falconman515's NewAir AW-280E 28 Bottle Wineador Build!

[falconman515]

I had started to document my NewAir 28 bottle Wine cooler build a few months back with notes and pictures and even though its done (well I still want to order some drawers from Forrest but I haven't had the cash to do so with a wedding coming up and all) I still want to show the progress here with pictures and walkthroughs to hopefully help out an Asylum brother that may be on the fence about getting one of these units.
Or just to show a few more ideas and pictures for us new guys looking for a little help with a walk through on their progress and what was used to build a low cost amazing looking wineador.

So here is my progress that I documented.... Sure hope it helps and you enjoy......

There are many threads with builds dedicated to Vino and Edgestar but nothing that I could find on the NewAir thats very detailed. Since this unit is being talked about and is going for such a great price I thought for us new guys interested in getting into a wineador this thread would help if anyone is thinking of purchasing this specific unit.

I got this unit from Air and Water (seems to be a very reputable company and has great customer service) on their eBay website for $175.22 (They are located in California so if you live in CA. add $13.58 for tax) with Free Shipping!

Here is a link to their direct website and also to their eBay store online:
http://www.air-n-water.com/product/AW-280E.htm
http://stores.ebay.com/AIR-and-WATER...id=p4340.l2563

Once this unit arrives I will journal my progress with updates and pictures. I will be using certain items in this unit as far as humidity control, air flow, temp and Rh gauging, drawers / shelves /Trays and etc. and will be specifying what I use, where its purchased from and the price it was bought for.



I hope this thread helps others in assisting them with their NewAir 28 build as well.

I'm sure there are few members that have a NewAir 28 unit here and I urge them to please come in on this thread and post pictures and suggestions as well to help out future BOTL as well.

Chris (falconman515)

[falconman515]

Just and FYI for those interested in this unit and have noticed it's been out of stock for a while..... They are shipping into port on the 26th and will be available by the 1st. the rep. from Air & Water said.

The 281 model is an option as well.......

http://www.air-n-water.com/product/aw-281e.htm

I believe the inside dimensions are the same except this model has a stainless steel door and racks and also the inside has double the slots I believe like the vinos and edgestars..... the 280 black model that I have has less slots and can only use a double drawer not a single.

But for the price difference and all I wanted in the future was double drawers and I myself like the black better I went with the 280.

Just wanted to let you know of the NewAir options.

[deadrise]

very cool project I need to start one myself

[falconman515]

List of basic items I currently have and also a few that I ordered to go in the the new Wineador!


The 2 Caliber III Digital Hygrometer / Thermometer Qty.2 purchased from eBay for $18.50:



The ExquisiCat KL for humidification from Petsmart for $13.99 ($16 regular price I think):



The few Filter Media Bags for the KL from Petsmart for 99 cents a bag:



And 2 of the Oust fans for air flow purchased from shopcrownhouse.com for $9.99:




These are just the basics so far but the main items needed (aside from the drawers and shelves that I have to save for).

Let me know if I can help with any questions you may have about these items.

[falconman515]

MY NEW COOLER JUST ARRIVED !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Time to start getting out the plastic smell...............





I will continue to update with more pics as it moves along!!!

[falconman515]

In its new home (was going to go in the office but just decided to keep it in the kitchen . breakfast nook area).



One thing though to answer a question I brought up earlier about the condensation... I have plugged the hole with electrical tape and it has been running for a few hours (getting the new motor smell out) and I have yet to have ANY condensation at all!

At the moment I am just trying to get the plastic smell out as much as I can... I have wiped it down a few times with warm water and baking soda then cleaned with unscented dish soap and now I have a few pieces of cedar in there to start masking the smell a bit and a tupperware bowl of Baking soda to soak up the smell.

Later tonight I will turn off the unit and stuff it full of newspaper (heard this works well) to let it sit overnight, then repeat the wash down process tomorrow and may throw in some activated charcoal. I know the smell wont go away completely (Its plastic guys you cant get rid of a smell 100% of what it actually is) but I want to get rid of the overpowering plastic smell do where its a dull faint smell and after seasoning trays in there with cedar cigar boxes there wont any smell left.

I still I will be moving over my two trays of smokes from my earlier build to this new once I get the smell gone and just have the trays with my singles and have the rest of my cigars just in ziploc bags sitting on the metal shelves.

I would like to get some to Drawers from Forrest but not sure if I can afford em yet.

But I put the two $10 SC trays sitting on top of the shelves in there and it actually loks nice. For 10 bucks a cedar shelf (Cheap Humidors Cedar Cigar Tray with Divider) .... If interested search for their eBay site they are still $9.99 but have free shipping) with there only 6 spots for trays (not counting the bottom since most of your KL/Beads should go there) its not a bad deal if you dont want to go the entire drawer route (Sorry Forrest just throwing out options for the new guys who may not have the money you know).

Not sure the route I am going just since I kinda like the way the trays look just sitting on the metal shelves (plus its easy access if you want to pull them out and look through the tray you can... its more difficult with built in drawers).

Well that's where I am at right now guys.... I Will continue updating with Pics and changes as the build moves on.

Thanks for checking out this thread and I sure hope this helping out some present and future BOTL on their builds or ideas on what you want to do yourself.

[falconman515]

Used some newspaper stuffed in it over night and now today I have it sitting outside airing out.




FYI on leaving it outside.... its black plastic so if you leave it in direct sunlight it will burn the plastic a bit and bubble it up..... Lesson learned as the bottom of the cooler is all un-even plastic and bubbled a little bit.... cooler is fine and still works but if you run your hand across the plastic you can feel a little warp and bubbling.

Not to pleased with that happening but at least it happened and and I can let you guys so you don't make the same mistake.

Its not back in the house airing out some more.... Gonna give it another baking soda bath and soap wipe down then let it run overnight... and tomorrow throw in some cedar cigar boxes and we'll see if its ready for the trays of smokes by then.

[falconman515]

Got it cleaned out with some baking soda again and a soap wipe down.... been airing out since it came in now its closed with some empty cedar boxes in there with some DW to kinda start infusing that cigar.cedar smell.

Gonna let it run all night and keep spraying the cedar periodically.

I found that doing this helped with the plastic smell a lot on my last small 8 bottle built.

I have my bags of KL ready to go in and start regulating the RH later tonight or tomorrow morning.

Hopefully it will be ready to throw my tiny stash of cigars and 2 trays in there tomorrow night.

More pictures to come of that as well.

[Remo]

Looks nice, good luck

[falconman515]

With the couple trays I currently have and the bags of KL in there.

Slowly but surely.

[falconman515]

My plan was to be able to order Forrests (GolfNut) drawers and shelves very soon but I am going to have to wait on them.

For now I am just sticking with the metal racks and using the Spanish cedar trays I got from Cheaphumidors (Cheap Humidors Cedar Cigar Tray with Divider).

I have 2 of them (its the two in the last picture above in the middle) already from my small 8 bottle wine cooler... the NewAir has 7 levels so I will be using the bottom level for my KL and fans and the remaining 6 for the trays

My plan is to buy 4 more (total of 6) and use that for time being till I can afford Forrests drawers system.... then the 6 trays I have at some point the wine cooler will be too full and if that happens I will be buying a Coolerdor set-up and use the 6 trays in my large 100+quart cooler.

So I placed my order for the Oust fans, another Caliber III hygro and 4 more trays.

At that point the build will be done for the moment and put on hold till I get the drawers system.

I will update with all findings as far condensation, KL and Rh, etc. as this goes along.

Thanks for watching guys and I sure hope this thread helps out a future BOTL.

[falconman515]

Here is what I did to close the hole where the condensation exits......



Some people seem to get more condensation in their units and then you may have to re-direct the condensation into some beads or KL but for me I plugged it with electrical tape and it barely condensates at all.

[falconman515]

FYI for those looking to make the purchase of this 28 Bottle NewAir Wine Cooler on Air N Waters eBay website (best Price around $175 Shipped).

When you make a purchase on eBay a lot of electronics qualify for a 3rd party warranty.

When you place an order on their direct website they carry the same warranty there but its through RepairMaster and their 3 Year Extended Warranty Runs $59.99 extra.

Now if you purchase through their eBay site (which is a big price difference between their regular site as far as pricing... for sure get it on eBay) you will receive an email saying your purchase qualifies for a 3 year extended warranty via SquareTrade (very reputable company from what I have heard and read) for $49.99.

So there is a savings on a 3 year warranty here for $10 .... BUT I am sure you will get the same email I got..... I placed the order a week ago and today I received an updated Squaretrade email stating looks "looks like you haven't taken advantage of the extended warranty we have to offer, if your still interested here is a 20% coupon code for your 3 year extended warranty.

Now the 3 year Warranty to add is only $39.99

Here is the details when you click on the coupon code:

Covered Item:
new 28 bottle wine refrigerator chiller cellar c item
Coverage Length:
3 years of Extended Coverage more
Coverage Details:
100% Parts & Labor - Zero Deductibles.
Care Plan Price:
$49.99
Your Price after 20% Discount $39.99
Buy Risk Free:
Transfer or cancel at any time

So all in all for this cooler with a 3 Year Extended Warranty it would only cost you total shipped: $215.21 !!!

If you purchased this on Air N Waters Website (at the current sale price right now) with the RepairMaster 3 year warranty your total would be $263.90

That's a $48.69 savings. and cheaper than any other cooler on the market without a warranty.

Just thought I would pass this info on in case you are thinking of taking the plunge.... This unit seems to be a great unit so far, looks amazing, has all the things all other coolers have for half the price.... and with a 3 year warranty.... You can have peace of mind knowing if it dies out on in your in a couple years your covered for a Brand New one or your money back!

Not a bad deal I would say!

[falconman515]

Just ordered another 4 cheaphumidor Spanish Cedar trays and another Caliber III Digital Hygrometer (so I can have one at the bottom and top to make sure Rh is even).

I will update with pictures once they arrive (and get seasoned for a few days) and get put in the cooler with the new hygro.

[falconman515]

2 wine coolers with all $10 Cheaphumidor Trays!

Not mine of course but this is kinda what lead me to just starting of with all trays..... Don't get me wrong I'm saving as we speak for some Drawers from Forrest!

Found a thread talking about the cheaphumidor trays for coolerdors and also saw a guy using them in his wine coolers as well.

Another thing I found using these trays as well is that normally you use the bottom shelf for beads/KL but these trays aren't as deep as a drawer system so there is plenty of room behind them to lay some media bags of KL horizontally and you wont see the beads at all...which in turn frees up the bottom shelf for a 7th tray!!! Thats what this guy did looks like... he has small cedar trays of beads behind like every other tray and they cant be seen at all... its shown in picture 2.

I wanted to post it cause this is a good cheap route to start and though I am using the trays I never thought about installing handles as well so they can be easily grabbed and pulled off the shelf.

Check it out.... I think I may go look for a some cheap handles and do this......not a huge fan of the black but I want to try and find handles that match the handle on the front of the NewAir door.... that would look cool!

[falconman515]

A couple more pics on the progress ......

Found some drawer pull handles on clearance at Lowes for $1.09 a piece on bought 7 of them for all the cheaphumidor trays I ordered ( I have 2 right now the other 5 will be here Tuesday).

This is the picture of the handles I found and what they look like on the tray.

I was trying to find a handle that when you saw it on the tray through the glass it closely resembled the brushed nickel color of the front door handle on the NewAir.

For the price these turned out looking great I think and adds a little bit of class to the initial cheaphumidor trays in the mean time till I get a true drawer system down the road from Forrest.

Once the rest of the drawers come In I will be mounting all the handles and I will get a picture of what all 7 shelves look like filled with trays and handles on each and 2 Caliber III hygros mounted at the top and bottom on the front left of each tray.

Hope this helps out someone looking to maybe to go the cheap tray route to start and how to make it look a little better.

[falconman515]

Ok I took my 2 existing trays I already had that were in the cooler and got the handles installed on both of those.... also the Oust fan came in today and I got that sitting on the bottom pointing up to move humidity around from the bottom.

Once I get all the trays in the bags of KL will be laying on the back of the metal shelves horizontally on the bottom and top also top shelve and 2 in between (I will take a pic of where these are located next week when all the trays come in and I move everything around). The small bag kinda handing on the rack is where the fan is .... This will be a different bag when I get all the KL placed in the right spot but I will make sure I leave a dry bag of KL here to capture the moisture coming from the fan ( I read somewhere this is good to do when the fan runs at all times so the cold moisture air isn't hitting directly on the cigars).

The fan may move to the first shelf as well (I'm gonna mount it to the bottom the of the first wire rack somehow.

Also as you can see I took apart the Oust fan and took some heavy scissors to the front part of the fan and cut out the plastic to open it up for more air to move from the fan into the open (when the front part is on it really restricts the airflow coming from the fan).

I don't get hardly any condensation and with the electrical tape I lose no humidity as my hygro stays perfectly all depending on what location of the cooler from 62-67% Rh !!!

I will be getting the other 5 trays in the mail Tuesday and will need a few days to season them in another igloo cooler I have before I put them in the wineador (I may mount the handles and slide them in the cooler to take a pic of what it looks like with all trays in there in case you may be thinking of sticking with trays to start off with).

Let me know if you have any questions on my progress thus far.

Thanks for watching my build and I hope this out some other BOTL.

[falconman515]

Here is a great idea if you want a little better seal on your drain for the condensation......

Hot melt glue 101

Hot melt is just a plastic that melts at a fairly low temperature. It is used a lot in arts and crafts. The gun you use can be had for a couple of dollars at any craft or sewing store. To use the gun you plug it in, shove the plastic stick in the back of it, wait for it to heat up, and pull the trigger to make it come out the front (that's what she said) It re-solidifies in a few seconds. The glue is not really glue it is just plastic.

To remove from a smooth surface you can often just pop it off with a little pressure or take a q-tip dipped in alcohol and rub around the base of the glue. It will loosen the joint and you can pop it off with no damage or junk left behind. It is very friendly stuff.

[falconman515]

The remaining Trays are here from Cheaphumidor.com.......

I have drilled the holes for the handles and they are sitting in the igloo cooler with a few sponges of DW to season for a few days.

Once seasoned I will put on the handles and place everything in the cooler and take a semi-final picture of the cooler.

It's coming along.... At least now with these new trays I don't have to worry try to fit my stash into just 2 trays.

It's coming along!

[falconman515]

I am using the metal racks that comes with the cooler to sit the cedar trays on top of so I will be putting in 7 total trays.

Now if you wanted to remove the wire shelving and stack em up in there you could go I'm sure about 9-10 total (more like 9 but maybe 10).

I didn't want to stack em up cause if I had to get to some stick on the bottom I would hate taking the whole thing out to get to the bottom trays.
Plus with the wire shelves in there I have something to lay my media bags of KL on top of from the top to the bottom behind the trays. I will also be mounting the Oust fan to the bottom sire shelf pointing up as well.

Its looking good so far I'm just glad to know have all the extra trays for more sticks ... Those 2 trays weren't cutting it anymore

Thanks for watching guys and I hope this thread is helping get some ideas.