Buying Ice | Making your own Ice | Ice Variance Sheet | Equipment Pricing

PURCHASING, SPLITTING & DIMENSIONS
Ice is purchased from an ice house or delivered to retail outlets by an ice broker. The ice is manufactured into 300 lb. blocks measuring 42" x 11" x 22". The 300 lb. blocks are split with an ice pick into three 100 lb. blocks then six 50 lb. blocks and each 50 lb. block into four 12½ lb. blocks that measure approximately 14" x 5½" x 5½". The splitting of the ice into 12½ lb. blocks is usually a free service of the ice house or ice broker. There is also a SNO-BLOCK machine that produces 12½ lb. blocks of ice especially for the snow machine. Ask us for details.

WHITE ICE vs CLEAR ICE (Applies to 300 pound blocks only)
White ice and clear ice are two grades of block ice sold by ice houses. White ice has a frosted white color throughout and is used for its cooling qualities only. Clear ice is used by the beverage and shaved ice industry. White ice will produce snow when shaved by the snow machine; however, the syrup will produce slush on contact causing the snow top to slide off. Always ask for clear ice or beverage quality ice. Ice made from SNO-BLOCK machines or 12 pound molds has a frosted color however it does not have any of the negative qualities of the 300 pound white ice sold by ice houses.

To learn why it makes sense making your own ice, click here. To learn more about how ice quality affects your equipment and making snowballs, click here .