I have a VK 500 unit in my basement. When I bought it, it was delivered and assembled for me as part of the purchase price. Now that I'm moving, however, I need to disassemble it to get it out of the basement and into my new house. So, here are a few questions:

1) Is it easy to disassemble and reassemble or should I hire someone to do it for me?

2) Does anyone in the Toronto area have any suggestions on who I might hire to do this for me (and what they might charge)?

3) What about the wine? My plan is just to keep it in cardboard boxes for a few days while I'm getting settled in to my new place. Any tips I should keep in mind?

4) I'm still figuring out the ideal location for it in my new house. Does a carpeted floor help reduce vibration or should it be on a hard floor?

Slan,

I put my own VK500 together, it is quite simple. The only thing to watch out for is that there may be caulking on the seams (black caulking), and you should cut that with a razor blade before removing the sides.

A few days in cardboard probably won't ruin any wine. You can always ship it to me for safe keeping though.

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Yes, but I came here for an argument.

Oh! Oh! I'm sorry, this is abuse.

Slan,

I suggest that you call whoever you had deliver and assemble your cellar to see if they will disasseble and ship it to your new resident.

I bought mine at Wine Esatblishment and they mentioned that they will disassemble my cellar and reinstall it in another location.

Talk to Amanda at the Wine Establishment and mention that you were a friend of mine. I'm sure that she'll help you out

Now....where's that Screwpull?

Slan

Bought my VK500 from IHC Wine Studio (great little store that also sells Cigars!) out in Mississauga. I paid them $200 to assemble it for me when in reality it's probably no more difficult to assemble than a standard IKEA - style desk. The owner delivered and assembled the unit with the help of a good old Newfoundlander who does it part time (he's from the Circus and teaches trapeze to make some extra dough), I believe his name was Josh. Maybe if you call Chuck at Wine Studio, he can supply you with Josh's number - he's a good kid who can probably help you out.

As far as tips - agree with the above post regarding the caulking - cut it with an X-acto knife to release the panels from one another, and then rid the surface entirely of the old caulking before you re-apply it at the time you re-build it. If nothing else, just to ensure you have that tight seal once re-assembled and that your cooler doesn't pick up any of the warm air outside the unit.

I noted during assebly that the racks require a bit of elbow grease in order to snap in place, so the same may be necessary when dis-assembling.

Since Wine Studio is having their Vintage Keeper sale this month, and since they take away all the boxes that made up a standard unit, depending on timing, you may be able to get one of each box necessary to transport your unit in its disassembled state. Just a suggestion, but call and ask Chuck if he has any kicking around that you could have. That way it's transported to your new home in the proper box.

Cheers...

Thanks, guys. So far, I have one quote for C$300 (C$150 to disassemble and another C$150 to reassemble). I'm not inclined to do it myself simply because I'll have so much crap to do when moving in that I'd really like to have someone just take care of it for me, but we'll see if I can beat that price!

Probably not a bad idea Slan!

I put mine together, and while it's not hard, it can be time consuming. But....have you considered partially disassembling it? When I moved a year ago, I simply removed the wine, the cooling unit, and the front doors. From there it was pretty easy to get into a truck and haul it off (with help), and I didn't have to completely put it back together. Just a thought?

-DRAB

So much wine.....so little time!!!

That was actually my first thought, DRAB. The problem is that when the mover was over the other day surveying my stuff to give me a fee quote, he said that they wouldn't be able to get it up the stairs from my basement unless it was disassembled.