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NORTHWE S T place that we thought would help us out with that, and one of those was insulation of our tanks," Crank says. Keeping tanks cool during white wine production was the biggest challenge for the winery in terms of managing its power use. While its red wines are laid down in a cellar that effectively uses the thermal mass and insulative properties of the earth to stabilize temperatures, its white wines—especially those with a bit of residual sugar—need cooling to prevent spoiling and ensure proper development. ARS_Feb07 1/2/07 4:08 PM Page 1 Clean • Sterilize • Humidify "We can do it all" ... • Bottling Lines • Barrels • Tanks • Floors and Walls • Winery Equipment • Vineyard Equipment • Tank and barrel high pressure washers • Dual axial, motorized nozzles • Bunghole up barrel washers with suction foot • Exclusive flex foot for barrels in pyramid stacks • Electric motor driven for reliable performance Trust_Dir11.qxp 10/28/10 3:09 PM Page 1 ARS/Pressure Washer Company We work well under pressure. 800-735-9277 or www.cleanwinery.com So clean, your barrels will get a "G" rating. "The different types of wine that you make also affect the energy cost. Sweet white wine tends to be more expensive from an energy standpoint, because we have to run chilling on it a bit longer to keep it from spoiling, whereas red wine is kept at cellar temperatures underground," Crank explains. WVV typically produces between 80,000 and 120,000 cases annually, split 60%-40% between red and white wines. "The wine is generally kept in big stainless steel tanks, so it can be chilled, and those stainless steel tanks conduct heat and are a little bit harder to keep at a proper temperature, and we don't get all that free energy from the ground being so cool, either, in our white cellar." "This was a small retrofit that has turned out to be very effective.…The amount of power they save is just phenomenal." —Cellarmaster Chris Fladwood, Soter Vineyards WVV opted for Astro-Foil, a plastic and metal wrap developed by Innovative Energy Inc. in the mid-1980s and now available for a variety of applications. Designed to reflect 94% of energy back into the system, Astro-Foil is a durable material with air pockets that are ideal for covering the broad surface of the tank. WVV wrapped the glycol jackets on its tanks with Astro-Foil last year and was impressed enough to wrap the rest of the surface with the foil this year. It plans to tackle its glycol refrigeration lines next. Crank estimates that the sheets of Astro-Foil cost a total of $3,000, which amounts to a month's worth of power use during peak periods. While a full year's worth of data isn't yet available, a savings of 5% on power costs isn't unlikely, meaning the payback period is less than two years. "Even though we've spent thousands of dollars putting in insulation, I really believe we'll be paid off in the long run by the savings we get just by running our compressors less," Crank says. There's also the safety factor. The top of some tanks are 30 feet above the production floor, and when only part of the tank was insulated, a layer of ice would form around the top of the tank. "That ice, when you turn off the tank or the wine warms up when you put warm wine in there, will come hurtling down at you. Luckily, no one's been hit or hurt by that stuff, but we've certainly broken coolant piping before," Crank says. Of all the ideas for saving energy, Crank believes tank insulation is "definitely one of them that's got the best outcome to it." WVV's decision to boost its use of insulation has reduced the load on its compressor, which was one of the critical components that Carlton, Ore.-based Soter Vineyards looked at when assessing its energy use. 42 Wines & Vines FeBRUARY 2012 We work well under pressure.