Icemakers

[luv2sparkle]

We have a Samsung fridge and it has an ice maker but we use more than it can make. We are soon doing a remodel and I will be purchasing a sub zero under the counter ice maker. It also makes my favorite shape-oval with a hole in the middle. It seems to me that the ice of that shape last longer and cool better. I cant wait to have unlimited ice.

 

[rainydaze]

Your thoughts on them, @kenny ?

 

[rocks]

Hate ours. I will explain below.

We have an in the door ice maker on our 48" subzero side by side freezer/fridge from 2004.
Just recently we started needing ice way more than usual. Generally we rarely use ice except for our weekly trip to Costco when we fill our cooler with ice and then we just open the freezer and empty the ice into the cooler vs using the in the fridge door ice unit.

My dh had TKR surgery January 17th and the surgeon wanted him to use a special cooling machine to wrap his leg as often as possible requiring me to use our ice much more frequently as in twice a day. I was getting the ice from the in the fridge door unit. After about a week of that the Subzero started flashing EC 40 meaning the condenser from the freezer was working too hard. Had the authorized repair person come and (ouch) $400 later he couldn't find any real reason for the issue.

So not wanting to tempt fate I am now taking ice from my friend's freezer daily (thank you M) who lives in our building and using it in Greg's cooler machine for his leg.

Sorry for the long explanation but in short, I am not enamored of our in the door ice unit. At all.

Photo of Greg's ice machine. Today it goes back Bah bye. Not sad to see it go.





Bad photo of our in the door ice maker. It's still dark here and I had to put all the lights on causing reflections.

We have the current version of that unit. Hate the thru the door feature. We needed the unit on very short notice, and it was the only one available in our region....

 

[missy]

We have the current version of that unit. Hate the thru the door feature. We needed the unit on very short notice, and it was the only one available in our region....

I have a love hate relationship with our Subzero. I love how it fits all the food. An efficient use of space for us. I love the appearance. I hate when fridges stick out. That is a pet peeve of mine so a flush fridge makes me happy. I love it when it works. However when it breaks down oy vey. Because there are only 2 authorized repair places in our area and they are kept quite busy repairing Wolf and Subzero.

I wouldn’t buy another because from what I understand not only has it doubled in price when we got ours (and it was expensive at that time) but the quality has gone down. Don’t know if that’s true but probably not getting another. And just praying ours continues to work or we can fix it when it stops. Cause nothing else will fit in that space.

 

[rocks]

I have a love hate relationship with our Subzero. I love how it fits all the food. An efficient use of space for us. I love the appearance. I hate when fridges stick out. That is a pet peeve of mine so a flush fridge makes me happy. I love it when it works. However when it breaks down oy vey. Because there are only 2 authorized repair places in our area and they are kept quite busy repairing Wolf and Subzero.

I wouldn’t buy another because from what I understand not only has it doubled in price when we got ours (and it was expensive at that time) but the quality has gone down. Don’t know if that’s true but probably not getting another. And just praying ours continues to work or we can fix it when it stops. Cause nothing else will fit in that space.

Oy is right. That unit currently retails for about $12k. I have the same relationship with subzero wolf. In the city, we have the 36 inch builtin with panels. The handle on the freezer unit became loose. There is a rather ingenious thing you need to know to remove the panel and tighten the handle. Hubby called customer care, and they simply could not believe that his plan was to fix it himself. No $400 service call for something that required no parts and took10 minutes to do...

 

[missy]

Oy is right. That unit currently retails for about $12k. I have the same relationship with subzero wolf. In the city, we have the 36 inch builtin with panels. The handle on the freezer unit became loose. There is a rather ingenious thing you need to know to remove the panel and tighten the handle. Hubby called customer care, and they simply could not believe that his plan was to fix it himself. No $400 service call for something that required no parts and took10 minutes to do...

Ok so not as expensive as I thought (haha I know crazy I’m even saying that but I think we paid 8k in 2004). My dh is pretty handy but there are limits. And I just hope we can keep this fridge/freezer working for as long as we are working ie alive.

Fingers and toes crossed we both can.


ETA we have a Fisher Paykel dishwasher and omg the first year we had the repairman here too often. Finally my dh read the manual and took it apart and ordered a few parts and knock wood 15 years later still working well! Hope I didn’t just jinx it. But man sometimes you just gotta do it yourself to fix it properly.

 

[Karl_K]

Oh well that sucks. I assumed that you would turn off the water supply out the front of my house and then move the fridge and figure out how to shut it off....

In the US every house and apartment is required to have an accessible shut off inside which everyone should know where is at to shut it off themselves. Not sure about au.
Find where the water comes in and there should be a valve close to it to shut off the water.

edit:
looks like au is the same:

LJM Plumbing, Gas & Drainage- Your Reliable Plumbing Partner

LJM Plumbing, Gas & Drainage: Reliable emergency plumbing, gas fitting, and drainage services. Certified, accredited, and insured professionals available 24/7.

ljmplumbing.com.au

 

[Demon]

I love ours. It's just an Amana that we bought in 2011, I believe, and I think it was a whole $800. The only thing we've had to do is replace the metal tubing that leads to the ice maker. We don't use it much for ice water, but I absolutely love getting crushed ice.

 

[Calliecake]

Many years ago I worked for a company that manufactured Ice Makers, We sold to the OEM’s of refrigerators (GE, Maytag, etc) and also replacements for homeowners. How long your ice maker last’s has a lot to do with your water. If you live in an area with hard water, you are going to have problems and the unit will not last as long.

 

[Demon]

Many years ago I worked for a company that manufactured Ice Makers, We sold to the OEM’s of refrigerators (GE, Maytag, etc) and also replacements for homeowners. How long your ice maker last’s has a lot to do with your water. If you live in an area with hard water, you are going to have problems and the unit will not last as long.

Yeah, our water is hard, and I don't doubt it's why we had to replace the tubing.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Ok so not as expensive as I thought (haha I know crazy I’m even saying that but I think we paid 8k in 2004). My dh is pretty handy but there are limits. And I just hope we can keep this fridge/freezer working for as long as we are working ie alive.

Fingers and toes crossed we both can.


ETA we have a Fisher Paykel dishwasher and omg the first year we had the repairman here too often. Finally my dh read the manual and took it apart and ordered a few parts and knock wood 15 years later still working well! Hope I didn’t just jinx it. But man sometimes you just gotta do it yourself to fix it properly.

Fisher and Pykle used to be the trusted brand in NZ for all whitewear going back generations (those dish drawers seem to be alot of trouble)
The factory was in my hometown and they seemed to be good cooperate citizens and the workers were well paid and happy
But i would not touch one with a 10 foot barge pole for how they just packed up and left for a cheaper workforce and an expanding international market (and not forgetting how they discontinued the butter conditioner )
Our washing machine is F&P and to be honest if we had known at the time it wasn't made in Dunedin we would not have brought it
You can't see but im flipping the NJ state bird in the direction of the washouse right now
Do the dirty on my hometown and it shell never pass over my threshold

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Many years ago I worked for a company that manufactured Ice Makers, We sold to the OEM’s of refrigerators (GE, Maytag, etc) and also replacements for homeowners. How long your ice maker last’s has a lot to do with your water. If you live in an area with hard water, you are going to have problems and the unit will not last as long.

Best we don't get one till we install a water softener

 

[canuk-gal]

HI:

Never wanted one.

cheers--Sharon

 

[Demon]

Best we don't get one till we install a water softener

Oh I wouldn't necessarily say that. The only thing we've replaced is the tubing to the ice maker, and we didn't replace that for 7-8 years. Well worth it, IMO.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Oh I wouldn't necessarily say that. The only thing we've replaced is the tubing to the ice maker, and we didn't replace that for 7-8 years. Well worth it, IMO.

That's good to know
i do worry about our hard water and our plumbed in appliances

 

[Demon]

That's good to know
i do worry about our hard water and our plumbed in appliances

Ours is 8 on the water harness scale. It could be worse, but it could be a whole lot better.

 

[luv2sparkle]

@missy- my husband has one of those ice machines for his shoulder. We were told to freeze 4 plastic water bottles and stick them in there and then put ice around it, to cool the water faster. Works like a charm and we haven't needed quite so much ice. We buy ice at Costco too.
Do you think that Sub zero ice maker units will have the same problem as the fridge? We are planning on getting a small beverage fridge for under the counter too.

 

[arkieb1]

In the US every house and apartment is required to have an accessible shut off inside which everyone should know where is at to shut it off themselves. Not sure about au.
Find where the water comes in and there should be a valve close to it to shut off the water.

edit:
looks like au is the same:

LJM Plumbing, Gas & Drainage- Your Reliable Plumbing Partner

LJM Plumbing, Gas & Drainage: Reliable emergency plumbing, gas fitting, and drainage services. Certified, accredited, and insured professionals available 24/7.

ljmplumbing.com.au

Ours is outside in a box in a hole in the ground in front of the house we do not have them inside in most places that I know of in Australia.

 

[kenny]

Never wanted one.

Same here, along with a dishwasher, garbage disposer, coffee maker, toaster oven, fryer, rice cooker, etc. etc. etc.

I prefer less stuff, and simple, trouble-free products, even if I have to do more work.
Work is good.
I like getting out of my car to open the garage door; I need the exercise.
I prefer hanging my clothes to dry.
Two good kitchen knives can replace a zillion gadgets cluttering up the kitchen.

I remember in 1992 it took forever (and a hundred-mile drive) to find a So. California Honda dealer with a new Accord that had manual roll-up windows.
In 12 years they never failed.

I remain skeptical about the false promises of technology, and how labor-saving gizmos clutter our lives and drain our wallets, while adding inches to our waistlines.
I enjoy a kind of perverted revenge doing work myself that most use tech to avoid.

Oh, and my $500 refrig has no built-in ice maker.
These have proven trouble free and came with my fridge 21 years ago.

 

[Batgirl76]

A few years ago the water line to a friend‘s fridge was leaking for months and he didn’t know it. Mold grew and grew and practically destroyed his kitchen. It cost tens of thousands of $$$ to fix the problem and an enormous amount of stress on his family. All for some ice cubes

 

[jaysonsmom]

The in door units cut the useful life of a fridge/freezer in half.
The ice units only last 1/2 as long as the fridge itself would and cost more than a new fridge to replace after a few years.
The makers intentionally make minor changes to the design even with the same model fridge so that newer ice units will not work in the older ones.

The ones that are inside take up a lot of space and make the freezer a bit of a joke in smaller ones.

Our Kitchenaid fridge is 12 years old, and the icemaker just died last week, so this thread comes at a great time. We are contemplating buying a new fridge, but I feel that the fridge still has a few good years to it. I won't even bother to have kitchenaid repair people come take a look...they will tell me that the parts don't exist anymore and try to sell me a whole new fridge. My plan is to wait a couple weeks, and it might come alive again. It did that a few months ago!

 

[rocks]

Ok so not as expensive as I thought (haha I know crazy I’m even saying that but I think we paid 8k in 2004). My dh is pretty handy but there are limits. And I just hope we can keep this fridge/freezer working for as long as we are working ie alive.

Fingers and toes crossed we both can.


ETA we have a Fisher Paykel dishwasher and omg the first year we had the repairman here too often. Finally my dh read the manual and took it apart and ordered a few parts and knock wood 15 years later still working well! Hope I didn’t just jinx it. But man sometimes you just gotta do it yourself to fix it properly.

We have fisher paykel dishdrawers in the city. Never again. Looks great.....but doesn’t clean well. We replaced our beach dishwasher about two years ago with a Miele. Can’t say enough good things about it.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Ours is 8 on the water harness scale. It could be worse, but it could be a whole lot better.

I don't know what ours is but i strain every drop i pour out of the electric jug or big lumps of lime float in the cup of tea

Ours is outside in a box in a hole in the ground in front of the house we do not have them inside in most places that I know of in Australia.

Is this the tobby out on the street
The last plumber that came to our house was an Aussie and i know yku have different names for things

when Gary installed our new dishwasher we couldn't find the blastered thing - only an old disused one that did nothing
the council kindly came around and repainted it blue for us so we could find it next time

Id personally hate to put my hand down that thing ....and even more so if i lived in 'Oz
Gary has a long plumber's tool he uses to get down there, but in an emergency i don't know what id do ?
Turn the bath taps on full bore maybe

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

My other half spend many years working for a plumber (as a builder) doing remodels
I dont think there is a F&P dish drawer that doesn't leak
they actually have one of the first ones from the early 90s in the early settlers museum in Dunedin

 

[missy]

We have fisher paykel dishdrawers in the city. Never again. Looks great.....but doesn’t clean well. We replaced our beach dishwasher about two years ago with a Miele. Can’t say enough good things about it.

We love our Fisher Paykel dish-drawers now. Since Greg fixed them they are great at cleaning and very efficient and quiet. Greg ordered certain parts and changed what he had to and basically replaced several of the mechanical parts in 2004/5 and now it works like a dream and has been for almost 15 years now. Fingers crossed that continues.

I am glad you love your Miele and if we need to ever replace our dish-drawers I will consider the Miele. Thanks.

My other half spend many years working for a plumber (as a builder) doing remodels
I dont think there is a F&P dish drawer that doesn't leak
they actually have one of the first ones from the early 90s in the early settlers museum in Dunedin

Ours doesn't leak! Thanks to my talented DH.
And also thanks to FP for their upgraded parts which did fix the leaking issue.

 

[elizabethess]

We got a new refrigerator as part of a kitchen remodel a couple years ago. I specifically did NOT want an icemaker or ice/water dispenser, primarily for the reasons @kenny and @Karl_K mentioned: I don't trust the longevity of the tech, I think it's a 'convenience' I don't need, I heard they get filthy and dirty. However, I also wanted a counter depth unit (non-negotiable), side by side configuration, and was picky about the looks. Budget not unlimited, either In the end after balancing priorities, I had to accept the icemaker/dispenser because all the units that otherwise answered my specs had one.

It's definitely got some bells and whistles which are unnecessary and I still don't trust the longevity, but my only solid complaint is the amount of pressure needed to apply to the pads to dispense the ice/water. The ice storage is in the door, not on the shelf, which helps as far as space. You better believe we clean it regularly and change the filter frequently

 

[Demon]

I don't know what ours is but i strain every drop i pour out of the electric jug or big lumps of lime float in the cup of tea


Is this the tobby out on the street
The last plumber that came to our house was an Aussie and i know yku have different names for things

when Gary installed our new dishwasher we couldn't find the blastered thing - only an old disused one that did nothing
the council kindly came around and repainted it blue for us so we could find it next time

Id personally hate to put my hand down that thing ....and even more so if i lived in 'Oz
Gary has a long plumber's tool he uses to get down there, but in an emergency i don't know what id do ?
Turn the bath taps on full bore maybe

Wow, that sounds pretty hard.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Wow, that sounds pretty hard.

That's our smallest coin for comparison
Those pieces flake off the jug from time to time - - this is inky since Christmas-its usually just smaller bits that would get in the coffee if we didnt strain it
i just use one of those old fashoned tea strainers
I need to find the stuff mum used to use to descale the electric jug

 

[kenny]

We got a new refrigerator as part of a kitchen remodel a couple years ago. I specifically did NOT want an icemaker or ice/water dispenser, primarily for the reasons @kenny and @Karl_K mentioned: I don't trust the longevity of the tech, I think it's a 'convenience' I don't need, I heard they get filthy and dirty. However, I also wanted a counter depth unit (non-negotiable), side by side configuration, and was picky about the looks. Budget not unlimited, either In the end after balancing priorities, I had to accept the icemaker/dispenser because all the units that otherwise answered my specs had one.

It's definitely got some bells and whistles which are unnecessary and I still don't trust the longevity, but my only solid complaint is the amount of pressure needed to apply to the pads to dispense the ice/water. The ice storage is in the door, not on the shelf, which helps as far as space. You better believe we clean it regularly and change the filter frequently

If I ever have to buy a new fridge I'm expecting it may be impossible to find one without a built-in ice maker.
If that's the case I'll buy it, but not even connect a water line to it.

In our house all the water for drinking and ice come from my reverse osmosis filter at the kitchen sink.
Filling an ice tray manually hasn't killed me yet.

 

[Demon]

That's our smallest coin for comparison
Those pieces flake off the jug from time to time - - this is inky since Christmas-its usually just smaller bits that would get in the coffee if we didnt strain it
i just use one of those old fashoned tea strainers
I need to find the stuff mum used to use to descale the electric jug

Wow. I get some scale on the filters of my fish tanks, but nothing that thick. I'll bet your water hardness is way up there.