Glass wine cellars are one of the most unique, and sophisticated additions to your home. It can transform your ordinary space into an elegant retreat! It’s the primary choice for wine enthusiasts who prioritize a sleek, and contemporary aesthetic, along with a touch of luxury.
However, modern glass wine cellars are vulnerable to a lot of issues. And this is what makes it a challenging endeavor to own and maintain these elegant pieces of furniture!
So, to keep your glass wine cellars in good shape, you need to understand the challenges and learn about some practical solutions to avoid costly repairs down the line.
Glass Wine Cellars: Challenges and Solutions of Owning One
- Glass Absorbs Heat
One of the very first challenges of owning a glass wine cellar is that glass absorbs heat effectively. This efficient heat absorption quality can readily affect the climate control system, and cause major fluctuations to the inside temperature. This can disrupt the aging process of your precious collections, and might even cause irreversible damage to the flavor profile of your vintage collection.
Solution: Install efficient cooling systems, and go for double-paned glasses with insulation layers to ensure hassle-free storage.
- Glass Walls Trap Moisture
Not just temperature, but maintaining optimum humidity levels is also paramount to preserving the sanctity of your wines! Even a slight deviation in humidity levels can lead to severe consequences, and contribute to mold and mildew growth.
Glass walls are known to trap moisture effectively. This particular phenomenon causes humidity levels inside the cellar to fluctuate. Higher humidity levels might cause mold, and mildew growth, while lower humidity levels might allow excessive evaporation, causing the corks to dry out. This leads to oxidation of the wine, which means your prized collections are effectively ruined!
Solution: Install good-quality dehumidifiers and humidity monitoring systems. Also, ensure proper ventilation in the cellar to steer clear of such issues.
- Glass Walls Call For Exposure To UV Light
Ultraviolet (UV) rays are one of the worst enemies of your wines! Direct exposure to UV rays disrupts the aging process and compromises the flavor and overall quality of the beverage. That’s the reason why it’s advised to store wines in a ‘cool and dark place away from sunlight.’
Glass, being a transparent material, allows light to pass through it. While this might significantly elevate the aesthetic appeal of your collection, it’s not at all a wise thing to do!
Solution: The best way to avoid this issue is to use tinted glass panels. You can even use UV filters to keep your collections safe! Also, place your cellar strategically so it isn’t exposed to direct sunlight to avoid such issues altogether. And make sure to install controlled lighting systems to minimize the exposure significantly.
- Glass Panels Might Cause Air Leaks
A glass-wall wine cellar might have gaps in the panel areas. The presence of such gaps is alarming, as it allows air to pass through, thereby compromising temperature and humidity levels significantly. And this is a major issue, that can seriously take a toll on the overall quality and flavor of your exclusive collections.
Solution: Hire professionals during installation to get rid of such issues while installing glass wine cellars. Added to that, you can even use weather stripping to seal the panel gaps and maintain a suitable temperature inside the cellar.
- Glass Wine Cellars/ Racks Are Expensive
Finally, glass wine cellars come at significantly higher costs than wooden or metal wine cellars. Along with it, if you add double-paned glasses for stronger insulation and specialized cooling systems, the cost just adds up and can feel like burning a hole in your pocket.
Solution: Determine your budget. That’s the first practical thing that you need to do, to make sure how much money you are ready to spend behind customizing a glass wine cellar design. Next, get quotes from different organizations, and pick the one whose quality and services are at par with the prices that they are charging.
To Conclude
A glass wine cellar is a significant investment and a visual treat to those who like to flaunt their prized collections with pride!
However, glass cellars come with their fair share of challenges, ignoring which might lead to expensive repairs. What’s worse is, that these issues might even compromise the flavor and aroma of your prized collections, and cause irreversible damage, which is not something that you would want to happen, even in your worst nightmare!
So, whether it’s glass wine cellar doors or a full-fledged glass wine cellar, make sure to consider the aforementioned challenges to keep it in prime condition for years to come.
