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Ice storage bins and ice transport equipment is a general term used
to describe the wide variety of ice bins, gravity-feed ice dispensing
bins, ice storage and transport systems, and mechanical dispensing
ice bins available on the market today. Used with all types and
sizes of modular ice makers, these ice storage offerings are the
equipment that facility staff interacts with on a daily, sometimes
hourly, basis. Because of the amount of interaction employees will
have with the ice storage equipment, the selection of this equipment
is even more important than the selection of the ice maker that
will fill it.
There are many types of ice storage equipment. Some are little
more than insulated storage boxes, others deliver a wide range of
labor-saving, sanitation and safety features. In increasing order
of operational benefit, the available types are:
Facilities should carefully select the equipment design and features
to deliver the level of labor savings, safety, sanitation, and employee
satisfaction required for that specific operation.
In reviewing the different types of storage equipment available,
keep in mind that:
- Ice is food and must be treated as such
- The average back injury costs employers $10,000 in direct costs
- The most hated job in commercial kitchens is changing the oil
in fryers, followed closely by “doing the ice”
- Labor not used for “doing the ice” is available
for other tasks
Important pre-purchase considerations should include:
- The ease or difficulty of ice removal
- Features that provide safety, convenience, or time-savings
for staff
- An assessment of how far ice will need to be transported from
the bin and how that can be safely accomplished
- How difficult or easy it will be to clean the equipment
Sizing the storage equipment
Today’s sophisticated ice maker market offers more ice machines
and ice bins from which to choose than ever before. And the selection
of the right ice maker/ice storage equipment combination is critical
to the smooth running of the operation.
Pound for pound, ice production is two to three times more expensive
than ice storage. By using this knowledge and properly sizing the
total “system”, a facility’s ice needs will be
met at minimum cost and maximum equipment efficiency. Sizing the
system - letting the ice maker meet the average daily ice usage
and sizing the ice bin to meet peak demands for ice - is the best
way to achieve the right amount of ice at the lowest possible price.
In general, you will want to match the ice storage capacity to
the ice maker’s daily production only if the same amount of
ice is used every day of the week. This situation is rare. For most
operations there are days when a larger
amount of ice is required than the average daily production of the
ice maker. To optimize ice production capacity,
you will want to size the storage equipment to meet those
“peak” days.
Sizing a ice bin too small will mean that your ice maker will cycle
off quickly. You may purchase a 1200-lb ice maker but only get a
fraction of its capacity because it fills the bin too quickly, losing
valuable production time. In applications where more ice is needed
on certain days, for weekend traffic for example, you should size
the ice bin so that the ice maker can continue to produce ice and
the ice storage equipment can act as your “ice bank”
for the weekend peak need.
When coupled with the correct ice bin, this approach to sizing
- allowing the ice maker to run continuously to meet the average
daily demand and increasing the ice storage capacity to meet peak
demands - reduces equipment cost without compromising available
ice.
An interactive program is available to guide you through the proper
sizing of your ice maker and ice storage equipment. Click
here to go to that program.
Slope front
ice bins
Slope front bins get their name from their angled (sloped) front.
Generally available in storage capacities ranging from 200 lbs to
1000 lbs, and widths from 22" to 52", these bins are little
more than insulated boxes on which an ice maker is placed. Models
are available with plastic, aluminum, or stainless steel exteriors,
and either stainless or polyethylene liners. Poly liners are generally
preferred since they are easier to clean and do not stain or pit from exposure
to chlorine gasses escaping from the ice.
Click here
to see an example of a slope front ice bin line.
Most ice machine manufacturers offer a small selection of slope
front ice bins for use with their ice makers and several independent
manufacturers of ice storage equipment also offer a selection of
slope front models. In the past, many facilities selected slope
front bins for use with their ice machines because of their low
cost. However, today’s sanitation, safety and operational
concerns are resulting in many facilities switching from slope front
ice bins to more operationally-efficient, problem-solving equipment.
Slope front ice bins may remain an alternative for certain low-volume
applications.
Although slope front ice bins are
inexpensive, they have a number of drawbacks.
- Sanitation - In slope front ice bins, the last ice in is the
first ice out. This means that the ice most recently made is continually
removed from the top of the bin, leaving older ice accumulating
in the middle and the bottom of the ice bin. This older icewill freeze
together as clumps and absorb kitchen odors, even harbor mold and bacteria.
When the older ice is finally used, it can have unpleasant taste,
odor and appearance.
- Safety - The need for staff to repetitively bend over the slope
front ice bin sill and scoop ice from deep in the ice bin can
result in employee injuries from harvesting ice. Scooping into pails is a messy operation,
presenting spilled ice and a slippage hazard. Finally, employees
normally scoop the ice into buckets that can weigh 30 lbs or more
when filled. These buckets must then be carried to the point of
ice use. This presents another opportunity for employee injury.
Some of these safety issues can be addressed by using an ice transport
cart to move the ice from the slope front ice bin to the point
of use. Staff will still be required to scoop the ice from the
bin, but it can be put into three 25-lb ice totes that fit in
a castered cart for easy transport to the front of the house.
Click here
to see an example of this cart.
- Efficiency - With slope front bins, ice must be scooped from
the bin into containers, a time-consuming and inefficient method
for removing ice from an ice bin. For example, even using a 4 lb. scoop
requires 250 repititions to remove 1000 lbs of ice.
- Capacity - Because the access door is at the top of the ice
bin, staff must bend over the door sill to access the ice. This
limits the total bin height to about 50" (with a maximum
sill height of 35"), since anything taller would have a sill
height too high for proper access. This means that a 48"-wide
bin can only provide about 900 lbs of storage, an amount well
below the capacity needed in many of today’s operations.
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Upright
ice storage bins
Upright ice storage bins are insulated ice storage equipment with
an ice access door at the bottom of the bin rather than the top
as in slope front bins. Upright bins are available in a wide range
of sizes and storage capacities -from 500 lbs to more than 5000
lbs - and widths from 30" to 72" or more. Models are available
with aluminum or stainless steel exteriors, and
either stainless or polyethylene interior liners. Stainless exteriors
and plastic liners represent the highest quality equipment, since
the stainless exterior stands up well to abuse without rusting and
poly liners are easy to clean and do not rust or stain.
Click here
to see an example of an upright bin line.
Some ice machine manufacturers offer a few upright ice storage
bins but the majority of models are available from independent manufacturers
of ice storage equipment. These bins are compatible with all commercial
ice makers. As ice consumption has grown, facilities need the larger
amounts of storage available with these models. Sanitation and efficiency
concerns have also resulted in more facilities selecting an upright
bin rather than a slope front bin for use with their ice machines.
Advantages of upright ice storage bins:
- Sanitation - Because the door is at the bottom in upright bins,
the first ice in is the first ice used. This ensures a constant
turnover and aeration of ice. This means that there will be no
old ice sitting in the bottom of the bin developing an unpleasant
taste, odor and appearance.
- Efficiency - Ice can be shoveled or scooped from the bin into
containers. Shoveling is much faster than scooping, however there
may be situations where scooping is also performed and upright
bins allow that as well.
- Safety - Some upright bins are equipped with features that control
ice flow into the bottom ice access area and allow staff to break
ice bridges safely. Other safety features can include polyethylene
access doors that have no sharp corners and that stay open until
actively pulled closed. Click
here to see models with such features. Employees will still
be faced with moving the ice from the bin to the point of use
but this potential safety issue can be addressed by using an ice
transport cart with the bin. A number of carts are available to
meet the specific needs of the facility. Click
here to see examples of these types of carts.
- Capacity - Because the access door is at the bottom of the bin
there is no restriction on how tall the bin can be, other than
ceiling height. While a 48" wide slope front bin can only
store about 900 lbs of ice, a 48" upright can store more
than 1300 lbs.
Upright ice storage bins offer a number of important advantages
over slope front bins, however there remain some sanitation, safety
and operational concerns that are not solved by upright bins. Gravity-feed
ice storage and transport systems can address many of the remaining
issues.
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Gravity-feed
ice storage and transport systems
Gravity-feed ice storage and transport systems are elevated insulated
ice storage bins with a front or bottom chute that allows ice in
the bin to drop by gravity into an ice transport cart or other receptacle
when a gate is opened. Storage capacities generally range from 500
lbs to more than 4000 lbs and widths from 30" to 90".
Models are available with stainless steel exteriors and either stainless
or interior polyethylene liners. Stainless exteriors and poly liners
represent the highest quality equipment, since the stainless exterior
stands up well to abuse without rusting and poly liners are easy
to clean and do not rust or stain.
Click here
to see examples of models that will gravity-dispense either cube
or flake ice.
Click here
to see models that are compatible with cube ice only.
Gravity-feed ice storage and transport systems are produced by
independent manufacturers of ice storage equipment. Their models
are compatible with all commercial ice makers. As concerns about
safety, sanitation and operational efficiency have grown, more and
more facilities are selecting these types of problem-solving ice
storage systems for use with their ice machines.
Advantages of gravity-feed ice storage and
transport systems include:
- Sanitation - Gravity drops ice directly into dedicated ice carts
or ice totes when an ice gate is opened, eliminating the potential
contamination point of shoveling or scooping ice. Dedicated ice
carts and totes ensure that delivered ice is clean and sanitary.
And because ice is dispensed from the bottom of the bin, the first
ice in is the first ice used. This ensures a constant turnover
and aeration of ice. This means that there will be no old ice
sitting in the bottom of the bin developing an unpleasant taste,
odor and appearance.
- Efficiency - Gravity-feed dispensing of ice is more than seven
times faster than scooping ice from a bin. A facility using 1000
lbs a day, for example, will save 122 staff hours a year with
gravity-feed dispensing. Using an ice transport cart to move ice
100 feet will save another 95 hours a year for that same 1000
lbs of ice. The total annual labor savings using this type of
system, compared with scooping ice and carrying buckets, is more
than 217 hours, which frees uptime for other activites, like waiting
on customers.
- Safety - The elimination of scooping, shoveling and carrying
buckets of ice reduces the risk of employee back injuries, slips
and falls.
- Capacity - Storage capacities from 500 to 4600 lbs mean that
there is a size and capacity available for virtually any facility.
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Mechanical
dispensing bins
Mechanical dispensing bins are elevated, insulated ice storage bins
with internal agitators and drive augers that deliver ice to a front
chute. Storage capacities generally range from as little as 300
lbs to 5000 lbs or more. Widths range from 30" to more than
100". Models are available with stainless steel exteriors and
either stainless or polyethylene interior liners. Stainless exteriors
and poly liners represent the highest quality equipment since the
stainless exterior stands up well to abuse without rusting and poly
liners are easy to clean and do not rust or stain.
Mechanical dispensing bins are compatible with most commercial
cube and cubelet ices. Depending on the manufacturer and model,
features and options may include automatic agitation cycle to prevent
ice bridging inside bin, button and/or foot pedal actuation, coin
operation, and bagging accessories.
This type of equipment is produced by independent manufacturers
of ice storage equipment. Click
here to see an example of a mechanical dispensing bin.
Advantages of mechanical dispensing
bins:
- Sanitation - Ice drops directly into dedicated ice carts, ice
totes or bags with no handling of the ice. This eliminates the
potential contamination by shovels and scoops. And because ice
is dispensed from the bottom of the bin, the first ice in is the
first ice used. This ensures a constant turnover and aeration
of ice and means that there will be no old ice sitting in the
bottom of the bin developing an unpleasant taste, odor and appearance.
- Efficiency - Mechanical dispensing of ice is much faster than
scooping, shoveling, or gravity-feed. One model, for example,
dispenses at 120 lbs of ice a minute into bags, carts, ice totes,
or coolers. Mechanical dispensing also makes sense for supermarkets
and c-stores with in-store production of packaged ice. With one
model, for example, employees can easily produce eight to ten
bags of ice a minute.
- Safety - The elimination of scooping, shoveling and carrying
buckets of ice reduces the risk of employee back injuries and
slippage.
- Capacity - Storage capacities from 150 lbs to 5000 lbs mean
that these systems are available for virtually any facility regardless
of the volume of ice storage required.
- Profitability - Mechanical dispensing of ice allows in-store
bagging of packaged ice. This can make bagged ice up to 75% more
profitable than buying ice for packaged ice sales.
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