49 replies to this topic

[ThankYouForNotSmoking]

That's quite the project, for those guys considering it, the cedar lining isn't really necessary, and other than that, converting a wine cooler to a frigidor is easy as pie to do.

[BahamaTom]

BT,

I was very careful to allow the unit to drain any condensation as it was designed to do. I elevated the cedar floor by 1/4" and cut out around the rectangular pooling area in the back bottom corner of the cabinet and gave it about 1/2" around before the cedar lining, so it is elevated and held back from the moisture areas.

A pound of 65% beads is in the back but is 1" shy of the rear moisture channel so it is way clear . I also made sure the cabinet is level so if there was any condensation in the rear of the cabinet it could drain right down the back and out the bottom freely.

After about five days now the humidity is starting to stabilize around 64% and the temp is still steady at 63-64f . I am about to throw that off with a couple of singles trays. More pics to come.

I would avoid putting any loose smokes in direct line with the fan, I am planning on boxes up top and singles in the bottom, my singles trays will have a 2" air gap in front and behind them with the fans blowing up through that space, so the circulation of air should be drawn through the trays and not blown directly on the loose cigars. Also this circulation will only take place for a couple minutes a few times a day, just to move the air around and keep RH/temp uniform...in theory, that is woodworking helo mech theory so who knows.

I had a slight delay and rearranged a couple machines in the shop during this project.

see ya

Mike- Excellent... I would be curious if you will get alll the condensation I did... I mean I had pools of water inside the cooler and on the floor outside if it (hardwood floors... OUCH...)...

Good luck buddy... It does indeed look great...

Regards,

BT

[JHolmes763]

Also this circulation will only take place for a couple minutes a few times a day, just to move the air around and keep RH/temp uniform...in theory, that is woodworking helo mech theory so who knows.

Is there a separate timer for the fan, or does it kick on as necessary?

Great looking project, btw.

[NorcalMark]

Excellent job!

[ThankYouForNotSmoking]

BT,

I was very careful to allow the unit to drain any condensation as it was designed to do. I elevated the cedar floor by 1/4" and cut out around the rectangular pooling area in the back bottom corner of the cabinet and gave it about 1/2" around before the cedar lining, so it is elevated and held back from the moisture areas.

A pound of 65% beads is in the back but is 1" shy of the rear moisture channel so it is way clear . I also made sure the cabinet is level so if there was any condensation in the rear of the cabinet it could drain right down the back and out the bottom freely.

After about five days now the humidity is starting to stabilize around 64% and the temp is still steady at 63-64f . I am about to throw that off with a couple of singles trays. More pics to come.

I would avoid putting any loose smokes in direct line with the fan, I am planning on boxes up top and singles in the bottom, my singles trays will have a 2" air gap in front and behind them with the fans blowing up through that space, so the circulation of air should be drawn through the trays and not blown directly on the loose cigars. Also this circulation will only take place for a couple minutes a few times a day, just to move the air around and keep RH/temp uniform...in theory, that is woodworking helo mech theory so who knows.

I had a slight delay and rearranged a couple machines in the shop during this project.

see ya

Mike- Excellent... I would be curious if you will get alll the condensation I did... I mean I had pools of water inside the cooler and on the floor outside if it (hardwood floors... OUCH...)...

Good luck buddy... It does indeed look great...

Regards,

BT

BT - from my experience that happens when the 'dor is cooling too much. How are you regulating the temperature?

[AKmik]

Hello gents,

well a few good points have been brought up and have been dealt with as they happen. The condensation issue , definitely needs a fix. I went with a drain tube connected to the drain a 3' run to a 1liter bottle,this will be below the cabinet and easier than getting behind it every week with a shop vac to remove the water from the drain tray.

I also have a couple trays on the sanding bench right now. I will post a couple pics tonight or tomorrow showing this stuff and the wiz bang digital fan controll system as well.

Work slowed late last night and ended with a chilled smoke.smokinopie

[Yambor44]

I had a thought from reading another topic here. what if I bought one of these

http://www.cigarextr...A...D&ProdID=53

and then insert it into the cooler from Target? The door is glass, opens from the front and has a hygrometer right up front so you could read it without opening the cooler door. Although I would use my digital meter placed where I could see it so that i could see the actual temp and RH (and its already calibrated).

Any drawbacks to this idea?

Thanks,

Rob

[geldor1]

Just came back from a run to Target to pick up some kitty food.

They had the Vinotemp on a header @ $179. It wasn't an advertised item but a 'price break' or whatever they call it.

Don't know if it is just a local thing so, YMMV.

[ThankYouForNotSmoking]

I had a thought from reading another topic here. what if I bought one of these

http://www.cigarextr...A...D&ProdID=53

and then insert it into the cooler from Target? The door is glass, opens from the front and has a hygrometer right up front so you could read it without opening the cooler door. Although I would use my digital meter placed where I could see it so that i could see the actual temp and RH (and its already calibrated).

Any drawbacks to this idea?

Thanks,

Rob

You'll waste a whole lot of storage space doing that.

[BahamaTom]

BT,

I was very careful to allow the unit to drain any condensation as it was designed to do. I elevated the cedar floor by 1/4" and cut out around the rectangular pooling area in the back bottom corner of the cabinet and gave it about 1/2" around before the cedar lining, so it is elevated and held back from the moisture areas.

A pound of 65% beads is in the back but is 1" shy of the rear moisture channel so it is way clear . I also made sure the cabinet is level so if there was any condensation in the rear of the cabinet it could drain right down the back and out the bottom freely.

After about five days now the humidity is starting to stabilize around 64% and the temp is still steady at 63-64f . I am about to throw that off with a couple of singles trays. More pics to come.

I would avoid putting any loose smokes in direct line with the fan, I am planning on boxes up top and singles in the bottom, my singles trays will have a 2" air gap in front and behind them with the fans blowing up through that space, so the circulation of air should be drawn through the trays and not blown directly on the loose cigars. Also this circulation will only take place for a couple minutes a few times a day, just to move the air around and keep RH/temp uniform...in theory, that is woodworking helo mech theory so who knows.

I had a slight delay and rearranged a couple machines in the shop during this project.

see ya

Mike- Excellent... I would be curious if you will get alll the condensation I did... I mean I had pools of water inside the cooler and on the floor outside if it (hardwood floors... OUCH...)...

Good luck buddy... It does indeed look great...

Regards,

BT

BT - from my experience that happens when the 'dor is cooling too much. How are you regulating the temperature?

TYFNS- Sorry for the delayed response... I was thinking that was the culprit... The Vinotemp has a built-in temp gauge, which is certainly not that accurate, but I kept it at the highest setting, 68 or so... I wasn't asking a lot from the unit in regards to cooling... My home stays at 72-73 constantly...

The constant condensation, inside and out, coupled with a batch of my "babies" being a bit dried out from the fan, made me get away from the Vinotemp...

I don't want to take anything away from anybody else using this system, but for me it was just too much work... My .02...

Regards,

BT

[AKmik]

Hey guys,

Well the chiller is doing its job, 64f 64% . Was kind of busy messing with the trays.

tray

I am using up the extra spanish cedar.

[audilicious]

If these cool too much, couldn't you use the timers for the whole unit as well as the fans?

that way it only cools for so many minutes a day, and it's insulated so it should retain temp below ambient as long as you don't open/close too much.

just a thought... saves energy too.

[rectifythis]

If these cool too much, couldn't you use the timers for the whole unit as well as the fans?

that way it only cools for so many minutes a day, and it's insulated so it should retain temp below ambient as long as you don't open/close too much.

just a thought... saves energy too.

Many people use timers but these Vinotemps do not overcool...in fact, mine will hang out at 73 if I let it. They don't use much energy either. And it depends on where you live for how long in holds temp. Mine comes on quite often living in Arizona. There is nothing I can do about it.

[AKmik]

well guys,

My understanding on the Vinotemp is it is designed to cycle on and off to save power. I think that is what's going on, the temp doesn't fluctuate enough to trigger a thermostat. The digital read out is way off, but I have it set at 54 and it has been holding 64f very steadily since it has been plugged in. Maybe the temp controll would help limit the cycling even more.

I have two trays built and am not sure if I want a third or not. I do like singles trays, but I may just leave it at the two and use the rest for full boxes. Here is a quick look at the trays in place last night. Since then I have removed the shelf and supports and drilled for adjustable shelving, Works great.

trays

My idea is singles trays will start 1/2" off the bottom and the shelf will be about 1/2" from the top,second or (third tray). The trays have 1 1/2" of space between them and the back wall as well as 1" in front for circulation. The RH is holding nicely at 64% as well. The trays were left in empty last night.

more to come.

[StogieFarts]

Wow, that's looking real spiffy. Nice job. The cedar lining looks great.

[KeyserSoze]

Very nice job on that cooler. My cooler seems to stay on constantly and dropped my rh to the 40's so I just got a digital timer and have it run 10mins every 1.5hrs during the day. It holds a nice 59-64rh / 67-72temp during the hotter days. I think as long as you keep them in boxes, they should be fine. I haven't had any problems so far. GL on the project. Hope it works out for you.

[Yambor44]

Hello again everyone!

I have had my wine cooler plugged in for a few days now. The digital readout on the cooler itself reads 62-63 degrees everytime I have checked on it for 3 days straight. I have two digital hygrometers with temperature readout and they both read 70 degrees. My RH shows 54 on one and 57 on the other. The units are identical (Radio Shack) and sit side by side two inches apart on a rack towards the lower middle of the unit. Anyone else had this situation with the cooler?

Thanks for any input!

Rob

[interscape]

I think I found a solution to the condensation problem. I bought a replacement humidifier pad and placed it on the floor of the unit and put a 12 volt fan a inch or so above it. The fan runs off the same leg as the fan that blows directly across the peltier coldsink so when it kicks on the fan spins full speed and when the unit is “off” the fan spins a about ¼ speed. The pad seems to suck up the water and the fan puts it back " in to the air " so to speak. I have no water on the floor and have not had to add and water at all for over 10 days. And that is something here in AZ. Before I was having to mop water out of the bottom ( all channels were level full in the manufacture there was no hole in the plastic liner down to the drain pan.) and keep wetting the heartfelt beads seems like this fixed everything. I will try to post a pic. As far as the issue with the built in temp being way off the temp sensor is just a thermocouple located by the coldsink. You can make it a little more accurate buy adjusting the position on the wire further from the actual source of the cold. Hope this helps.

Les

By the way that does look great. I wanted to do that as well because every B&M I go to wants $5 for a empty all cedar box

Edited by interscape, 31 May 2007 - 05:17 PM.

[interscape]

Hello again everyone!

I have had my wine cooler plugged in for a few days now. The digital readout on the cooler itself reads 62-63 degrees everytime I have checked on it for 3 days straight. I have two digital hygrometers with temperature readout and they both read 70 degrees. My RH shows 54 on one and 57 on the other. The units are identical (Radio Shack) and sit side by side two inches apart on a rack towards the lower middle of the unit. Anyone else had this situation with the cooler?

Thanks for any input!

Rob

Swap them and see if the number follow the insturment. I am guessing that will be the case. I think I have 4lbs of beads in mine. 1 Heartfelt and 3 kittylitter. seems pretty solid at 64%

[Yambor44]

Hello again everyone!

I have had my wine cooler plugged in for a few days now. The digital readout on the cooler itself reads 62-63 degrees everytime I have checked on it for 3 days straight. I have two digital hygrometers with temperature readout and they both read 70 degrees. My RH shows 54 on one and 57 on the other. The units are identical (Radio Shack) and sit side by side two inches apart on a rack towards the lower middle of the unit. Anyone else had this situation with the cooler?

Thanks for any input!

Rob

Swap them and see if the number follow the insturment. I am guessing that will be the case. I think I have 4lbs of beads in mine. 1 Heartfelt and 3 kittylitter. seems pretty solid at 64%

I will do that. What about the temperature though. Have you noticed the reading inside not matching the digital read out on the unit itself? 7-8 degrees difference seems like a lot.