What size cooling unit do I need for my cellar?

It depends on room volume plus glass, insulation, vapor barrier, and the temperature of the room the unit vents into, not square footage alone. Two rooms of the same size can need very different units. The calculator returns the units we stock that cover your specific room.

Does a glass wall or glass door change the size I need?

Yes. A glass wall or door adds about 35% to the sizing volume because glass has far less insulation value than an insulated wall, so it can push you to a larger unit.

Is the BTU figure a full load calculation?

No. The BTU number is there for orientation, not a contractor-grade load calculation. Glass, stone, and concrete all change what a room really needs, so call a specialist for unusual rooms.

Cellar Cooling Calculator

Measure your cellar. We match it against the capacity each manufacturer publishes, then build a cart you can buy, print, or scan.

The room

Length (ft) Width (ft) Ceiling height (ft)

Conditions

Exhaust-side temperature (°F) The room the unit vents into, not the cellar Insulation Wall R-value. Ceilings usually run higher

Construction

Vapor barrier on the warm side Glass wall or glass door Standard interior door, not insulated

Racking optional

Bottles to store Leave blank for cooling equipment only

Quote details optional, these print on the sheet

Prepared for Job reference

How we size it

We match equipment against the cellar capacity each manufacturer publishes, taken from the product's own spec table. The heat-load estimate plays no part in that choice.

Room volume is length times width times height. We then add margin before matching, because a published capacity assumes a sealed, insulated room: a glass wall adds 35%, a missing vapor barrier 15%, an exhaust room above 85°F another 15%, and an uninsulated door 10%. Those margins are ours.

The BTU figure is there for orientation. It is not a contractor-grade load calculation, and WhisperKOOL's own documentation says glass, stone and concrete all change what a room really needs.

Undersizing shortens a system's life. Call 866-430-2877 before ordering if the room is commercial, has glass walls, needs more than one unit, or vents somewhere that runs hot.

Heat-load detail full calculation

These default from the room you entered. Change any of them and the breakdown updates. Equipment recommendations are unaffected: those run off the capacity each manufacturer publishes.

Target cellar temperature (°F) Ceiling R-value Floor R-value Slab on grade is about R-10

Air changes per hour A sealed cellar runs 0.3 to 0.5 Lighting (watts) Blank uses 0.75 W per sq ft Occupants Blank uses one per 100 sq ft

Ambient humidity (%RH) Cellar humidity (%RH) Include bottle pull-down

Conduction is the sum of area times temperature difference divided by R-value across ceiling, floor and walls. Infiltration, lighting, occupancy and pull-down are standard sensible and latent load arithmetic. Glass, a missing vapor barrier and an uninsulated door are applied to conduction at the same percentages the capacity sizing uses.

See your cellar to scale

The room you entered, rendered to scale with the recommended cooling unit and enough racking for your bottle count. Build a quote above and it updates.

For sizing only — a to-scale schematic, not an exact product rendering. Hover or tap any item to see the real product. Confirm specs before ordering.

Cooling unit wall:

Floor plan, to scale · tap 3D view to explore in 3D (drag, pinch to zoom, tap for details)