Thermoelectric Peltier Pads/Plates

[retrofail]

Just some brainstorming and bouncing ideas off the more experienced...

So I've had the larger Whynter wineador about 8 months or so now and my impression is overall positive.  However, it is inefficient at best.  I'm in Texas, but the room the wineador is located in is kept ~72 degrees, and the unit struggles to keep the temperature down near the 65-67 degree range I prefer without having to run all the time creating excessive condensation.  

I'm curious if installing multiple thermoelectric cooling plates throughout the unit with additional fans to circulate the air better would reduce my cooling time, thus reducing the amount of condensation I'm getting. Any thoughts??

[Sigaar]

These units just aren't very good at keeping temps more than 7-8 degrees below the room's ambient temp.  I'm moving to a climate controlled cabinet soon (with triple Peltier coolers).  I would think the wineadors would perform better with multiple coolers.

[retrofail]

 

8 minutes ago, Sigaar said:

These units just aren't very good at keeping temps more than 7-8 degrees below the room's ambient temp.  I'm moving to a climate controlled cabinet soon (with triple Peltier coolers).  I would think the wineadors would perform better with multiple coolers.

What cabinet are you moving to?  I would  love to upgrade to a climate controlled cabinet like the Redford!! It's just not the cards right now.  

As it is, I'm happy with the size and capacity of my wineador, just would like to make it more better!

[MrGinger]

4 hours ago, retrofail said:

 I'm in Texas, but the room the wineador is located in is kept ~72 degrees, and the unit struggles to keep the temperature down near the 65-67 degree range

How long have you had that fridge?  No fridge should have any issue with a 5-7 degree decrease at 72 degrees.  I wouldn't waste time with more pelltier units...you will have to cut holes in your fridge (for the heat from the pelltier to escape), wiring, condensation lines, etc.  Easiest solution...buy yourself a new fridge.  They are inexpensive on Amazon/Costco and others.   

[PapaDisco]

Does it have to run all the time, period, or are you saying the unit runs for a long time after every door opening?  In my mind, an undersized cooling unit would be preferable to an oversized one.  Same with household HVAC, you prefer a unit that runs gently for longer rather than something 3X too big that comes on and blasts the temp well past set point will simultaneously giving you a new hairdo.  

If the thing is running all the time and the chilling plate is perpetually icy cold then it sounds like some spectacularly bad insulation or a leaking seal? 

[retrofail]

Well the full story is this. It worked great during the winter. We had low ambient humidity and the house stayed closer to 70 degrees. Move into summer, and we have a much higher ambient humidity and the house stays closer to 72-73. This is when I noticed the unit would read 65, but all of my hygrometers read uniformly 70ish. 

This is where the design flaws really start showing. The unit's temp probe is located about 2 inches directly above the fan, so of course it says its colder than it actually is. 

So I turn the unit down to reach my desired temp throughout, and it just creates more problems. It has to run longer durations at shorter intervals to maintain that temp, which causes two issues. A lot of condensation inside the unit and a large loss of rH. 

Yes, these units are cheap, but not exactly disposable. So instead of just replacing an 8 month old unit, I'd like to explore other options first. 

And I completely agree that a unit that size should have no problems maintaining a 5-7 degree differential. But I see more and more reviews highlighting there failure to do so. 

[Lotusguy]

Peltier elements are notoriously inefficient and unreliable.

[busdriver]

Do you have it set below the target temp?  I have my whynter set 2 degrees below target and my new air set 6 degrees below.  It maintains thetarget temp steadily when this is compensated for.  The fact that power outages cause the coolers to reset to the lowest temp setting drives me crazy!

[retrofail]

1 minute ago, busdriver said:

Do you have it set below the target temp?  I have my whynter set 2 degrees below target and my new air set 6 degrees below.  It maintains thetarget temp steadily when this is compensated for.  The fact that power outages cause the coolers to reset to the lowest temp setting drives me crazy!

Once I discovered where the temp sensor was located, I hooked the unit up to an electronic temperature controller I had laying around.  Snaked the temp probe through the drain line and located it in a a more central area.  The ETC is set at 66 degrees.  So now, if I set it to cycle on at 68 degrees, it'll hold temperature for about 30 minutes before it kicks on, but it'll take it 15 minutes to cool back down just 2 degrees. 

I'm planning on installing a couple of fans to see if that'll help, but I'm not confident.

[Sigaar]

17 hours ago, retrofail said:

 

What cabinet are you moving to?  I would  love to upgrade to a climate controlled cabinet like the Redford!! It's just not the cards right now.  

As it is, I'm happy with the size and capacity of my wineador, just would like to make it more better!

Getting the cabinet from Aristocrat. Not inexpensive, but I'm not leaving the cigar hobby any time soon!  And my wife is almost as sick of the wineadors as I am!