How To Perform Ice Production Check January 19 2015, 2 Comments

It can be confusing knowing if your ice machine is producing as much ice as it should or if your machine is having problems.  For example, a Manitowoc IY0454A will only produce up to 450 lb of ice per day, under ideal conditions.  Rarely are our ice machines placed in ideal conditions, typically they are in a hot kitchen or have warm water fed to them.  This article will show you how you can perform an ice production check and see how much ice it’s actually producing.

Step 1 - Determine ambient air temperatures.

To do this, take a thermometer and find the air temperature around the ice machine.  Next, take a reading of the air temperature as it enters the condenser.  This will only apply to air-cooled machines and the temperature should be taken right at the condenser fins or air filter.

Step 2 - Find 24-Hour production chart in your service technicians hand book.

This book can be downloaded for free directly from Manitowoc’s website, for your specific model number.

Manitowoc S Series Ice Machine Safety Timers January 15 2015, 4 Comments

Manitowoc S Series ice machines are considered the best commercial ice machines produced.  They had just the right mix of new technology and old technology that made a reliable, long lasting piece of equipment.  The longevity of the S Series, like model SY0454A, SD0302A, SY0304A, and SY0604A, is due to the control boards ability to protect expensive components with safety timers.

Safety timers are used to shut off the ice machine, in case an ice making cycle is out of spec.  This provides protection to a compressor, that may be short cycling, or loss of water through inlet valves.  Below are the 3 main safety timers, which are indicated by flashing safety limit lights on the control board.

How To Clean A Koolaire Ice Machine January 09 2015, 0 Comments

Keeping your Koolaire ice machine clean is the number one way to reduce ownership cost.  The purpose of cleaning is to remove lime scale and mineral deposits.  Most ice machine problems stem from components having scale build up or the evaporator being too dirty to harvest properly.  Keep your ice machine investment running efficiently, by following these Koolaire cleaning steps.

Depending on the severity of scale, cleaning may be required more frequently than the recommended once per 6 months.  In addition, cleaning times may vary depending on water quality or dirtiness of ice machine components.

Ice machine cleaner is not the same as ice machine sanitizer.  Sanitation may be required if you need to disinfect and remove algea or slime.

Ice Thickness Float Switch Adjustment on Koolaire August 13 2014, 2 Comments

Ice machines require the proper ice thickness or bridge thickness, to properly harvest.  Setting this thickness allows for faster harvest cycles, depending on condition and customer preference on cube size.  Manitowoc and Koolaire recommend a 1/8" thick bridge on all of their cuber ice machines.  Adjusting a Koolaire ice thickness is unique, because harvest is triggered by a float switch and not an ice thickness probe.

To adjust the float switch, you will need a 3/4" wrench.  Use the wrench on the float switch located on the left, as you are facing the front of the machine, to loosen or tighten the nut located right above the white plastic float.  Turn the float switch clockwise to increase thickness and counterclockwise to decrease.

How To Diagnose A Manitowoc Ice Machine August 07 2014, 5 Comments

Commercial ice machines can be intimidating, even to experienced service technicians. They can also take a long time to properly diagnose and isolate the problematic ice machine part. I'll cover some basic techniques you can use to troubleshoot your Manitowoc ice machine, before calling out an expensive service tech.

The first step is to understand how a Manitowoc ice maker works. Experts in commercial refrigeration and ice making equipment recommend following a sequence of events. This sequence of events is a layout of exactly what the ice machine should be doing at an exact time in a cycle. For example, newer modular Manitowoc ice machines will purge the water from the trough before beginning a freeze cycle. This should tell you exactly when the dump valve should be energized. Service literature is available for free from the Manitowoc Ice website, where you can find specific service help for your model ice maker.