Ice Making Machines For Restaurants

Ice making machines are an essential tool for commercial kitchens, restaurants and fast food outlets. Ice makers tend to be reliable if well maintained and will provide years of service.

In researching this piece of equipment the first area to address is what is the demand of your business? How many people do you serve, what requirements does your menu place for ice? Is ice required continuously or is there a peak, will demand increase in the future?China Car Freezers Manufacturers

A starting figure for restaurants may be around 2 lbs. of ice per person. This figure is elastic and depends on your menu and the use of ice for food presentation. Introduction of exotic drinks, or guest accommodation will require a greater volume of ice. The availability of additional or larger ice bins will assist with this type of growth.

Another consideration is the type of ice. Ice comes in the common cube or half cube shape, nugget, flake, shaved and variations of these. As the surface area of the ice increases, the ice melts quicker, so before deciding on a particular type, examine what others are already using to determine how a particular ice shape will perform.

Once the type and amount of ice has been determined, the logistics of installing a machine into your premises should be examined.

Deciding on the location of your ice making machine should take into account:

1. The availability of drinking water, power and drainage. All three are required to run the ice maker.

2. Preferably a low humidity and a low temperature location will help the machine operate more efficiently. An area without air currents will minimise evaporation which decreases ice storage time.

3. Will the noise from the machine effect the comfort of patrons? Possibly the machine needs to be more remote. Typically air cooled machines tend to create more noise. Water cooled machines are quieter, however, are more expensive to install, and more expensive to run especially where water is scarce.

One way around this is an air cooled machine with a remote condenser, typically installed externally (and more expensively).

Consideration to filtering the water prior to generating the ice is recommended. In-line filtration will promote a cleaner ice, and a better tasting ice.

Once an ice generating system is in place, a cleaning and maintenance program should be implemented. This program will prolong the life of the ice machine and ensure the quality of the ice.

The cleaning should include cleaning of the water filtration unit, purging of the water line, and cleaning of the ice making plate or bars to remove mineral build up.