When buying a commercial ice machine there are a couple of things you need to considerate. Not every business has the same needs and will need a different type of ice machine.
Type of Ice
What do you need the ice for? This question will help you to decide what type of ice you need.
All types of ice have different shapes, unique properties, characteristics and benefits suitable for any business. Whether you need ice for a colourful cocktail or to display the catch of the day, you will need to choose the right ice for you.
We supply machines for full ice cubes, hollow ice cubes, flat ice cubes, ice flakes, nugget ice and scale ice.
- Full/hollow Ice Cubes: A traditional square ice cube with a general purpose and is normally used in beverages as it takes much longer to melt in the glass compared to other ice cubes. It can vary in size; however, it is normally suitable in bars, pubs, or quick service restaurants.
- Flat ice cubes: an ice cube perfect for carbonated drinks. This small ice cube weighs only 7g and is produced very quickly. It refreshes your drink instantly. Mainly used in hotels, restaurants, bars, pubs and fast-food restaurants.
- Flaked/scale ice: is ideal for keeping chilled displays cool and prevents food such as fish from receiving “freezer burn”, as the ice can be used as a cool bed, shaping itself around containers and deli trays. It’s also sometimes used in the production of cocktails and smoothies, as it reduces wear and tear on blender blades. This ice can be used in different industries.
- Nugget ice: goes by a lot of different names; pearl, cubelets, soft ice and sonic ice. Basically, this is shaved ice which has been moulded into compact, random sized “nuggets”. Nugget ice is fun to chew, cool drinks quickly without foaming and does not stick together.
How much ice do you need and what size of machine?
Okay, we know now which type of ice we need. Now we need to decide how much ice we need for our business. It is important to calculate how much ice your business will use daily. Too little and you will be running out of ice, too much and you will have higher energy bills.
Knowing this will help with deciding the size of the machine. Each business has different needs.
Example:
- Bars: use around 3 pound per person
- Restaurants: use around 1.5 pound per person
- Hotels: use about 5 pound per person
- Displaying food: need about 30 pound per cubic feet.
The quantity of needed ice and the available space will help determine the style and size of ice machine.
Type of machine
After deciding what type of ice, how much ice and the size of the machine, you will need to decide on what type of machine will work the best for your business.
- Modular or self-contained?
- Self-contained ice machines or integral machines need less space, as storage bin is built in. They produce generally less ice and are suitable for light to moderate ice demand.
- Modular ice machines produce larger amounts of ice. The bin is separately. Modular machines allow you to adjust the system to your requirements.
- Air or water cooled?
The decision is depending on the position of your machine:
- Air cooled: generally more cost-effective and energy efficient. The machine will need sufficient space for air to circulate.
- Water cooled: more flexible in terms of positioning in your business. The machine can operate better than air cooled machines in higher temperature areas.
It is vital to understand the type of ice you need, the type of machine is necessary and how much ice you want to produce. Do you have any questions of all our ice machines? If you want more advice or help with choosing the right equipment, contact our DS refrigeration team on 02837511425 or email sales@ds-refrigeration.co.uk or check our Ice Maker range.