A residential wine cellar builder in Chicago, Illinois recently completed a stunning new wine room project for a client in the area.

The wine cooling unit selected for this project was an RM 2600 split system. Split systems like this separate the compressor/condenser from the evaporator, so only the smaller evaporator unit sits inside the wine room itself, while the noisier, heat-generating condenser is installed remotely — often in a basement, attic, garage, or outdoors. This has a few real advantages for a project like this one:

• More usable space. Because the bulk of the equipment lives outside the cellar, more of the room can be dedicated to wine storage rather than mechanical clearance.
• Quieter operation. With the compressor located away from the living space, the wine room itself stays noticeably quieter — a common priority for cellars built near dining rooms, staircases, or entertaining spaces.
• Better efficiency. Split systems are generally more energy-efficient than self-contained units, which matters over the long run given that a wine cellar’s cooling system runs continuously, year-round, to hold the tight temperature and humidity ranges wine needs.

This is particularly relevant in a climate like Chicago’s, where cellar cooling systems have to work against both hot, humid summers and cold, dry winters — a wider temperature swing than milder coastal climates see, which puts more demand on the equipment.

For this installation, the builder also constructed a special housing and custom louvered grill cover for the cooling unit, using the same wood as the wine racks. Louvered covers like this allow airflow to and from the evaporator while visually blending the equipment into the cabinetry, so the finished room reads as a seamless wine display rather than a mechanical space. The result is a cooling system that’s virtually invisible in the finished room.

Planning Your Own Custom Wine Cellar

If you’re considering a similar space in your own home, an under-stair or otherwise tight footprint is one of the more popular layouts for a custom wine cellar — it makes use of space that would otherwise go unused. The right cooling approach depends heavily on the room’s size, location, and how much of the mechanical equipment you want visible versus hidden; you can read more about how split system cooling units compare to other setups, or look at full specs for the RM Series used in this project.

For homeowners and builders just starting to plan a space like this, our guide to building a custom wine cellar covers the basics of construction, insulation, and equipment selection from the ground up.