portable ice makers

[scoutdad]

Just curious have any of you used or own a portable ice maker, the ones you can put on a counter? Good/ bad results, brands? Thought these would be handy.

[OhioMark]

I have Haier I bought at BJ's warehouse about 8 years ago for about $170 bucks. Runs like a champ and just used it our most recent trip.

Just a couple things to keep in mind: 1)They tend to be noisy. It will keep you up at night if you don't have a bedroom door. 2)They tend to be heavy. Mine is around 30 pounds. 3)They generate heat and take up considerable amount of counter space. You need to have air space around it on the counter. Mine has a pretty good size footprint, the dimensions are 17" high x15"widex14"deep.

All said, for what they charge for ice at the campgrounds it's paid for itself a couple times over.

Like I said, we've had ours for about 8 years, but I've heard of them failing after a a couple years. I'm glad we have one.


Perhaps get the extended warranty if your concerned.

[scoutdad]

have you set it outside, does it work okay?

[OhioMark]

Yes, and no don't use it outside. It has a couple computer boards and it will overheat if outside in warm weather. Pretty much quits making ice because it's not insulated all that well and will produce little "Cheerio" shaped ice instead of the nice large ice tubes.

I would attribute it lasting this long because we've not use it outside.

[DavisK]

I bought one of these Igloo branded ice makes a couple of years ago from Sam's Club, Igloo Compact Ice Maker - Assorted Colors - Sam's Club. It works well. I think it was $20 off when I bought it.

[OhioMark]

Definately looks smaller than ours, but of course that was a few years ago and designs may have certainly improved.

Just remember to look at the output. Your not going to fill up a cooler after running it for a couple hours. They make about a cup and half of ice every 15-20 minutes, enough for drinks. We run ours 24/7 and put the ice in zip lock bags in the rv freezer when were planning a day trip away from the campground.

also, the cubes are not solid, more so a cylinder, so they tend to melt a bit faster. Just wanted to make sure you know what your getting.

[murphysranch]

We have one, purchased off of eBay. It works great in cool weather, but when it was 110 in the trailer in Redding CA last week, it would not work at all. In the morning, when we got the trailer down to about 78, then it started working. I think cool or cold water would have helped in that heat.

[denviola]

Bought a magic chef unit last year for $69 at one of those sales where Home Depot puts all kinds of sale items in the aisles and makes it hard to walk through the store. It works well, has 2 settings - one makes ice faster but it is thin and the second takes longer and produces thicker ice. They are small round ice cylinders with holes in center. Great for drinks with a few friends and can handle a small gathering. The nice thing about the ice maker is while the ice bucket is not refrigerated and the ice will melt, it melts directly into the water reservoir and is pumped back up to make new ice. I have used it successfully outdoors on the shaded patio, and it always goes with us in the RV. Doesn't make a lot of noise. I turn it on in the morning and off at night. Have also bagged excess ice for freezer as mentioned above. Doesn't make a huge amount but I'm happy with it. Footprint is 12" long x 8" wide x 12" tall.
Denny

[scoutdad]

Originally Posted by DavisK

I bought one of these Igloo branded ice makes a couple of years ago from Sam's Club, Igloo Compact Ice Maker - Assorted Colors - Sam's Club. It works well. I think it was $20 off when I bought it.

Went to Sam's and bought 1 yesterday, works good so far, these was the ones I was looking at already, Thanks