The house we bought had a 30 year old trash compactor in the kitchen. I wanted to replace it as we were having our floors redone and I didn't want another trash compactor. Since I love wine and seem to always run out when dinner guests are coming over I thought I wonder if a wine cooler would fit the space? I went on Amazon and believe me I researched every wine cooler for looks, size (since the space was small) and quietness while running. I liked all the reviews I saw for the Kalamera wine refrigerator except some comments made about damage to the door from improper shipping but as reviews went on it seemed as though they addressed the problem. The dimensions were as close as I could get for the space and I liked how sleek it looked and ordered it. It arrived and it was very well padded so I was very pleased with shipping. I can't tell you how good it looks in that space instead of a trash compactor! It's as quiet as a church mouse too! I have only had it a few weeks but I really like it.
We actually bought this unit twice. After looking at most all of the suitable wine coolers of the size we needed, it came down to two or three real choices. Kalamera seems to be a new brand and product in the field and other reviews seemed favorable, so we took a chance on this unit. When the first unit arrived it had been damaged in shipping. The UPS delivery guy could barely carry the box to the door because the box was falling apart. Upon opening it we found the packing to be very poor. It had been shipped in a single layer box with thin foam trying to protect it all around, but for a item this big, and at 80 pounds, it had little chance to arrive undamaged. I took a picture and immediately sent it to the seller who responded quickly that they would immediately refund us, and that they had had several reports of the unit arriving damaged. Sure enough, within a couple days we saw the refund show up. The seller said they were going to repackage the shipping container and offer a much better shipping experience. They asked if we'd be willing to attempt purchasing again. Since we were so pleased the seller had refunded so quickly with no hassle, we agreed and bought the unit again. This time the unit came on a small palate and a piece of Masonite board strapped on the top of the box. It was basically the same boxed unit but with better base and top protection. This time the unit was undamaged and we were able to put it under our counter in our kitchen. So far we are very pleased with it, especially at this price point. It is fairly quiet for a front-vented, compressor style unit. It cooled quickly and seems to be of good build quality and design. It appears Kalamera is building a website so I hope they will have a greater web presence for service and parts down the road, but the initial build is good and we hope to have this working for many years to come. But we can't stress enough how pleased we were with the seller responding quickly with emails and the refund. I get the sense they truly wish to provide a quality product in the wine cooler business and good customer service too. I think they still could improve the shipping container by packaging the unit with thicker Styrofoam corners in the box, but the palate and top board did the job second time around for us.
Based on all the reviews here, I was a bit worried about this product - especially about it being damaged during shipping. However, as luck would have it, my unit arrived perfectly unharmed and in great condition. Kudos to Kalamera for packaging the fridge very well. They use the "box in a box" method with plenty of styrofoam protection - well done.
The out of the box experience was great. There's not much to do other than screw the handles to the doors. I don't love that you need to move the gasket on the inside of the door a bit to get at the screw hole, but it sealed back up just fine. I must admit, as refrigerators go, it is quite good looking.
The first thing I noticed is what many have commented on - the inside stinks! I would definitely air it out for a bit before using it. It's honestly no big deal - probably just the adhesive used for the door gaskets.
Here comes my biggest complaint. And I've seen so, so many wine fridges suffer from this... The bottle count is based completely on perfectly sized cab bottles. This is so frustrating. You'll get nowhere near 66 bottles of pinot noir in this unit. Furthermore, the vertical distance between racks is too small and sometimes larger bottles will catch on the shelf above it and it gets very hard to pull the shelf out. VERY frustrating. I wish they would have just put one less rack on each side and make the vertical spacing a little more generous. I got about 50 bottles in the unit, and it's for all intents and purposes full. You have to get very clever at placing the bottles to maximize the number you can store.
All in all, I'm satisfied with the unit. It does its job and does it reasonably well.
Purchased the 15" Haier originally. First one had been dropped in shipping. Second one made it to the house in tact but even with the feet at their shortest, was still MUCH too tall for undercounter installation (where we previously had 2 short-lived ice makers). This beauty slid right in. Nice plastic feet so we didn't worry about scratching the floor. There was a slight ding in the door frame but nothing on the shipping package and after repackaging the other two, we decided it wasn't bad enough to return it. The company has contacted me about it. It is extremely quiet. Pretty blue light when you want it and locks if you need it to. We're keeping bottled water in it as well and it's just great. Did I mention it is quiet? We would definitely recommend it. Visible difference in quality for the extra $100 it cost over the Haier.
So far we really love this product! It was easy to start using - just plug in and store bottles. Would recommend building cabinets around it after it’s in place, as figuring out best sizing was a little difficult for our builder. Once installed, it looked and worked beautifully. As previous reviews stated, I’m not sure how to fit the number of bottles it states in its description. We also have varying sized bottles, so I don’t see us being able to fit more than 40-45, but we still love it. Definitely recommend.
Feature Product
- ★STORES 66 WINE BOTTLES: Holds your collection of up to 66 bottles of your favorite wine in different size, and is only affected when having larger bottle, like Pinot or Champagne. It's the perfect choice for the wine lover having various wine collection.
- ★USER-FRIENDLY CONTROL: Provides options for internal lighting, Fahrenheit temperature reading, and easy LED display control!
- ★FRENCH-DOOR STYLE: Stainless steel and glass doors open in the center to reveal each wine zone area.
- ★DUAL ZONE THERMOSTAT: Keep wine perfectly chilled, according to wine variety and optimal temperature, by placing in different zones in the cooler!
- ★BUILT IN ALARM: Alarm beeps and LED display glows if door is not properly closed, protecting your wine collection from temperature fluctuations! ★Any further information needed before purchasing, you could contact us at service@kalamera.com or call 866-554-6688.
Description
Kalamera 30'' Wine Cooler 66 Bottle Dual Zone Built-in and Freestanding with Stainless Steel and Glass French-Door Style
I needed to replace a Vinotemp model that finally went kaput. But, everything else I had seen online was either too expensive, too large, since I would be putting this inside a closet, and only free standing models. Amazon came thru as usual, and I found this beauty.
Everything works nicely, but I did have to remove a shelf because some 750mL bottles I had were too fat to fit nicely. Also, there was some cosmetic damage on one of the corners, but nothing that affects the function of the unit. The led lights are super bright, so that may be a problem for some. I just close the closet door, and you can barely see the glow from under the door.
Other than that, it hold a constant temp of 55 degrees. My old unit would fluctuate 4-5 degrees before the compressor would kick on. By the way, it is very quiet, and besides the light, I probably would know it was even on. Since this is a built in type, I am able to place it fish with the wall, because the exhaust is front mounted. This unit is well made, and worth the price. Delivery was super fast, less than 2 days.
Excellent storage and construction. Sleek design. Accurate temp readings. Quiet in function.
This unit had been damaged en route, and arrived dented. Our communication with Kalamera Products (Murray) was answered promptly and our problem settled without hesitation to our content. This 15" unit only took around 15 minutes initially to cool down to 40 degrees and maintained it quietly. We took our ugly built-in trash compactor out and replaced it with this little beauty. Not only is it eye candy in my cupboards, it also has an optional blue light, which gives it an appealing ambience in the evenings. The door is reversible too. Each of the 6 wooden slide-out shelves holds four (Bordeaux style) bottles; Rhone style bottles can be stored on the top or bottom shelves, which have a bit more space. Though I would store 18-24 bottles at the most in this unit, it works well for us, is quiet, and looks so much lovelier than a trash compactor. Been using this for almost two months now. This company handled our issue in a professional, courteous and efficient manner, for which I am grateful.
Outstanding. Looks great and works well. Great company to work with as well.
The wine fridge is beautiful and holds a significant number of bottles, but it does make a small buzz sound quite often. The wine cooler had a dent in the top back corner, we decided to keep anyways, as it was a complete hassle to try and return to Amazon.
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