Water-Cooled Ice Machines

In some places around the world, water cooled ice machines are more than norm than the exception. They can be advertised as more energy efficient that air cooled models and are also known to produce less heat than ice machines cooled by air. This can make water cooled ice machines the preferred choice for people who want to keep their restaurant or commercial kitchen as cool as possible in the summer months. Water cooled ice machines also have some drawbacks. Read on to find out the truth about water cooling in the commercial kitchen.
Water Cooling and the Environment

There are two types of water cooling. One of them, known as single use water cooling, is terrible for the environment. The reason is because it wastes so much water. Instead of recycling the water it uses to cool the unit, it flushes it out and replaces it. For this reason water cooled ice machines cannot gain the Energy Star rating.
In several places in North America single use water cooled ice machines are even being banned. The reason is because many of these areas are hot in the summer and suffer from water shortages. A few places, however, like Seattle and Denver have banned single use water cooled ice machines simply because of their negative impact on the environment.
Closed-Loop Water Cooling
There is another type of water cooled ice machines that use a closed-loop system and recycle the water they use. They are better for the environment by a margin and do have the advantage of running much cooler than an air cooled model, but many manufacturers have been phasing them out. Many cities have begun offering discounts to owners who use air cooling instead which gives them a distinct advantage over any water cooling system.
Innovations in Air Cooling
It’s clear that the commercial ice machine industry is moving towards air cooling. One of the other reasons for this is that remote condensing is not difficult to do.  Instead of having the air cooling system or condenser on the side or on top of your ice machine, vent lines are run into the machine and that box is placed on the outside of the building. By doing this to keep all the advantages of having an air cooled ice machine and remove any of the potential disadvantages. The biggest drawback is the higher initial cost of having a remote condenser installed.
Deciding on an Air Cooled or Water Cooled Ice Machine
If at all possible, I recommend buying an air cooled ice machine. Ice machines cooled with water just don’t have thesustainability I want in my commercial kitchen appliances. Of course, that’s just my opinion. Now that you have the facts about water cooling, this decision is yours to make.