How to Replace Wine Racks

Wine racks support each delicate bottle in your wine collection, so treat them with care.

There are many different options for storing your wine collection, but not all keep your wine at the ideal conditions. To properly store and age your wine, it should be kept at 55°F, 60% humidity, in low-intensity lighting, and in a stable, vibration-free location that allows the sediment to settle. Your wine racks are especially important for that last requirement €“ to ensure your wine does not shake. Some models, such as thermoelectric wine refrigerators, are built to reduce unit vibrates. Other models might include floating racks for the same purpose. Regardless of how you're storing your wine, there may come a time where you need to replace the wine racks that keep your wine steady and safe.

Your Current Wine Storage Unit

Since there are many different types of wine racks, you'll need to establish which type of storage unit you're replacing a rack for. Your wine rack might best be described as a decoration that holds bottles without regard to the conditions for aging wine. In this case, replacing it is a matter of carefully transporting your wine from one location to a new one before it collapses. A flaw in this type of rack is likely too unique to the decoration, so it's safest to just purchase a new one. Your wine rack could be complex and in a wine cellar, such as a lattice wine rack. These racks can be used to hold many bottles for ageing at the right conditions. The solution for this wine rack when it needs replacing could be as simple as adding a splint of wood and reinforcing the structure. In other instances, it could be as complicated as re-building the whole structure to fit your space. To save your collection from risk, we recommend either consulting the individual you bought your wine rack from or a carpenter who is familiar with your problem. If you're searching to replace a wine rack within a refrigeration unit, such as a dual-zone wine cooler, we can help you. This type of maintenance takes no technical skills and can be completed by the average wine collector.

Why Replace Wine Racks

Your wine rack could be faulty, in which case, check your warranty for a replacement. Many wine collectors also replace wine racks to fit uniquely shaped bottles into their collection for aging. The wine racks in your cooler will fit standard bottles, but may not adjust enough to fit a rare or otherwise oddly shaped bottle. Chianti traditionally comes in a bottle with a large base within a fiasco basket. Pulcianella is another uniquely shaped Italian wine with a large base that will not fit on standard wine racks. For much older bottles of wine, the winery may have stopped releasing certain bottle types that don't fit on standard shelves. You can purchase replaceable wine racks that fit these different bottle types.

Where to Buy Wine Racks

Replacement wine shelves won't be found in your local stores. The best way to purchase wine racks is through the manufacturer of your wine cooler. If you have a wine cooler from NewAir, for example, you'll want to start by finding racks specifically for their products. Simply searching for a replacement to your wine cooler's racks can be daunting due to how many different styles and brands of coolers are available. Instead, reach out directly to the brand of your refrigerator for the right product match.

How to Replace a Wine Rack

1. Carefully move the wine from the old rack to a temporary location. Don't roll them around or let them become too disturbed if the bottles have been aging. Be gentle with your unit so that you're not shaking the wine still on your shelves.
2. Remove your old wine rack from the unit. Wine racks typically come out very easily. Before sliding the rack out, tilt one side up so that half the wheels pop off the tread. Then, slide it out.
3. Insert the new rack. In the reverse order of how you removed your old rack, pop one side of the rack onto the tread, slide the rack in, then pop the other two wheels onto the tread.
4. Place your bottles carefully back onto the new rack.