Expert: James Yee - 10/3/2011

Question
Hi, I was wondering if you can help, I bought a Kadeka wine cooler that uses a 134A Refrigerant Sealed system, + Oasis XL plus.  I could not find a thermoelectic cooler in Vietnam.  There are often power outages (which powers up usually within minutes) in Vietnam and the cooler resets to 13 degrees from 18 degrees, and the humidity levels then rises from about 70 to about 90%, if I read it correctly. And after a week, my Oasis is already showing a Low level.
How bad is this for my cigars, and what can i do to fix this?

Thanks

Answer
Hi,

If your Cigar Oasis' water reservoir is depleting too quickly, it may mean that your wine cooler has a leak and is causing the humidity to constantly escape.  This causes your Cigar Oasis to operate continously which depletes the reservoir more quickly.  Examine your wine cooler and seal up any gaps or cracks with water-proof silicon sealant.  If the wine cooler door is loose, tighten the hinge so that it has a tighter seal when closed.

You may also want to consider lining your wine cooler interior with Spanish cedar wood panelling (if you haven't done it yet).  Spanish cedar will help absorb and regulate the humidity more effectively inside your wine cooler.

For the power outages, you should consider plugging your wine cooler into a backup power source that will keep your wine cooler powered during power outages.  You can buy this device at most electronics or hardware stores.

If your wine cooler continues to have problems, it may be defective and you should have it replaced.

I hope this helps.  If you have any more questions, please feel free to just ask and I will be happy to help.

Regards,
James