Wineadors, humidity beads & pantyhose

[EasternPromises]

So I've just picked up a new dual zone wine fridge which I’m converting to a wineador. Frankly it’s been a bit of a headache with issues from temperature (it’s a dual zone unit and the bottom zone is consistently 3-5 degrees Celsius higher than the top unit even when set to the same temperature; within the top compartment, I'm also seeing 2-3 degree Celsius variances in temperature from shelf to shelf which seems nuts for a $1.5k piece of kit) through to humidity (usual fluctuations whenever the compressor kicks on). I finally have some time this weekend to try and get some of these issues resolved and the focus is on humidity.

Right now, I’m using a combination of humidity beads in the fridge compartment (my logic is that it helps manage ambient humidity) supplemented by Boveda packs in boxes. My bro logic is that having an ambient humidity that is in line with the Boveda packets should make life easier for the Bovedas and will help them to last longer.  

I currently have my humidity beads in a combination of metal pans/dishes and plastic containers across each shelf. I know the recommendation is to have more humidity beads in the fridge as this will help with recovery (when the door is opened, compressor kicks on, etc), however, with my current pans / container setup, this is taking up too much space and I’m thinking of shifting to the pantyhose sausages that I’ve seen described in a few posts in the forum. I have a few questions with this sausage setup:

1. Do you still use this beads in pantyhose setup and have you had any issues with it?

2. Do you hydrate the beads before stuffing them into the hose? I have seen posts where members have talked about spritzing the sausages with 1-2 sprays of distilled water. This doesn’t seem… sufficient?

Appreciate any feedback / thoughts on beads or wineador setups more generally!

[B44]

Boveda or bust. Beads and wineadors are never a good mix. Stick with 65/65 and you should be in good shape. 

[gormag38]

So my experience with a coolerdor/wine fridge set up. I've got an audew unit that struggled quite a bit with consistent humidity; mainly when the fan would kick on. For me, I found that because my external environment was a higher rh that than my desired rh that every time the fan kicked on it made the rh jump. I fixed this by just leaving my unit unplugged/not running. While I would like the temp control to be a little more fine tuned, my basement stays relatively cool most of the year and never has super quick temp changes. 

I got a rock solid rh using bovedas, typically in a tightly sealed unit (like most fridges/coolers) boveda will run a few points higher (eg. 65s will actually run about 68). I've got 62s that are running around 66-67 right now (ideally I'd like 'em a little lower but I don't want to spend the money on 58s). I'd go with the largest ones as well (320 grams I think it is).

[SUP8333]

Just get boveda, the cons is that they dry up quickly if you put it close to the fan area. 

[GerardMichaelTX]

I've got a 6 foot upright with nothing but the giant 65%rh bovedas. To keep them charged I put gels in for a month or everh so often needed. If the 65% dries too quick switch to 62%. Also any boxes that have cellos gets a 65% pack in them. Been a few years and I have never had to replace any packs.