Small Commercial Ice Makers for Home Use

YogiBear · May 11, 2016

Aloha,

Being Retired and living in Hawaii, I go thru almost all the ice a normal

home refrigerator can make in a day.

The Wife gets upset when she comes home and finds the ice container

almost empty.

I usually have a large container full of ice water or ice tea or some other

non alcoholic beverage with lots of ice close by.

In 2017 we are planning on moving to Hill Country in Texas.

We have discussed in addition to the ice maker in the home refrigerator,

getting a Small commercial ice maker as we will both be home together

and in keeping hydrated, we expect to use a lot of ice.

So, the question is, do those of you that live in places like Texas,

Oklahoma, Arizona, New Mexico and similar places, have a separate ice

machine of commercial quality?

We are thinking it is a good idea when we have BBQs for family & friends.

The cost is not much more than a mid range refrigerator.

klondike · May 11, 2016

I installed an undercounter ULINE model four years ago that did not need a drain. The unit took a wood front that matched our cabinetry and required only 110v and a 1/4" water line.
The negative of the brainless units is that the ice in the bin needs to be emptied every few weeks so that it can make fresh. If you have a drain it will need to have an air break between the unit and the drain. Not a big deal if you have good access to install it.

MCorps0311 · May 11, 2016

The only time we use a lots of ice is when we have a BBQ,or some other outing.We just buy bags of ice and use coolers.

S&W ucla · May 12, 2016

Scotsman undercounter nugget machine!! Works great for daily use and small groups. If you plan on needing LOTS (200# or more a day) might need to go with larger machine. They are also available in nugget ice. And you'll need a new BBQ gun and rig to go with the move!!

Smoke · May 12, 2016

http://www.walmart.com/ip/15162477?...69276872&wl4=&wl5=pla&wl6=81461363912&veh=sem

Not sure if it qualifies as "commercial" but this is what we use. It's not much bigger than a lunch box and it doesn't require remodeling the kitchen

epj · May 12, 2016

We used one of the portables in our camper before we got the Motorhome with built in ice maker. Even the smaller one puts out a tremendous amount of ice. The larger one might do what you want with minimum expense and fuss.

peyton · May 12, 2016

We have the scotsman under counter model. The house was built with it in mind.

Brian41 · May 16, 2016

It's been years since I worked on them but U-line seemed to get most of the business for small under counter units. In later years I worked on bigger commercial units but they'd be overkill for home use. Some of those commercial ones were small enough for under a counter as were used for point of sales commercially. The icemakers were more advanced but meant for a lot more ice than a person would use at home.
I agree you need to dump old ice if not used at times as it gets nasty if you want it in drinks but okay for a cooler. Do put in good water filters if any minerals in your water and you'll thank me later. Commercial ones can be cleaned but residential ones just corrode and need to be replaced at large expense if water promotes a buildup or corrosion.

chaparrito · May 16, 2016

Countertop model like the one above. It recycles melted ice back into the reservoir. Distilled water. Perfect ice.

coltle6920 · May 16, 2016

I would think that living in Hawaii limits what's available to you and the cost of shipping from the mainland is money wasted if you can wait until you move.

Muss Muggins · May 16, 2016

Nothing says "constant maintenance" like an ice machine . . .

DWalt · May 16, 2016

The ice maker in the refrigerator is fully adequate to more than meet our ice needs. On those occasions when more ice is necessary, I buy a 10-pound bag (or two) from the neighborhood H-E-B. You will soon find out about H-E-B if you live in Texas. They do not have them in Hawaii.

Kernel Crittenden · May 16, 2016

On your frig unit, if you turn down the temp of the freezer, it will make ice faster.

DWalt · May 16, 2016

Kernel Crittenden said:
On your frig unit, if you turn down the temp of the freezer, it will make ice faster.

I have never heard that. What would the reason be?

Kernel Crittenden · May 17, 2016

DWalt said:
I have never heard that. What would the reason be?

The freezer will make ice cubes faster when it's colder.

I wonder if the best solution for the OP is a frig that makes more ice cubes. Maybe the solution is as simple as a unit with a bigger hopper. There are some really nice super deluxe refrigerators on the market, today.

Optimize the ice maker you have. Like emptying the hopper before you go to bed, putting all the cubes in an separate container. Letting the ice maker run all night to fill the hopper again. Certainly, you'd want a thru-the-door ice dispenser so you don't have to constantly open the freezer door to get ice.

twodog max · May 17, 2016

On a different thought get a Yeti tumbler. Mine will hold ice 24 hours through several refills a day. So long as you don't put a real hot drink on the ice it seems to last forever. These sure cut our ice use down here in the hot humid south.

DWalt · May 17, 2016

Kernel Crittenden said:
On your frig unit, if you turn down the temp of the freezer, it will make ice faster.

I'd think the ice cube ejection from the ice maker would be on a timed cycle independent from the freezer temperature. But I don't know how their cycling is set up. I just got a new refrigerator last week, and it fills the ice cube hopper in about one day. My old refrigerator's ice maker (until the old refrigerator gave out last week after nearly 25 years of service) did also.

boatme99 · May 18, 2016

Ice makers are troublesome machines. They have to cycle water, freeze water, heat trays (to drop ice), and self defrost. They will require quite a bit of maintenance over the years.

When I was working on yachts, a lot of companies used U-Line units as new equipment.
They seemed to have a pretty high maintenance level and frequent replacement record. They are also expensive.

NOTE: this is just my experience in fifteen years of running boats.

You might consider an undercounter model. They produce about 50 pounds a day, under ideal conditions. Probably more than you'll ever need, except for parties.

I found what I think was a pretty economical solution to constant ice maker maintenance.

After a couple service calls, when it's reached the point of diminishing returns, I'd go to the local Sears Outlet (scratch and dent center), most good size towns will have one, and buy a dented unit for less than half the price of new.

I was installing them in cabinets, so it didn't matter if the sides or backs were dented. And they came with the new warranty.

I never had an owner complain about replacing a unit when I could show him what he'd spent on a couple of service calls.

Good luck.

YogiBear · May 19, 2016

Aloha,

Thank You for all the replies.

Asking the forum Hive mind brings out a lot of different experiences.

We are just researching different things we may want or need after we

move to Texas.

The Wife has moved from Minnesota to Hawaii.

I have lived in Hawaii all my life.

She has family in Austin.

We will be visiting them for our Anniversary later this year.

We plan on touring Hill Country to see if we like it.

Then, after the Wife reties in 2017, we will make the move.

Small Commercial Ice Makers for Home Use

Absent Comrade

Member

US Veteran

Member

US Veteran

US Veteran

US Veteran

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

US Veteran

Member

US Veteran

Member

Member

Member

Absent Comrade

Similar threads