Winterize Your Ice Machine Now So It’s Ready to Produce Next Summer

3 Min Read By John Mahlmeister

Because large equipment such as ice machines are designed to be in regular use, seasonal business owners and managers need to know how to winterize ice machines for the off-season.

Why Winterizing Is CriticalLike a boat, an ice machine can be winterized. Prior to outlining the steps to winterizing an ice machine, it's important use proper winterizing techniques to avoid damaging the ice machine.

When water freezes at or below 32 degrees, it expands. When the water’s vessel, such as a water reservoir or water line, is made of plastic that cannot expand along with the ice, it will crack or break.  If the ambient temperature drops below 32 degrees, any water left in the machine poses a threat to the ice maker. All components of an ice machine that come into contact with water, therefore, must be completely blown out and dried ahead of the winter temperature change. Such components include:

Water inlet valves

Float switches

Evaporator plates

Water pumps

Water…