Improve Unit Drainage with Rigid Drain Line, Strainer, and Condensate Pump

Improve Unit Drainage with Rigid Drain Line, Strainer, and Condensate Pump

CellarCool prides itself on helping our customers and educating them about proper cellar construction and cooling unit care. We also intend to help our customers prevent common technical issues that may arise during the course of a unit’s operational life. One of the most persistent problems our customer service team has encountered is clogged drain lines. We’ve put our heads together and come up with a list of modifications you can make to your unit, prior to installation, that will help prevent drain line clogging issues. These modifications include rigid drain lines, drain line strainers, and a condensate pump.

Pre-Installation Modification #1: Rigid Drain Line

CellarCool’s ceiling-mounted units, which include built-in condensate pumps, use 1/4″ clear plastic drain lines. Sometimes, however, during installations, this drain line can accidentally become kinked. This inhibits the flow of condensate from your unit’s drip tray to the proper condensate disposal area. If the drain line becomes so kinked that water cannot pass through it, the drip tray in your unit may overflow. This can cause water damage to the unit and possibly your cellar’s wine racks, your bottle labels, and perhaps the floor or walls of the cellar itself.

A remedy to this problem is rigid drain lines, made of copper or PVC plastic. Copper or PVC drain lines are much less likely to kink, minimizing the danger of accidental kinking during installation. As long as care is taken to ensure that these drain lines are kept clean and clog-free, rigid drain lines should provide you with a reliable and consistent way for your ceiling-mounted unit to dispose of excess condensate.

Pre-Installation Modification #2: Drain Line Strainer

Besides kinking, another cause of drain line obstructions is insects. Insects, especially in dry areas of the United States, migrate to moist areas. The water in drain lines is a prime target. Sometimes bugs can climb inside drain lines. There, they become stuck and die, resulting in an eventual drain line blockage. Purchasing a drain line strainer, such as the above strainer from Cole-Parmer, can prevent insects from climbing inside drain lines and blocking them.

Pre-Installation Modification #3: External Condensate Pump

The final way to upgrade your cooling unit’s drainage system prior to installation is to purchase an external condensate pump. This pump easily attaches to the outside of a CellarCool evaporator unit. If you live in a high humidity area and anticipate that your unit will produce lots of moisture, an external condensate pump is a great way to prevent water from overflowing the drain pan and causing damage to your wine cellar.

These are all ways you can improve the drainage of your CellarCool unit prior to its installation. Rigid drain lines will prevent kinks. Drain line strainers will prevent vermin-related clogs. And the external condensate pump kit can pump excess condensate to a safe disposal location.