So you keep your entire home at 55*, don’t let these other guys get you down.
Whatever unit you buy should have a nameplate on the motor listing running amps and startup amps. The manual will also list this information.
You might consider framing around the window, putting insulation over it and then covering the insulated opening with a plywood hatch. That way you can try passive, and if it doesn’t work, remove the hatch and the window and put in a unit that will vent right to the outside.
Jake- Congrats, building a cellar is a fun project. Mine is still underway, but despite all the work it is a labor of love and I really enjoy it.
A few thoughts having done this recently for under your budget. First, you can absolutely stay under 10k and build a really nice cellar in that space if you are willing to put in the time. Forget spray foam. Go buy sheets of styrofoam(The blue stuff) from Home Depot. After you remove the drywall, measure each cavity and then cut the foam with a circular saw. Cut it 1/16" to 1/8" over each way and press it in. I believe I used a 2" thick piece followed by a 1" piece. If you cut it well it will just create a seal when you press it in. For any gaps, use a can of spray foam.
Unless one of you is really good at drywall, pay the $ 1000 or so to have someone come hang and finish it.
Flooring is a wild card. I taught myself how to lay tile and it worked out really well. Youtube is your friend. Alternately, some of the new high end vinyl stuff may not be too hard to self install. Paying for a floor installation will take a chunk out of your budget, but won’t kill you if you need to do so.
For racking if you have a table saw, a compressor and a nail gun, you can build really nice racking with some time and effort. Use pine and stain/seal it to the color you like. Be advised that you will make 1000’s of cuts and create thousands of pieces of wood to assemble. If you build a good jig, the assembly goes much faster than you would imagine, and in fact you will need a jig to ensure uniformity.
Also, with your setup, just use a Kenmore in the Window. Most likely it will never run more than a month or two each year if that where you are. You could probably do with out it.
Here is the jig for the vertical sections.
Route of escape is for a bedroom. There you’re looking at an opening of 48", or large enough for a fireman/woman/person with breathing apparatus to get in.
Actually this EERO, emergency escape and rescue opening, in your home is based on several factors. When was your home built, what code was it built under, when did you remodel your basement, etc. Certainly most if not all newer codes will require an EERO, but that doesnt mean that if you dont have one, that you need to put one in. Unless you remodel. The size of the opening today is 5.7 sq. ft. Of opening.
When i asked my villages fire marshal how big of a deal this was when it came to double hungs he said that for him and the apparatus, equipement, it mattered very little. He will take his axe with the hook on it, stick it through the glass, rotate it 90 degrees so the hook then catches the sash frame and rip the entire window out, providing him with 10 plus sq. ft. Of opening. ![[thankyou.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/d/df165fe9c1593d19166ae7e1ffe5e272089cc07b.gif "thankyou"){kind=small}
That’s what I was getting at - if the next buyer wants that room to be a bedroom for their teenager, you suddenly have a problem. I’m by no means an expert on what code is for a basement (they don’t really exist around here), but upgrading my home for future sale is what I do in my spare time. The first place my mind goes is what happens at time of sale and buyer appeal. A possible extra bedroom is a huge +++.
I’m weighing my options right now on our fireplace/chimney - even though it’s basically no longer legal to burn, the appeal of a working fireplace means I’ll be repairing the 4" hole that the previous owners bored through the firebox and chimney to install the exaust for a pellet stove…
![[swearing.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/8/8a0d3f3461d40641d294442fc2be78039bf94d19.gif "[swearing.gif]"){kind=small}
The plan for the window is to build an insulated block that will fit in front of it for now. If the temp gets too high in the summer we will add a kenmore unit that vents directly out the window. The size is actually pretty perfect for that.
I’m a g.c. and a r.e. broker. I’m with Mike here. That room is partially finished and might have utility to a future buyer. As it is it doesn’t technically need egress. Codes differ in different areas but many DO require ventilation in finished basements. But the bigger issue is as he said future residents would probably prefer the room as is rather than as a rough wine cellar. In that regard the window is a plus architecturally and functionally as it provides light and some ventilation.
I would frame in the wall boxing around the window so that you could just cover the window with a couple of thicknesses of foam board laminated together. You can prime and paint foam board pretty well. Btw if you use foamboard, check the R rating of various types. I can’t recall whether home depot has poly-iso but it is available at roofing supplies and can be most efficient.
If you go passive with the potential for using a cooling solution later, try and make sure you frame any new studs lined up with any existing studs.
Does anyone have experience (preferably good) with any of the following sites for buying wine racks? Pricing it out on these versus doing it all DIY (includes buying tools) is very similar…
I used these guys for my cellar. (Bought Kits)
TTT
+1. Was very happy. They have frequent sales; usually around Thanksgiving you can get 25% off.
As did I. My review here:
I got mine from Apex (via Costco)
It begins…
Awesome. Post a ton of pics! It is a very rewarding exercise.
Jake - I don’t know what you finally decided, but I built a cellar for under $2000 and it was about the same size as yours. I did everything myself however, including running my own electric circuit. But I grew up building and wiring houses and had all the tools I needed. I didn’t buy racks, just made them myself by ripping exterior plywood into shelves.
You already have electricity and the smallest room air conditioner available is more than adequate to cool the place if you go the Galli route. So you don’t even need a dedicated circuit, but I wanted one anyway.
As far as the window goes, whether or not a future buyer is going to want to convert the place into a bedroom should not be of any concern to you unless you’re thinking of selling in a year or two. Don’t design your house for some imagined buyer in the future - you’re living in it. The people who bought my house ripped out the wine cellar and turned the basement into a space for their live-in nanny. It’s just not possible to plan for what someone else may want one day.
Best of luck!
Almost done with demo…
Any idea for what we should do with this open area? Also, there’s already a vapor barrier on the exterior walls. Can those be left and we just need to put a barrier on the inside walls and ceiling?
I also used WineRacksAmerica, but hired a trim carpenter to build and install the kits. Very happy with the quality. We used the Redwood and has our carpenter stain them instead if buying them already stained.
Would be happy to send you some photos if you want.