Too often wine collectors, even owners of professional properties that sell wine, hire a builder that doesn’t understand the technical complexities of wine cellars. Commercial cooling units, built for wine storage, are not your average heating and air conditioning project. Many contractors attempt these projects without basic understanding of how to build a really effective space. Find out the key details to consider when building a commercial wine storage system. Whether you own a restaurant or store, or you’re a builder that’s learning how to provide this service to your clients, find out what to consider when entering construction.
Professional Wine Cellar Construction Basics
A wine cellar is more than the average storage room. It is a structure that is built to provide wines with a temperature of approximately 45 to 55 degrees Fahrenheit and a humidity of around 60% to 70%. The climate conditions inside a wine storage cellar should have minimal to no fluctuations. Because of the complexity of the requirements of an effective wine cellar, you need to make sure that it is constructed by an expert.
A wine storage specialist understands the needs of wine, and knows how to create a room that can meet those prerequisites. In order to build an effective commercial wine storage space, proper planning is imperative. The following factors should be considered:
1. Capacity of the Wine Cellar
The number of wine bottles you intend to store will determine the size of the wine cellar you need to have built. Commercial wine cellars should have a substantial amount of wine bottles stored in them, so that customers can have more to choose from. It’s also important to have a large capacity wine cellar, so that you won’t have to restock every time a customer purchases a certain type of wine.
A wine cellar builder can help commercial property owners decide on the size of a wine storage structure that can adequately house the number of wines you plan to store. If you’re a builder or you own a business that stores and sells wine, it’s important to give strong consideration to the capacity of wine needed for the cellar project and plan correctly.
2. Expandability of the Commercial Wine Cellar
You have to consider the increasing needs for storage capacity that you’ll have as the number of customers rise. Regardless how many bottles you have in the cellar at the beginning, you will have to expand your storage space once your business grows. This means that you should consider having an expandable wine cellar built. You can have a few bottles stored in your wine racks when you start the business, but later on, as the demand increases, you will need to add to the number of wines in your cellar. You can meet these demands by simply adding more racking to accommodate more bottles.
There are wine storage experts that manufacture modular type of wine racks. These are expandable wine racking systems for those who need to grow their collection gradually, as the demand for wine will increase over time.
3. Electricity and Backup Power
You need to consider how the electrical wiring in the cellar will be setup, in order to provide power for the cooling unit and lighting systems. A power backup system is also necessary, because wine can easily spoil if the temperature and humidity in the cellar drops or rises out of the ideal range.
Setting the wiring up is a complex and dangerous process, and it is not advisable for you to do it yourself. Only a trained electrician can do it properly. The best way for business to build a wine cellar is to hire a trusted wine storage room construction company that has a team of wine cellar builders with an electrician included.
4. Wall Thickness and Insulation
Wall thickness varies from one cellar to another. Generally, an average wine cellar can be built with standard 2×4 walls, which contain R11 to R15 insulation. But if your wine room has outside walls, like those that have walls with one side exposed to the sun, the inner wall and insulation should be thicker.
Wine builders should train their team on how to properly assess the right wall thickness for a wine room. If a team is more proficient in building effective storage systems, that company can have a higher chance of gaining more clients.
5. Ceiling and Flooring
Both the ceiling and the flooring should be properly insulated. If the cellar’s ceiling is directly underneath the roof of the building, you need to have insulation at least 9”.
If the floor is concrete, you may need to have a false floor installed on top of it. Concrete, by nature, can either pull heat from the cellar towards the outside or add heat to it. A false floor with insulation and vapor barrier should be installed, to prevent the temperature in the cellar from fluctuating constantly.
There are various options of flooring materials you can use for your storage space. Wine store owners can ask a wine cellar specialist about what kind of flooring material will best fit your wine room’s design and provide the most effective insulation as well. If you are a builder, consider expanding your flooring options, so that your clients have more materials to choose from.
6. Vapor Barrier
An effective wine storage structure has to have a vapor barrier installed completely around its warm side. A 6mm poly film is the ideal vapor used in most wine cellars. Only an experienced wine cellar construction expert is capable of installing a vapor barrier properly.
7. Wine Cellar Door
A wine cellar needs an above average door. It has to be capable of keeping the climate conditions inside from constantly fluctuating. Commercial wine cellars are opened more often than residential wine storage rooms. This is because of the frequent need to get wines for customers. Fluctuations are more common therefore in commercial wine rooms. But the negative effects of the frequent alterations in temperature can be minimized if the door installed can properly seal the storage space when it is closed.
Heavily insulated steel doors are ideal for wine storage spaces, but you may also choose to have a windowed door, as long as the glass used is double-paned. Ask a local wine storage specialist about the requirements of an effective cellar door for your commercial wine storage. You may call us at +1 (562) 513-3017, so that we can give you expert advice on the appropriate door for your wine room.
8. Commercial Wine Cellar Cooling Equipment
A successful business involves a lot of investments. For a wine store to perform well, an owner has to invest in good quality wine. There are various factors that contribute to the quality of wine, and one of them is proper wine storage. This why a prudent business person will invest in the construction of an effective commercial wine cellar.
A refrigeration unit is one of the most essential elements in creating a functional wine cellar. To make sure that the wines you are selling are in their top quality, you need to invest in a reliable wine cellar cooling system.
US Cellar Systems is one of the most trusted wine cooling specialists. They have licensed HVAC technicians who are proficient in calculating the heat load of storage spaces, in order to determine the right cooling equipment to install. US Cellars is also known for manufacturing robust refrigeration units that can meet the cooling needs of any commercial wine cellar.
Find a Wine Storage Expert to Build Your Commercial Wine Cellar
Whether you are an owner of a wine business or a cellar builder, you want to make sure that your customers enjoy the quality wines. If you are a business person, you should make sure that the wines you sell are properly preserved in an ideal wine storage room If you are a builder, you should make sure that the cellars you build are functional. The most effective commercial wine cellars are those constructed by wine storage cooling unit experts. You can provide the best storage structure for your collection by hiring a trusted wine cellar builder.
Find a wine storage builder now by clicking here!