Be one of the cool kids, our guide to onboard Icemakers
When we are cruising aboard our Sabreline 36 we go through a lot of beverages. Instead of filling the fridge with cans and bottles we mostly keep food in the fridge and move the beverages into a 70-quart IGLOO cooler conveniently located on our back deck. I have thought about getting a fancier YETI or other top brand cooler, but the IGLOO is relatively inexpensive and seems to do the job well enough. An optional cushion top also lets the cooler do double duty as a convenient seat. Since most of our beverages reside in this cooler when we are cruising, ice becomes more important than ever.
While ice can be easily obtained at many fuel docks and marinas the cost ads up over time, plus sometimes you have to walk a long way watching your expensive ice shrink before you even get it aboard. When we spend any considerable time on the hook or in remote areas, even ice in the cooler begins to melt off especially when it is hot. At thirty-six feet our boat is spacious but there really isn’t a convenient spot for a built-in icemaker. There is, however, a countertop located across from our refrigerator and above the cabinet we use as our bar that is perfectly suited for a portable icemaker. Portable icemakers run on AC power and are not plumbed into the boat’s water system. You pour water into a compartment and then the unit creates ice from the water you pour in. There is no refrigeration in the icemaker so if it is warm out the ice will melt over time but then the icemaker just uses the melt off water to make more ice. When the ice basket is full the unit stops making ice and we carry the basket out, dump the ice in the cooler, and then start making more ice.
Bullet Portable Icemaker
There are different types of portable icemakers and we have had both. The original unit we had used round metal cylinders that got very cold and then the machine would bathe them in water until ice formed around them. Once the ice cubes were complete, the unit slightly heated the cylinders and the ice cubes which are cup/bullet-shaped and have a hole in the middle would fall off into a basket. This type of bullet icemaker is very fast and can make ice in less than 10 minutes although it only makes five cubes at a time which they say equates to around 19 lbs. of ice a day. We rarely got that much ice out of it because you would have to pull the basket which holds less than a pound of ice every time it was full, including during the night to maximize production. 40 or more cubes an hour isn’t too bad, and the original icemaker worked well for many years. The ice cubes are also foggy, not clear, and when they are left too long tend to get a bit slushy. They work fine in the cooler but melt a bit faster in a drink than regular cubes.
We power our icemaker with shore power or a 2,000-watt inverter when we are underway or at anchor and it seems to work well. There is a slight power surge when this type of unit warms the elements to release the cubes, but it did not seem to drain our batteries too quickly. Bullet style icemakers come in different sizes but are generally pretty reasonable and range in price from $59 to $159.
Clear Icemaker
After around five years of heavy use on board our original icemaker began to fail. It still made ice, but the cubes seem to be getting smaller and smaller, so we opted to get a new unit. I found a different style than the bullet icemaker in a similar physical size that makes more, and better quality, ice. We opted for one that makes ice in rectangular perforated sheets that look a bit waffle like when they first come out. This waffle style icemaker pumps water through a stainless-steel cooling grid. Ice is formed in layers and is clear, not foggy, as it doesn’t have air bubbles trapped in it. This also makes the cubes last longer both in your drinks and in the cooler. The element does not heat up like the bullet icemaker but after ice is finished the cooling stops and water pressure releases the rectangular ice sheet. The waffle-like shape makes it easy to break into smaller segments or individual cubes and we can also just drop the sheets into the cooler which creates mini-cube blocks.
The new icemaker we bought a year ago was sold under Best Buy’s Insignia house brand, but the same one now seems to be sold with the NewAir name. It is supposed to produce 45 lbs. of ice per day and definitely makes more and better ice than the older bullet one we had. The basket is also larger and the sheets of ice compact into it more so even with less regular basket clearing we get considerably more ice than we used to. A few other benefits are that the water tank is larger on the new icemaker so we don’t have to fill it as often. When the unit is running the water flows over the elements and newly formed ice so it freezes more quickly and efficiently. The start-up time to first ice is a bit longer than the bullet machine, closer to 12-15 minutes, but the unit also makes more ice in that time so it is really not a problem. The dimensions on the counter are only 10”x14” and the unit weighs 20 lbs. These type of icemakers sell for $150 to $200 and there are larger ones if you have the room that sell for more.
Both types of icemakers we have had make some noise, but it is mostly a fan, which if you are right next to it does blow some slightly warm air on you, and then the sound of the ice dropping. Portable icemakers are great for mid-sized boats, and I highly recommend them. Why buy ice all the time when you can make your own? Keeping your fish on ice and your drinks cold is an important part of boating and an icemaker can save money and hassle. With an icemaker aboard you can be one of the cool kids!
