under 8-foot and 94 inches.

The total bottle capacity for the enclosure: 392 bottles.

So, let’s take a look at the elevation itself.

As you can see, from the side view here on the right of the bottom half is double-deep, which means you can place the bottle into an opening, push it to the back of the component and place another bottle in front of that; and, we used, on the top portion above the countertop level, a single-deep storage and display area.

So, at the left is the tabletop area while they set things down while managing the wines or opening the bottles of wine.

The Wine Racks 

So, we’ll start from the bottom.  All of the wine racks rest on an inch and a half toe-kick which elevates the components off the floor, of course.

Now, we’ll use a beautiful base trim as well as a crown molding at the top.

To the far left and to the far right we’ve got bin storage or bulk storage for case locks, ordered or flanked to either side of this beautiful diamond bin, we’ve got a single column, single vertical column, or single bottle storage.

Above that, more single bottle storage with a high reveal display row and to the far left and to the far right the folks wanted a cabinet for some liquors, glasses, even small drawers for accoutrements such as cork screws and napkins.

This area just above the arch area is a lattice grill box with an operable grill cover.  This is what’s concealing the mechanical appearance of the fan coil that we looked at a few moments ago.

With that said, we’ll look into some of these different features here that we spoke of.

These are the small cabinets to the left and to the right and the drawer here, and the high reveal display row.

This is the square bins on the left and the single bottle, or single vertical column, I spoke of as well as the diamond bins and the beautiful front view of the area.

This wine cellar’s entire front was a seamless glass entry door, which turned out quite beautiful.

Thank you for visiting Coastal Custom Wine Cellars.

If I could be of any assistance, please reach out to us at www.winecellarsbycoastal.com.