Countertop Ice Makers?

[LaurenRose]

Our freezer does not have an ice making component. My SO was recently put on an all liquid diet due to a medical issue. He primarily lives on the smoothies I make him, so I'm constantly dealing with the cube trays and always run out before the next batch is fully frozen - even with lots of trays that take up a good amount of space in our freezer.

The question I have is:

Have any of you ever used one of those countertop ice machines? Did it work well? Have one to recommend? Thank you.

[pizzy]

You'll love it, here you go: https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/revi ... ice-maker/

[Teague]

We have one by "Igloo." It's adequate, but not spectacular. It is not particularly quick but as long as you keep it filled with water it will just chug along indefinitely, plopping out about 9 ice "donuts" every several minutes. During summer it runs most of the day. So far it's been entirely reliable after a year of use. Know that the bin it dispenses ice into is not a refrigerated space, so if the ice is not used or transferred to the freezer soon after being made, it will melt. Overall, it works. I would prefer that it worked a bit faster.

[barnaclebob]

Any countertop ice maker that doesnt also keep the hopper below freezing will be basically worthless. My brother has one of the small countertop ice makers that makes rings/tubes of ice. Its terrible because the ice is always at 32 degrees which means it only cools the drink by melting vs bringing the ice up to 32 degrees first. And it melts fast, some of the worst jack and cokes I've ever had have been with a countertop ice machine, i cant imagine smoothies would come out good. Also it just keeps recirculating the melt water and crumbs/hair gets into the hopper no matter how careful you are. Id think if you tried to put the ice from one of the counter top models, it would freeze into a block due to still being wet. You might be able to break it apart though.

If you fill the trays half full your freezer will be able to make a higher volume of ice but you'll be shuffling trays twice as much. A thinner cookie sheet of ice may also let your freezer make more volume of ice.

How long is he going to need to be on an all liquid diet? Could you just buy bags of ice if its an interim issue?

[leeks]

Bags of ice from the grocery store as a short term solution? If you get more than fits in your freezer, you might already have a cooler you can use to store extra ice.

[Doom&Gloom]

We have an Igloo. It does what it is supposed to do. My expectations were pretty low, but it has surprised me.

[lazydavid]

We've gone through a few of the brand-interchangeable "donut" ones over the past decade, and finally decided about two years ago to step up to a GE Opal, which we actually love. It makes nugget ice like you get from sonic and some fountain machines. It's expensive, but fantastic.

[White Coat Investor]

Our freezer does not have an ice making component. My SO was recently put on an all liquid diet due to a medical issue. He primarily lives on the smoothies I make him, so I'm constantly dealing with the cube trays and always run out before the next batch is fully frozen - even with lots of trays that take up a good amount of space in our freezer.

The question I have is:

Have any of you ever used one of those countertop ice machines? Did it work well? Have one to recommend? Thank you.

You can get a big one installed under the counter. An entire family couldn't eat enough smoothies to use ours up. It must have 4 gallons of ice in there most of the time. But that'll obviously cost more than the countertop ones.

[jlawrence01]

GE has about several models of counter-top ice makers. Honestly, I had never heard of them before yesterday.

We have little need for ice personally and when we need it, we can get some from our local community center.

[Jimbo Moneybags]

Our freezer does not have an ice making component.

Can you add an ice maker to your current freezer? In other words, do you have a water outlet behind your refrigerator/freezer and does your brand/model refrigerator/freezer support an ice maker kit as an add-on option?

[tashnewbie]

Are you using frozen fruit?

I find I don't need to add ice to smoothies if I am using frozen fruit.

This assumes you have space in your freezer to keep frozen fruit.

If you're already using frozen fruit, I'll defer to others because I've never used a countertop ice maker.

[ncbill]

GE has about several models of counter-top ice makers. Honestly, I had never heard of them before yesterday.

We have little need for ice personally and when we need it, we can get some from our local community center.

Posters online are big fans of the GE Opal for soft, nugget ice.

Yes, it continuously re-makes ice as it melts.

Those who insist on hard ice should not buy the Opal.

[TN_Boy]

Our freezer does not have an ice making component.

Can you add an ice maker to your current freezer? In other words, do you have a water outlet behind your refrigerator/freezer and does your brand/model refrigerator/freezer support an ice maker kit as an add-on option?

I was wondering about that also. An add-on kit, or while it'd be a lot more expensive, maybe upgrade the fridge to one with an ice maker.

[wilked]

The countertop ice machines are useless...

Do you have a standup or chest freezer? If not I'd consider if it might be a good time to buy one. From there, just buy bags of ice and stock it. This is the foolproof solution.

[barberakb]

Mine in my freezer broke and they wanted like $500 to fix it so I bought one from best buy for under $100.

I use it like twice a week to fill a plastic bin I keep in the freezer for ice.

It works great and is WAY better than filling ice trays

[Taz]

My sister has one similar to the GE model which makes soft nuggets. (Her indoor make broke.) If you don't mind watery drinks then it is fine. The ice bin is barely at freezing so it constantly recycles the melted nuggets. It would be better if she took out the ice and put it in her freezer.