By Lee Davis, CFSP

 

Does your current ice machine have a really slow harvest cycle? Or perhaps you feel it should be producing more ice per day, especially during warmer months? The problem may not be your ice machine. It may be the temperature of the water coming into your facility. The temperature of tap water can vary dramatically from one location to next, and from one season to another. Warmer tap water takes longer to freeze than cooler tap water, and that may be what is slowing down your ice machine.

 

Elkay Foodservice Products has been a leading manufacturer of water coolers and drinking fountains for over 50 years. Using their cooler experience, Elkay has developed the ER191 Pre-Chiller, a great product for the foodservice industry. Water used for ice production first passes through the ER191 where it is cooled and held in a storage tank. Your ice machine is able to operate at peak manufacturers’ capacity because the water entering the machine is already pre-chilled. The machine doesn’t need to work as hard, or as long, to bring the source water down to 32 degrees.

 

The ER191’s produces 19 gallons of chilled water per hour. With a four gallon storage tank, it is sufficient to support large batch-process ice machines, and additional capacity can be used to support drinking water stations, carbonated drink machines or juice systems. The Elkay 191 is an economical way to boost daily ice production and shorten harvest cycles, without investing in another ice machine.

 

Under typical test conditions, Elkay has seen up to a 20% increase in ice production for a 48“ ice machine. The ER191 may also extend the life of your ice machine by easing the daily load on your machine’s built-in cooling system. The ER191 is manufactured in the U.S. is only 23” wide, 30” high, and 10.25” deep.

 

For more information, please visit www.elkay.com/er191