Comments for Basement-Wine-Cellar.com

Comment on Store Vegetables in Your Wine Cellar by Winepine

Winepine — Sat, 03 Sep 2011 16:09:28 +0000

I really like the way you think! From the harvesting of your own fruits and vegetables, creating an effective and environmentally-friendly wine cellar design, and capitalizing on a strategy to keep both your produce and wine stored safely in your cellar, I think your ideas are absolutely ingenious. The potatoes in a wine crate was a nice twist as well. Thank you for sharing!

Comment on About The Site by RedondoBeachWino

RedondoBeachWino — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 18:10:59 +0000

I’m in the final planning stages of a new basement cellar and I’ve read in Richard Gold’s book that no insulation should be used under a slab floor unless you wish to raise the temperature. My ground temp at 10′ deep is about 68F year-round. Doesn’t it make sense to prevent that ‘heat’ from entering the cooled cellar with insulation? I enjoyed your site.

Comment on About The Site by Basement Wine Cellar Guy

Basement Wine Cellar Guy — Sat, 09 Apr 2011 20:05:43 +0000

I can’t remember the brand of spray foam, but it was nothing special. The thicker the walls, the better the insulation, so I went with full 2 x 4s; I’d be worried that anything less wouldn’t provide enough room for insulation.

As for the framing on the floor, no, it was just regular wood; not treated. I didn’t want any chemicals from the treated wood to leach out (which probably wouldn’t really be an issue). The other reason: my basement is very dry; we have great drainage, so moisture wasn’t a problem.

As for the total cost, I haven’t added it up, but obviously it would be different for everyone. The actual “cellar” didn’t cost much. I already had the room (it was a large closet), so it was just framing, insulation, drywall and flooring, which aren’t that costly. The real costs are the cooling unit (which is about as expensive as a room air conditioner), and the racking, which is by far the largest expense, but again the cost is dependent on what you buy, and your requirements.

(Actually I guess the biggest cost is the wine………)

Comment on Wine Cellar Ceiling by Basement Wine Cellar Guy

Basement Wine Cellar Guy — Sat, 09 Apr 2011 20:00:14 +0000

Excellent point about the gas line with an inline union. Yes, I have a “trap door”. Actually it’s a square hole in the ceiling with a spring loaded plastic square shoved up into the hole. You can buy them at any building supply store for under $5.

As for lighting, I used standard lights in the ceiling. I didn’t put anything under the racking. I didn’t go fancy, because I just go into the wine cellar, get my wine, and leave, so I need just enough light to read my bottle numbers. If I was spending time in the cellar I would have gone fancier.

Comment on Wine Cellar Racking by Basement Wine Cellar Guy

Basement Wine Cellar Guy — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 20:33:18 +0000

The holes from the nails from the nail gun are tiny, so they aren’t really visible, unless you are looking really closely at it. I would assume if you put screws in, they would also be visible.

In my installation (which you can best see in the second picture above, Square Wine Cellar Racking), we put a strip of wood across the top of the racks, near the ceiling (like a crown molding); that also helps cover the nail holes (although of course that piece of wood is also nailed on).

As for other types of wood, I have no ideas, although if you have access to other types of wood that would make sense, depending on the cost, although I doubt that pine is a good choice; you want a hard wood, not a soft wood.

Comment on Wine Cellar Racking by Diff Mazurek

Diff Mazurek — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 14:45:08 +0000

Many thanks for putting out this info. I have a client who wants to sub out the installation of the mechanical componenents but I would like to build the racking. My understanding is that after redwood, mahogany would be a suitable material. I thinkl I still have acces to a quantity of the African mahogany thru a cabinet maker so that would be my first choice. My next option would be to also use jatoba (brazilian cherry) of which I also have access to from an associate who bought a fair quantity from an auction. The client used some racking from Ikea which is made of pine. These particular units carry rows of bottles and look similar to your pictures but are installed horizontally. So the horizontal suppports are heavier to support a 5-6 wide row of bottles. I would appreciate any comments. I could air nail supports to vertical posts although I would prefer to scew the units together but since the pieces are opposite each other that would be difficut unless the screws were visible. Can you see the air nail holes on yours or does it matter if they show. I will try your referral for Rosehill and go from there. Sincerely, diff mazurek. I work in toronto so I am grateful that you provided this info.

Comment on Build a Wine Cellar to Help the Environment by Mark

Mark — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 19:50:47 +0000

This isn’t as obvious an energy savings as you might think. I have a basement wine cellar and I’m actually considering going the opposite route – taking my long term bottles and moving them into refrigeration units while bumping the ambient in the cellar way up. The reason refrigeration units should be much more efficient is that not only do they minimize “empty space” – as you suggest for your cellar, but they’re also much lower wattage compared to your BreezeAire unit. I haven’t completed my study yet, but have watched my basement wine cellar unit burn ~900+ watts for decent periods of time, especially in the summer months.

Currently my thought is to keep the cellar at 68 with my existing unit, and drop a ~500 bottle cabinet in for the Montrachets and Musignys of my collection.

Comment on About The Site by WineGuyinTN

WineGuyinTN — Wed, 29 Dec 2010 19:19:53 +0000

I am in the preparation phase of building my basement wine cellar and was very glad to find your website! I am very interested to learn the brand of spray foam insulation you used and how thick you applied it. I was hoping that if it is only an inch or two thick that I could go with furring strips on the masonry walls instead of full 2x4s. I am also curious to know if you used treated lumber for the framing you laid on the basement floor due to potential moisture coming up through the concrete floor. Your cellar looks great and I am envious. Any ideas on the total cost of your cellar? Thanks for sharing your cellar building experience..

Comment on Wine Cellar Ceiling by George

George — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 23:27:52 +0000

Nice blog! I too am in the construction phase of my wine cellar. I couldn’t help but notice your ceiling picture has a gas line with an inline union. I was told that by code, unions need to be made available for inspection, and that they often are a source of leaks. I hope you kept your union accessible via some kind of trap door. Bought my cooling unit at Rosehill, and will buy my racks there once the walls are up. I didn’t see any mention of lighting — I’m using LED fixtures on the ceiling and LED strips underneath the racking…all are warm white.

Comment on About The Site by Basement Wine Cellar Guy

Basement Wine Cellar Guy — Sat, 11 Sep 2010 23:23:30 +0000

I have no experience with turning a sauna into a basement wine cellar, but it might work. Obviously it’s well insulated, and the size is right. The only issue will be the internal temperature. Presumably you will need a cooling unit, and that could be a problem if there is no way to install it, or vent it. However, if you can install a cooling unit, converting a sauna may be the perfect solution.