Bought me a nice wine fridge…

sudsandswine · Dec 11, 2021

…and immediately rendered it useless for cooling wine.

Ive been wanting to make cured/fermented meat and sausage for awhile now and had planned to convert a refrigerator of some sort into a curing cabinet by using temp and humidity controllers. However, I read that wine refrigerators work pretty well for this, as they can hold a temp warmer than your typical kitchen fridge but cool enough for the curing process. They have fans to circulate the air, and I might even get away without having to run a humidifier inside it.

This was a relatively expensive wine cooler that had some cosmetic damage from shipping on the back side, so I was able to get it at a price that fit within my experimentation budget. Doesn’t bother me at all. Next I need to figure out a hanging system and get a hygrometer to monitor the humidity so I know whether or not I’ll need to add a humidifier.

I did save all the rack parts so that I can restore it to its wine cooling glory if this experiment doesn’t work out :becky:

Shadowdog500 · Dec 11, 2021

Hope you do a conversion thread. Can’t wait to see it.

SMOKE FREAK · Dec 11, 2021

The interior lighting is too cool.

I wish I had a cure chamber. So much great stuff could happen.

ronbrad62 · Dec 11, 2021

I see nothing wrong with your little experiment. Good luck and I hope it works out for you. As far as a hanging system, it looks like small dowels cut exactly the width of the interior will rest nicely on the current shelf runners, and again, no permanent alterations in case it becomes a wine refrigerator again.

TravelingJ · Dec 11, 2021

Whew. I was getting worried. I hadn't seen you post any new kitchen equipment in a few weeks. Thanks for setting my mind at ease.

Learning to BBQ · Dec 11, 2021

Damn, it even has mood lighting! Let us know how your experiment goes. I'd be interested in doing something similar.

sudsandswine · Dec 11, 2021

TravelingJ said:
Whew. I was getting worried. I hadn't seen you post any new kitchen equipment in a few weeks. Thanks for setting my mind at ease.

:caked:

Jason TQ · Dec 11, 2021

Love it. Which Avallon is that? I've been wanting to get into more curing since I've made a lot of regular sausage.

And definitely let us know how it goes.

sudsandswine · Dec 11, 2021

It’s the 27 bottle cooler. These things are $$$ in their undamaged form :shock: I almost felt bad for disassembling and using it for another purpose.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Avallon-27-Bottle-15-in-Built-in-Wine-Cooler-with-Argon-Filled-Double-Paned-Glass-AWC151SZRH/206908196

Jason TQ · Dec 11, 2021

sudsandswine said:
It’s the 27 bottle cooler. These things are $$$ in their undamaged form :shock:

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Avallon-27-Bottle-15-in-Built-in-Wine-Cooler-with-Argon-Filled-Double-Paned-Glass-AWC151SZRH/206908196

Yeah you have me going down a freaking rabbit hole right now looking at stuff :becky:. This one seems like a good size.

The wine fridge seems like the easiest way to possibly get started without some crazy modifications on a regular fridge.

Any other gadgets you are eyeballing for getting started?

halfcocked · Dec 11, 2021

Nice grab. Looks like it should work.

Back9Q · Dec 11, 2021

I did same thing few years ago and worked out well. I used pvc for hanging. Dont use wood as will collect mold. I ran mine with ink bird wifi controller because needed both humidity and de humidifier. I had to eventually move to freezer conversion due to having to be outside

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sudsandswine · Dec 11, 2021

Jason TQ said:
Any other gadgets you are eyeballing for getting started?

Just something to monitor and regulate humidity, a humidifier and de-humidifier if necessary.

sudsandswine · Dec 11, 2021

I was looking at something like this when I was considering using a regular kitchen fridge for curing sausage. Basically it cycles the power to the fridge on and off to keep it at a temperature higher than it would be able to run with its built in controls.

https://www.amazon.com/Inkbird-Temperature-Controller-Pre-Wired-Thermostat/dp/B07GQWY9HM/

I still want to get a commercial glass door beverage cooler, like you might buy an energy drink out of, and turn it into a steak dry ager. Those things command a pretty penny on the used market around here, so I’m waiting patiently for the right deal to come along.

ShadowDriver · Dec 11, 2021

Ever since we were introduced to Richard, I've been wanting to jump on this band wagon.

Definitely following this thread in the hopes you'll continue to share your adventures with us.

op2:

sudsandswine · Dec 11, 2021

Yep seeing that thread some time ago is what sparked my interest. Now that I’ve been stuffing fresh sausages for a few years I felt like it was time to make the jump.

LYU370 · Dec 11, 2021

Looking forward to seeing what you do. Been looking at doing something similar for a while. Found a couple small freezers on Amazon I may try using, have read the mini fridges may not get cold enough, but a mini freezer should get pretty cold and can be cycled off/on to get the right temp. Have also read that using a bunch of salt covered with water will produce 75% humidity in an enclosed chamber. I guess that's how you calibrate humidity sensors, so there would be no need for a humidifier/dehumidifier, although you'd probably still want a humidity sensor. Read that 75-80% humidity is the desired range for dry aging.

Back9Q · Dec 11, 2021

sudsandswine said:
I was looking at something like this when I was considering using a regular kitchen fridge for curing sausage. Basically it cycles the power to the fridge on and off to keep it at a temperature higher than it would be able to run with its built in controls.

https://www.amazon.com/Inkbird-Temperature-Controller-Pre-Wired-Thermostat/dp/B07GQWY9HM/

I still want to get a commercial glass door beverage cooler, like you might buy an energy drink out of, and turn it into a steak dry ager. Those things command a pretty penny on the used market around here, so I’m waiting patiently for the right deal to come along.

Dis you eliminate ability to use original temp controls. If so then this will work. Look at inkbird wifi humidity controllers. I ran both humidity and de humidifier off of it. Also unplug fan if still operational and wire into a timer. If it runs a lot you will wind up with case hardening. I believe I ran mine for 1min every 3 hours circulate air

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sudsandswine · Dec 11, 2021

Back9Q said:
Dis you eliminate ability to use original temp controls. If so then this will work. Look at inkbird wifi humidity controllers. I ran both humidity and de humidifier off of it. Also unplug fan if still operational and wire into a timer. If it runs a lot you will wind up with case hardening. I believe I ran mine for 1min every 3 hours circulate air

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I am planning to use the wine cooler’s temperature control since it can hold temps in the suitable range for curing. So I’ll only need humidity control. Inkbird has something for that too. Thanks for the tip on the fan. I’ll look into how often it runs.

Learning to BBQ · Dec 12, 2021

You guys are the reason I want to keep trying new things.

Thank you!

Bought me a nice wine fridge…

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