Building a Wine Room

Rely on Vinotemp’s more than 20 years of experience in developing premium wine storage spaces for your next project. Read below about building a proper wine cellar or watch our interactive How to Build a Wine Cellar video.  See all of our Videos.

Location

  • Space consideration: How much space do you have available or how much do you need based on the size of your collection? Don’t forget to leave room for future growth.

  • Dedicate an area for your wine room. Locations in cooler areas of your home, like a basement, can be ideal.


Structural Construction

  • Insulate the walls and ceiling with 1 ½ inch thick rigid insulation that has a vapor barrier on each side of the insulation (i.e. plastic or foil). Insulation is available in four feet x eight feet sheets.

  • Apply these 4 x 8 sheets against the walls and the ceiling by either gluing, nailing or stapling. This system should bring the “r” factor to 19 for appropriate wine room insulation.

  • It may be possible to have the insulating 4 x 8 sheets configured with one side aluminum and the other a wood veneer to match the décor of the room.

 

Doors & Windows

  • The wine room door must be insulated and should have 360-degree weather stripping to keep the proper humidity (airtight). If glass doors or windows are desired, they should use double-paned, thermal glass. Exterior doors or doors specially designed for wine room purposes should be used. Please keep in mind that too much exposure to light can be harmful to your wine collection.


Floors

  • Carpet should not be used in a wine room. Floors should be made of materials that can withstand exposure to moisture. Vinotemp can help you choose ideal flooring materials for any location.


Racking

  • Racking can be all Redwood (or other types of wood), all metal or cellar trellis (solid redwood and powder coated black iron). Racks can be customized in size by 3 3/8, 3 3/4, 4, and 4 1/2 inch cubicles for the diverse sizes of wine/champagne bottles available.  4" cubicles are necessary for champagne and 4 1/2" for Magnums (can only insert one in a double depth rack). 3 ¾" hold "Splits" 375ml. There are several options for wine storage: wine racking for individual bottles, wood shelves for case storage, tilted racks for presentation, diamond cubes for bulk bottle storage, decanting tables and drawers, and clay racking for a rustic look.

  • Racks can be single, double or triple in depth for maximum storage. Wine tags for bottle identification and software for wine inventory are also available.

  • A wall that is 10 ft wide x 8 ft high x 22 ½ inch deep of racking will hold about 125 bottles per foot. 10 ft x 125 bottles = 1,250 bottles.

  • Wood shelving can be made to hold cartons or cases.

  • Wine racks are generally shipped disassembled so the shipping costs can be significantly reduced. They can also come as modular pieces for easier assembly. Keep in mind the opening of the wine cellar and other door openings so that the pieces of your wine cellar can easily fit through. 

  • Redwood is resistant to humidity, fungus, rot, and mildew and is thus Vinotemp's preferred material for wine racks. It is important to keep the wine room free of bad odors to protect your delicate wines. Racks are generally not finished for this the same reason; it helps reduce the possibility of odors contaminator your wines.


Cooling

  • The proper temperature and humidity of the wine room will preserve your wine. The Wine-Mate cooling unit must be properly sized for the area to be cooled. The cooling system needs to vent out into another room. For non-venting areas, split systems can be used. Wine-Mate is environmentally friendly and comes in many sizes and is unlike most other brands have UL approved options. The temperature should be 56* F or 14*C. 
  • Determine the cubic footage of your location (multiply LxWxH) and then use this number to determine the size cooling unit (BTU needed) necessary to cool the room properly.


Lighting

  • Lighting should be kept to a minimum both to help preserve your wine and to minimize additional heat in your wine room.


Personal Touches

  • Other accessories or custom work such as wood carvings and moldings, wood designs, flooring, glass entry door designs, glass etchings, murals and other art work can make your wine cellar truly spectacular. Vinotemp specializes in customizing every project we work on to your specific needs. Just let us know what you’re looking for.