Frigidaire EFIC189 Ice Maker

 Muy buen producto hasta hoy, espero siga, lo recomiendo si tienes un Congelador ausiliario para Guardar los gelitos bonitos catasta pequena però muy util

Eficiente, buena máquina para tener hielos para reuniones, aproximadamente 10 hielos por cada 3 minutos..

This small yet powerful little ice maker is fast. Yes, you have to add water (it is portable and can sit on any countertop or tabletop). I use filtered water from my tap, I like the taste of that water and it is in the taste is in my ice cubes when I scoop them out. It does make some noise, there is a fan and a refrigerant compressor, but it is not so loud as to be annoying (for me). If you are looking for a reasonably small, not too heavy to carry ice maker you can set almost anywhere that there is a three-prong outlet (a three prong UL approved extension cord would also work if you needed it), then this is a good one I recommend.

Here are a couple of things on the downside: The bin is not refrigerated, so the ice can melt over time at exposure to room temperature (mine turned into a blob that I could break up). Nice thing is, if the ice does melt, the water goes right down into the water storage area. Be careful if you move it (carry it), when the low water light comes on there is still water in the bottom of the unit. It comes with a drain on the underside of the unit if you want to let out all the water, just make sure you place the cap back on securely.

The instructions are very straightforward and easy to read, setup is fast. I am surprised at how quickly you can get a reasonable amount of ice on the “Large” setting (give it about an hour). You will not be disappointed.

I got tired of doing the whole ice cube tray juggling routine and our kitchen situation precludes us from hooking up a water line to have the fridge make ice. I started looking around for alternatives and this is what I settled on.

Initial impression out of the box is that this thing is huge for an appliance. It takes up about as much counter space as my stand mixer or air fryer. Also, you’ll want to position it near to a sink, both for a water source and for a way to drain it once you’re done making ice. This isn’t really negotiable because I guarantee that if you have to move it around, you won’t bother using it.

Operation is dead simple, you fill the reservoir, pick which of the two sizes of pellets you would like, and in a few minutes it’ll start dumping out ice. Water is held in the main compartment, finished ice sits in a tray just above the water reservoir.

It makes two sizes of ice pellets, as mentioned. I can’t really tell you the material difference between the two, they look pretty similar. The small is not small enough to fit any of my bottled water, but it does just fit a few of my reusable bottles. I still usually go with the larger pellets because they last longer in drinks.

Performance wise, it spits out a modest cup of ice every handful of minutes – maybe every 5-7 minutes or so. It’ll fill up the tray after about 4-5 cycles and pause until you empty it. The ice it puts out is “wet” because the interior of the machine itself is not refrigerated, although the machine itself has some cooler-like insulated walls. Basically: the moment your ice is made, it begins melting. You’ll want to either us it ASAP or transfer it to the freezer.

The main consequence of all of this is that if you have it produce a bunch of ice, and then store those cubes in a bag or bin in the freezer, they will all fuse together. Same song and dance as buying a bag from the store, you just gotta shake it and break it up. A secondary thing to mention here is that you could technically just leave the machine running all day if you wanted and any ice that melts will just recirculate into the machine and get turned back into ice as it melts in the tray.

A full reservoir of water will generate enough ice to fill up two gallon freezer bags, no problem. At one time, though, it will only put about 4-5 cycles of ice in the tray – the machine will stop producing ice if the tray is full. You could feasibly leave this running if you had, say, guests over for a party or whatever and it’ll keep up with normal demand.

One minor nitpick on this front, though, is that the machine isn’t capable of using *all* of the water in the reservoir. With about an inch or so left, it’ll refuse to produce more. The issue with this is that when the machine isn’t in use, you REALLY don’t want to have it be damp or wet inside at all. It’s imperative that you remove ALL of the excess water when it’s not in use to prevent mildew. The way you achieve this is there is a small, awkward, non-ergonomic plug on the bottom of the machine that allows you to drain it. Unfortunately, as mentioned, it’s fiddly, frustrating, and comes apart pretty easily. It’s a plastic piece with a rubber stopper fitted around it and it comes apart super easily, leaving you trying to pry out the rubber stopper unassisted. It’s annoying and I hate dealing with it. You also have to physically tilt the entire machine around to get all of the water out. Make sure you put it near a sink.

Other than that, there isn’t really anything else to mention. Noise level is minimal – sounds like a mini-fridge or something similar, occasionally you hear the rattle of ice dumping out. Nothing noteworthy to me.

When it comes down to it, I’ve traded one annoying chore (juggling ice cube trays) for another (making ice, moving it to the freezer, draining the machine). Is it an improvement? I think so – I just make a bunch of it all at once and then I don’t have to do it again for a few weeks. No more ice cube trays with three cubes in them, no more dripping water all over the floor, etc.

Was it necessary at all? No.