Easy Ice Program FAQs to Answer All Your Questions

Easy Ice provides customers with a team of experts that will tailor fit the perfect ice machine for your business needs. There are three decisions we make when sizing a commercial ice maker for your business:

1. Ice Type: Crescent, Dice, Square, Cubelet, or Flaked?
2. Condenser Type: Air-cooled, Water-cooled, or Remote?
3. Usage/Capacity: How much ice will you need on a 24-hour cycle?

We provide an Ice Machine Estimator which will give you an idea of the amount of ice you’ll need based on your business.

For more information on how Easy Ice determines the right sized ice machine for your needs, see How Easy Ice Sizes the Perfect Ice Machine.

The best place to install an ice machine is in an area with temperature control and plenty of ventilation. When choosing a place to install your unit, steer away from:

• Closets
• Cubbies
• Hot Kitchens
• Outdoors

For more information, see our post Ice Maker Not Making Ice? Check Your Room Temperature.

Yes, you should. The more light cleaning you do, the better your ice machine will operate. Also, the vast majority of ice machine contaminations occur due to human interaction – not the ice machine. An Easy Ice deep cleaning can make an ice machine like new, but it can't prevent dirt or contaminants from entering your ice machine afterward.

For more information, see our post Do I Have to Clean My Ice Machine in Between Preventive Maintenance Cleanings?

There are two stages to providing clean and safe ice. The first stage is producing safe ice. The second is handling ice safely. Easy Ice takes care of the first, customers and their staff are responsible for the second.

We employ three techniques to keep ice machines clean and sanitary, ensuring ice is safe and potable:

• Pre-installation Site Survey to confirm environmental conditions are adequate for safe and clean ice production.
• Water Filtration and Treatment to combat the harms of high yeast environments, hard water, or contaminated water.
• Biannual Preventive Maintenance, Cleaning, and Sanitizing to keep equipment running at peak performance and keep ice bins free of contaminants.

Customers are responsible for ice after the machine produces it. That means handling ice bins, ice containers, scoops, etc., in a manner consistent with health department guidelines.

For more information see How Do You Ensure the Ice I Serve is Clean and Safe?

If you install your ice machine in a temperature-controlled room with plenty of ventilation, you’ll be on the right track, but there are some things you can do after the unit is installed to ensure your ice machine doesn’t overheat. They include:

• Keeping the unit away from heat-producing appliances like ovens and furnaces
• Keeping the room temperature around 70-75 degrees
• Keeping the unit clear of clutter

For more information, see our post Ice Maker Installation: Avoiding the Dangers of Microclimates.

A: To clean your ice bin:

• ·         Turn off the ice machine
• ·         Wipe the contaminated areas with a solution of 90% water and 10% chlorine
• ·         Let the solution air dry before turning the machine back on
• For more information about cleaning your ice bin, see our post Simple Steps for Cleaning Your Ice Bin.

A: In most cases, rinsing the dirt off with hot water and letting it air dry is enough. If there is a lot of grease in the filter, you may need to spray it with an industrial strength degreaser before rinsing it with water.

For more information about cleaning an air filter, see our post A Dirty Ice Maker Filter Spells Disaster.

Several things could lead to your ice machine producing less ice. Before calling customer care, you should first check a few things:

• Drain: Are there any problems with the drain in your building? Is the drain inside the bin clogged by foreign material?
• Electricity: Is there power to machine or is it unplugged?  Any power outages, breaker issues within the last 48 hours?
• Water: Is water on or has it been shut off within the last 48 hours?  Have there been any noticeable water flow issues?
• Temperatures: Has the room where the equipment is installed recently become extremely hot (above 95) or cold (below 40F)?
• Air flow: Is the air flow to vents blocked?
• Demand: Are you using more ice than normal because of higher than usual demand from customers or employees?

For more information, see our post My Ice Machine isn’t Producing Ice, What Should I do? 

If your ice cubes are coming out too small it’s generally due to a water-related issue. These can include:

• Not enough water flowing to your ice machine.
• There is enough water at the start, but the water is leaving the machine in some way other than as an ice cube.
• The measurement device (the float switch) is adjusted to the wrong setting.

For more information, see our post Reasons Why a Hoshizaki Ice Machine May Produce Smaller Ice Cubes.

Hoshizaki ice machines produce an audible alert when they encounter a problem. Generally, there are 7 different “Beep Codes” that signify the machine’s current condition. They include:

• 1 Beep – High temperature measured at the evaporator outlet
• 2 Beep – Long Harvest Cycle
• 3 Beep – Long Freeze Cycle
• 4 Beep – Shorted Circuit on Mechanical Bin Sensor
• 5 Beep – Open Circuit on Mechanical Bin Sensor
• 6 Beep – Low Voltage supplied to Machine
• 7 Beep – High Voltage Supplied to Machine

For more information, see our post The Ice Machine is Beeping…What Does That Mean?

The first thing to figure out is whether the leak is coming from the front or behind the shut-off valve (normally located behind the machine). If the leak is coming from behind the shut-off valve, it means the leak is coming from the water line, which will require a plumber. If it’s coming from the front of the valve, the leak is stemming from the ice machine. In that event, call us, and we’ll send a technician out ASAP.

For more information, see our post Water is Leaking from the Waterline, What Should I Do?