If you like to organize evening parties, you should ideally have a lot of ice cubes in the house, because if you have a lot of guests, they are usually used up much too quickly. In such situations, an ice machine is just the thing.
Many people know the problem: when you need them, there are usually none. All that remains is to go to the supermarket to buy a bag with ready-made ice cubes or the laborious filling of the ice cube molds. These then have to be in the freezer for a few hours. But if you have an ice cube machine, the first load of ice cubes is ready after a few minutes, and the ice is continuously produced. So you don't have to go to the store to look for supplies.
Ice machines for domestic use all work on the same principle: water is pumped from a water tank into a basin with cooling rods. At temperatures below freezing point, the water then solidifies to ice. As soon as the ice has the right consistency, the remaining water flows back into the water reservoir. Then the cooling rods are heated, the ice dissolves and is transported into a container from which it can be removed with a shovel.
There are expensive devices for the catering sector that produce very cold and massive ice cubes. But these are too big and too expensive for your own household.
Ice cube machines in the test
The test portal AllesBeste has tested 17 ice cube machines. The best for most households is the Klarstein Icemeister. With its relatively slim housing, it takes up little space and is fixed during the production of the ice cubes. The switch-on and switch-off times are set using a practical timer. The model had the lowest energy consumption in the AllesBeste test.
If you need a lot of ice at once, the testers recommend the H. Koenig Kube KB15. The tank size and the amount of ice produced were at the top of the test. You can choose between three different ice cube sizes. Due to the capacity, however, it is rather bulky and not suitable for every household.
The test portal advises price-conscious buyers for the Medion MD17739, d9e offers a beautiful design and good workmanship without neglecting the costs. Ice cubes drop into the basket every eight minutes, and the energy consumption never exceeds 85 watts. The ice cube production can be observed directly through a large window. Two ice cube sizes are available with this device.
More information and other recommended alternatives can be found in the detailed review by AllesBeste.
