Oct. 28, 2024
Home Appliances
Candor Product Page
Choosing the right wine refrigerator for your home can be overwhelming due to the many types, options and features available to you. Despite this, we have all the information you need to help pick out the best wine fridge for you and your family.
Below we answer some of the most frequently asked questions when it comes to wine coolers.
Have a question we didn&#;t answer? Let us know in the comments below or give us a call at 1.800.297..
A freestanding wine cooler is designed to stand alone while a built-in wine cooler (also called a zero clearance or under-counter wine cooler) is designed to be built into existing counters and cabinetry as they include a front vent located under the door that channels heat forward away from the unit.
A freestanding wine cooler is designed to dissipate heat from the back, so this heat cannot escape from an enclosure and eventually will overheat the unit. This overheating will in turn noticeably decrease the cooler&#;s ability to maintain its internal temperature and cool your wine. The unit&#;s compressor will attempt to overcompensate for the overheating unit and may eventually burn itself out. At the very least you run the risk of shortening the cooler&#;s overall lifespan as the compressor is continually overworked. You also run the risk of invalidating the manufacturer&#;s warranty by operating a freestanding unit in a built-in space.
Yes, if you allow sufficient space around the unit for the heat produced during operation to properly dissipate you will be able to install a freestanding unit into a built-in space. We strongly suggest leaving a gap of 2 to 3 inches on each side of the cooler as well as on top and in the back to create the needed airflow around the unit. You will not be able to achieve a true built-in appearance with these gaps but this should allow you to utilize a freestanding unit within a built-in space.
Many smaller wine coolers employ thermoelectric cooling instead of using a traditional compressor and refrigerant. A thermoelectric wine cooler contains a cooling node consisting of a ceramic tile that has electrical current passed through it. As the electrical current is passed through the cooling node the outside of the tile will heat up and the other side (the side facing into the cooler) will cool down. Typically, a thermoelectric wine cooler will contain small fans inside the unit which help to evenly distribute the cool temperatures being created by the node throughout the interior of the unit.
Due to the lack of a compressor, thermoelectric coolers will produce fewer vibrations which in turn will equal fewer disturbances of the sediments within the wine bottles. Please keep in mind that thermoelectric wine coolers are not completely silent as the internal fans needed to distribute the cold air within the cooler do produce some noise. However, they are usually quieter than compressor driven models. Thermoelectric coolers also consume less energy than compressor units, so they cost less to operate.
On the other hand, thermoelectric coolers are limited in that they can generally only produce temperatures about 20°F lower than the temperature outside the unit. Compressor-based cooling does not have the same limitation.
If you keep two cases or less on hand, the room where the cooler will be kept doesn&#;t get too warm, and you want a freestanding wine cooler, then a thermoelectric wine cooler is probably a good choice for you. For warmer rooms and larger collections, you&#;ll be better served by a compressor-based cooler. Also, most built-in models feature a compressor.
Single zone wine coolers have one temperature control and the storage space is undivided, so the whole cooler is set to the same temperature. This style is best if you tend to keep only white or only red wines, since they don&#;t have the same optimal temperatures. Dual zone wine coolers have two temperature controls and the storage space is divided into sections which may be set to their own temperatures. This style is ideal for keeping both reds and whites without resorting to two wine coolers.
Typically, white wines should be stored in the temperature range of 46°F to 56°F and red wines will be stored between 58°F to 68°F. The best way to accommodate both wines within the same unit is to purchase a dual zone wine cooler.
A dual zone cooler will allow you to maintain two distinct and separate temperature zones within the same cooler. Many times a dual zone unit will offer a larger storage capacity for one style of wine over the other so be sure to purchase the unit that best suits your individual drinking preference. You may of course store both red and white wines together in a single zone unit.
By placing your red wines in the top shelves of the unit you will be storing them in the warmest section of the cooler. There is usually only a 5 to 8 degree temperature difference between the top of a single zone wine cooler and the bottom so ultimately either your red wines will be too cold or your whites too warm depending on how you choose to set the master thermostat of the unit.
The average wine cooler will not offer temperatures below 46°F degrees. Due to this limitation we suggest purchasing a dedicated beverage cooler or traditional refrigerator if you wish to store beverages other than wine.
A wine cooler is set to a higher temperature range than a refrigerator or beverage cooler because wine should not be stored as cold as other beverages. On average a wine cooler will not offer temperatures below 46°F degrees. A beverage cooler and refrigerator are similar to each other, but beverage coolers frequently do not offer the adjustable shelves or door storage that a refrigerator often does, and they often have glass doors in order to display the contents.
A wine and beverage cooler has a wide temperature range so it may be used for either, but keep in mind if you want to store both at the same time you will either have too-cold wine or too-warm drinks depending on how you choose to set the internal thermostat.
Wine ages through a complex process of subtle chemical reactions that require specific conditions for optimal results. These conditions are a stable temperature around 55°F, a relative humidity around 70%, and protection from direct light. Even short exposures to temperature extremes can cause wine to age poorly as unwanted chemical reactions are created. For these reasons, a cellar is the ideal environment for aging wine.
The most important thing you can do is to keep the temperature at a stable 55°F &#; it&#;s crucial to eliminate variations in temperature. Look for a cooler with UV-tinted glass to minimize light disturbance to your wine, and store the cooler in a dark place. To maintain a humidity around 70%, look for a wine cooler that features humidity control or heavy insulation to help maintain a constant humidity. At the minimum, humidity must be kept at 50% to prevent corks from drying out.
Caution: Make sure to minimize the exposure of water to any electronic or control parts.
If you have chosen to pick up your wine cooler yourself, it is important that it is kept standing upright during the transport. In some cases the compressor / cooling system can get damage, if it has been laid down during transport.
For more information, please visit WINE COOLER customize.
Therefore, we recommend that you get the wine cooler delivered by professionals who can transport the wine cooler upright throughout the transport.
Once you have placed your wine cooler where it should be, wait 24-48 hours (Eurocave always 48 hours) before connecting power to the cabinet. It is important for the wine cooler to stand still after it has been transported.
It is also important that the wine cooler is in an absolutely perfectly levelled position.
Use the waiting time to fill the wine cooler with bottles.
All manufacturers of wine coolers refers to the bottle type Bordeaux when they specify the bottle capacity of the wine cooler. But few people only have Bordeaux bottles. There are many bottles that are both thicker and longer than Bordeaux bottles. So expect that you have room for about 70% of the stated number of Bordeaux bottles if you have mixed bottle sizes. Do not fill your wine cooler too much as it is important that there is room for air to circulate inside the wine cooler so you get a constant temperature throughout the cooling zone.
Learn more about how to store the bottles in the best way, temperature and humidity here.
Generally, air exchange is a good thing against moisture. After all, this applies to everything from basements, sheds and also wine cabinets. So total opening and venting of the wine fridge once in a while is a good idea.
However, it may happen that mold occur in a wine refrigerato. Fortunately, this can be remedied with a good and thorough cleaning, which, by the way is a good idea to do twice a year.
We recommend a mold and mildew remover product used along with a regular main cleaning of the wine refrigerator. Take out the wine bottles and wash the inside of the cabinet with light soapy water and rinse with clean water at last.
Then, when you put the bottles back in the cabinet, try to prevent them from touching the back wall inside the cabinet. In this way you help the air circulation, which is good against mold and mildew.
Finally, you can wrap the bottles in food wrapping film before racking them in the wine cabinet. This way you protect the labels while the bottles are easier to stack inside the cabinet. You can also spray hair lacquer as a nice little protective film on the label, but we prefer wrapping film. On a dry bottle, of course&#;
When you first connect your wine cooler it will run a lot because it will have to work a lot to cool down all the bottles. The entire cooling system is also about to start running for the first time.
In the beginning you will experience that the wine cooler will sound louder than normal, as well as start and stop more times than normal.
A wine cooler sounds more than a conventional refrigerator. This is due to, among other things, fans inside the cabinet that distributes cold air to achieve a constant temperature throughout the cooling zone. There is also a big difference in how sound is perceived depending on the acoustics of the room where you have placed the wine cooler.
Learn more about noise from wine coolers and what you should consider here.
Once you have set the wine cooler to the desired temperature, it is very normal that the temperature will fluctuate up and down plus / minus a few degrees. This varies depending on whether the cabinet will be cooled further down after that it just has cooled down.
These temperature fluctuations are normal and the wine will not get affected because it takes longer for the liquid to change temperature than it does for the air in the cabinet.
Filling a wine cooler with bottles will help maintain a more stable temperature inside the wine cooler.
It&#;s important that you connect your wine cooler using an earth connection plug. This is for your own safety and because some wine coolers (especially thermoelectric wine coolers) risk breaking down if not connected to an active earth connection.
For other instructions and how to use your wine cooler, we refer to the manual that you can find here.
If you wish to store your wine for a longer period of time, it is very important that the bottles lie down completely; making sure that the cork is kept moist by the wine. Some wine coolers have a presentation shelf, where the bottle can be placed crooked in order to see the label. This looks very nice when you look into the wine cooler. However, you need to remember to switch the bottles around occasionally, to make sure that the cork does not dry out on any of the wine bottles.
The bottles you wish to store for the longest period of time are a good idea to store in pre-determined shelves that you don&#;t pull out too often. You can also have defined shelves for the wines you drink from time to time that are being replaced more often. In this way, you allow the wines, which are being stored for a longer period, to have the most amount of calm and quiet, making sure they are not shaken unnecessarily.
There is a difference between having a wine cooler for long-term storage, short-term storage or a combination of the two. If you primarily need the wine cooler for long-term storage, the ideal temperature would be 12 degrees. Higher temperatures can also be used, but remember the higher the temperature, the faster the wine ages.
If you need the wine cooler for short-term storage or as a serving cooler, where you often remove a bottle or two, and replace them, the ideal temperature would be about 15-16 degrees. Making sure that the wine gets the right serving temperature at 16-18 degrees faster.
If you have white wines etc. you will either need a wine cooler with two cooling zones, where you put one zone on 6-8 degrees for the whites, and then use the other zone for red wines. If you only have one zone, you will need to take the white wine or champagne out of the wine cooler a while before drinking and place it in a normal fridge, which is usually set to 5 degrees.
Moisture in the air can also be a factor when you are long-term storing wine. The ideal humidity would be at 50-75%. If the humidity level gets too high, you risk the cork starts to rot or crumble, and if it is too low, you risk the cork drying out. Most wine coolers maintain the correct humidity themselves through the vaporizer within the cooler, others simply maintain it when you open and close the door.
If you are long-term storing wine, I suggest that you invest in a hygrometer, or use our smart wireless system from Sensorist, which keeps an eye on both humidity level and temperature through the Internet or an app.
Get help finding out which wine cooler you need by using our wine cooler guide. In this guide all of our products are divided into different categories, depending on number of bottles, low energy, level of noise and much more.
For more Commercial built-in wine cooler manufacturerinformation, please contact us. We will provide professional answers.
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