Adding Humidity

I am thinking about adding a humidifier of some sort to my cellar. Is it worth it to get a “wine cellar humidifier” or will an off the rack, “Regular” humidifier do just fine? (or a pot of water for that matter)

Before spending any money, I would try the bucket of water with a towell or sponge half in/half out. In the past I’ve used this trick and it seemed to work as long as you remember to keep water in the bucket.

I do what Jeff mentioned in the depths of winter as the basement gets very dry. Works well enough.

F

Humidifying a cellar can be difficult because it is not easy to introduce the humidity with the low temperatures. The most likely culprit of the low humidity is that your cooling unit is running too cold (the evaporator temperature not what the thermostat is set to) or is undersized. You should easily be able to maintain 50% RH except for a few of the coldest months of the year.

As to rectifying it the best approach is a steam humidifier, expensive to buy and run. The bowl of water doesn’t work (it may with a wick but probably not enough). Ultrasonics don’t last unless you have RO water. Misters are a disaster waiting to happen. This leaves two options the ready to install wine guardian unit or an aprilaire 350. Both are ugly but workable solutions, they waste a ton of water but do work if hooked up to HOT water and add a heat load to the cellar. Because of this it is critical to have a control that shuts down the humidification if the temp gets too high, none of the systems commercially available offer that.

What is the humidity running at now zach?

Have you tracked it through the winter and summer months?

I use a cool air, regular off the shelf humidifier. I only run it once in a while during the winter and it works fine. Get my cellar to around 80%. It then take a few week and is back to 60%. Frankly, I don’t know why I bother as I don’t believe that 60% is any way a problem.

I’m at 45% in the winter

And you will probably be at 70-80 in the summer. Plus, doesn’t your cellar flood?

Try the water bucket with towel or sponge trick before you buy a gizmo, unless you know now that your humidity won’t completely blow up during the warmer months.

I used my grandparents’ basement in Newton Centre for 10+ years as a passive cellar, I never tracked humidity but I’m sure it must have dipped to about the same during the winter, with no ill effects on my wines.

Kill two birds with one stone. During the winter months, when it’s too cold to walk Jasper, train him to pee in there.

+1

you are ok during the summer months so all you need to worry about is November through Aril. Since you are already at 45% try the water bucket and see what it does.

I used to have great luck with the towel in a bucket. I use an old ultrasonic humidifier that we simply have lying around. In the worst parts of winter I am in the 60%'s and sometimes hit 70. Right now, I am almost at 80%, and I’ll disconnect it in the next few weeks. I think these go for 20 bucks at teh local drugstore.

I’m curious. Is it clear that humidity is essential when bottles are lying on their sides? Is there that much risk of corks drying out at 30% or 40% humidity?

yep. I think it does. Think of the cork as a wick, albeit a slowly working one. Liquid and humidity will work its way down a concentration gradient. Liquid evaporation is why ullage increases over time in bottles subjected to long term storage. If you keep the humidity higher you keep the concentration gradient less so less ullage and you keep the corks “plump” and maintain a good seal. Sure, the side of the cork next to the wine stays wet, but not so much on the other end of the cork. Just my 0.02

I think the 45% number is just fine especially if you have the bottles laying down. In reality putting in a humidifier can be a dangerous thing. Optimally you want to keep the humidity between 60% and 75%. Anything over that you can expect label damage or worse mold. Actually most cellars use dehumidifiers.

The bucket of water with some sort of wick is also very dangerous. For one thing I’d bet that you would have to fill the bucket everyday. It is amazing to me how fast it works. You don’t have any control; that’s the problem.

No control; actually that’s the big problem trying to do this in a make-shift manner. I’d recommend getting some professional advice and even then a second opinion from people in the business of putting climate controllers into wine cellars.

I still think 45% though not optimal is just fine.

Remember though… this advice comes to you free and I really have no idea what would be best. Find somebody that is a PRO!

Thread Resurrection!

Cellar is currently 47% at the warmest part and 50% at the coolest. It was 42% or so last week.

Humidity was perfect in the summer and fall.

Suggestions? Should I just let it be for the winter?

Leslie

My wine room has a cement floor covered with nine custom 4x4 wooden pallets.
I just pour a bucket of water on the floor every month or so.

Really? My cellar pushes 80-85% all year long and gets no higher only because my split A/C is set to dump excess moisture above that level. (I wasn’t going to comment because the OP is in the East Coast with a totally different climate but you’re in SoCal…)

socal is a whole lot dryer than the bay