Cooled Cabinet Humidor Project

[Bruzee]

Pretty cool looking. Sounds like fun!

[bobarian]

Looking forward to seeing the progress.

[zmancbr]

Nice... keep us posted for sure... I will be looking for a way to cool my cab come spring time so I might ask you how yours ends up working out.

[Silound]

Be sure to account for the thermoelectric sinks generating a lot of condensation inside the cabinet from the moisture in the air. IE you don't want that running down the sides of your cabinet or getting things wet directly.

I gave a similar project some thought a while back, and ended up adding a small drip tray immediately below the TE sinks made of some PVC cut lengthwise with end caps to form a small (1" pipe) gutter. I added a T coupler at one end and a step-down adapter to a piece of 1/4" food grade tubing that ran down the back corner and allowed me to direct the constant condensation drip back into the humidifier reservoir.


Other side things I would think of include adding some duct-work in the back corners (cover it with panels) that would allow you to wire two slow speed 120mm PC fans: one blowing air up to the top of the cabinet, one blowing air down to the bottom (with 1"-2" holes on an interval to allow air to circulate out and around the cigars). I decided that would be the most efficient way to move air around constantly to ensure even humidity. The other idea I had was a "false back" to the cabinet with large holes in it, behind which were fans blowing air around to keep it moving, but I ultimately decided ducting the corners was more space-efficient, and presented less problems should I ever need to make modifications or repairs.

AC outlets are almost a must-have unless you plan to wire the whole cabinet into one board and PSU and make the cabinet an actual appliance. My original idea used a 25' heavy guage outdoor extension cord that I cut one end from. I had planned to wire it to a junction box, where I would wire out two outlets on the inside, and then attach a high-efficiency, low-noise PC power supply to run the temperature control, thermoelectric system, and fans inside the unit.


Of course, time restraints meant I never got farther than some plans and drawings I did up years ago. Pity, I would have liked to finish that project.

[jds78]

Thanks for your post. I’ve obviously given this a lot of thought.

To deal with the condensation I’ve got a collection tray that will be mounted directly below the cooling units. I was going to add a length a tubing with some type of valve so I could drain the tray as needed. Depending on how much condensation is produced and how often I need to drain the tray I may look at other options.

For circulation I’ve left a 1”-2” gap between the shelves and the front and back of the cabinet. I have 4 small fans that will cycle on and off to circulate the air. I still need to find a timer that will let me adjust the on and off times. One of the reasons I went with the Accumonitor is the 4 separate humidification units that can be located throughout the cabinet. Between that and the fans I think should be okay.

I have a 24V DC power supply for the cooling units and a 12V for the lights, fans, and humidification. I plan on using a single AC plug-in that will go to a junction box and supply the DC power units.

Hopefully you find the time to finish your project one day.

[jds78]

The side, top, and bottom panels were pressed up this week.




Here's a few more pictures:

96 board feet of spanish cedar


Walnut burl veneer for the door panels


Accumonitor and cooling units


Lights: LED light strips, dimmer switch, relay, and magnetic door switch

[huero71]

This looks like a great project... I'm looking forward to seeing it as it progresses. Keep up the good work!

[dunng]

Very nice!