Pricing and Costs of Commercial Ice Machines

Compare commercial ice machines' size and cost to select one for your business

Commercial ice makers come in a large range of types and sizes. From the smaller capacity flaked ice machines for your drink counter to the large industrial ice making machines capable of producing tons of bagged ice chunks or blocks per day, you should consider the type and amount of ice you need when considering how much you need to spend when buying or leasing an ice maker.

The size, pricing and costs of commercial ice machines varies widely based on your need, the amount of space you have to accommodate it and the amount of money you can spend. Before investing in commercial ice makers for your business, you’ll need to consider the following:

1. Determine the type of ice – chunk, flaked, pellet and such – you want to serve your customers for drink consumption so you can decide which commercial ice machine makers to consider.

2. Consider the amount of ice you need to produce each day to determine the type of ice making machines that could best keep up with consumer demand while still keeping in your budget.

3. Look for used commercial ice machines to save money on costs.

 

Choose the type of ice you want to serve your customers with your ice machines

You'll find commercial ice machines for sale that produce any type of ice you think your customers will prefer. Decide if you'd like to serve cubes or chunks or the more easily consumed flaked, pellet or crushed ice.
Try: Commercial Refrigeration Service offers a wide range of commercial ice making machines with prices varying based on both type and production amount, from the smaller self-contained cube units starting around $1,300 to the largest modular chewable (flake, pellet or crushed) ice unit that runs as high as $6,000. They also offer lease-purchase agreements. Consolidated Foodservice provides undercounter cubers starting around $1,200, low profile cube flakers from $1,500 to $3,800 and the large capacity remote cuber ice machines running from $2,400 to $8,400.

Consider how much ice you need to produce each day with your ice machines

Your ice needs could range from supplying ice for customer drinks, icing down meat and seafood in a market or providing bagged ice on a large scale. The amount of ice you need each day and the space you have to produce and store the ice will determine what you'll have to spend to meet your needs.
Try: Katom Restaurant Supply sells undercounter machines, ice machine heads and head/dispenser combination machines, depending on the space you need for producing and storing ice. Their machines start around $1,700 for about 300 pounds of ice a day to around $8,700 for production of about 2,250 pounds a day. If needing ice in mass amounts, Automatic Ice offers machines producing from three to 100 tons of ice a day as well as packaging and storage equipment you’d need for a large-scale ice production business.

Price used ice machines to help save money when needing to buy ice makers or supplementary equipment

Whether you need a small ice machine for your diner or a machine that produces tons of ice a day to supplying bagged ice for resale, you can find used ice machines for sale that meet your needs.
Try: ACityDiscount.com offers a wide range of used ice makers for less than $1,000 as well as equipment such as bins and merchandisers for less than $200. Modern Ice sells used ice machines and other equipment for large-scale production, with used equipment from bag closers (around $800) to a used Keith Walking Floor model for around $50,000.

 

• Consider maintenance costs in your budget when buying ice machines, such as water purification filters, sanitizing and parts.

Copyright © 2011 Business.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

---