# Ice Ice Baby, Or Do You Regularly Use Ice in Your Home? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 13, 2015, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-ice-baby-or-do-you-regularly-use-ice-in-your-home/719969 "2015-05-13T20:45:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-ice-baby-or-do-you-regularly-use-ice-in-your-home/719969/61 "2015-05-14T18:41:41Z")
I’m way late to the game on this, but I’ll share my personal habits. For me, there are two temperature ranges for liquids that I drink: 30-40 F and 100-120 F. I put ice in everything that’s meant to be cold. In fact, if I just want a little glass of water to take some pills with, I get the water out of the refrigerator and _still_ I throw in an ice cube. My wife adds an ice cube when she takes Alka-Seltzer so you can see that we’re in the same boat on this. I don’t add ice to things like juice or beer, but I do want those things as cold as the refrigerator can get them. I keep a beer mug in the freezer to help this out. When I do root beer floats, I’ll often put the root beer in the freezer so that it turns into root beer slush as I pour it over the ice cream. I’m still itching to try out dry ice in my scotch ever since someone on this board mentioned it, but I haven’t got around to that yet. As another data point on hot things: I’ll sometimes finish a bowl of soup before the people around me consider it cool enough to start eating. I really do want my cold things _cold_ and my hot things _hot_. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-ice-baby-or-do-you-regularly-use-ice-in-your-home/719969/62 "2015-05-14T18:56:12Z")
> [@Missy2U](#): > > We have an ice maker in our freezer. I never had one before, and boy do I LOVE it. > > I’m big on ice. When I go to a restaurant, any drink I order I ask for heavy ice. Drive through fast food - heavy ice (and I’ll park and go inside if they screw it up - this is why I tend not to utilize a drive through. I’m too picky and the staff at the restaurant shouldn’t have to treat me like I special snowflake.) Bar - heavy ice - if it’s a cocktail. - beer and wine are no ice deals. > > At home, I fill up whatever glass I’m using with ice cubes until it’s packed. > I’ve been known to bring a packed glass of ice only with me upstairs/outside/on a drive to just chomp on throughout the day depending on what I’m doing. Yep, same here. My way of cutting back on the amount of diet soda i drink is to add extra ice. ---
**Author:** ![Hopeful\_Crow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/da6949/32.png) [@Hopeful\_Crow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hopeful_Crow)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-ice-baby-or-do-you-regularly-use-ice-in-your-home/719969/63 "2015-05-14T19:02:19Z")
> [@FairyChatMom](#): > > I’m not sure I understand the comments about ice from ice makers being unsanitary - and I’m not being snarky here. The ice making part in our freezer is pretty much self-contained, and the crescents are dispensed thru the door. I’ve never noticed an odor or particulate matter in the ice, and believe me, I generally notice that sort of thing. > > Do I have an exceptional ice maker, or am I that oblivious?? > > Not that I’ll quit using it. I’m pretty sure my husband would leave me if I removed the ice supply. 😉 I would think in the normal course of things, ice makers are pretty sanitary (at least the enclosed parts) but let me relate to you a little story: Back when my sister was married, I was sitting at her kitchen table when her 3-year-old stepson came in from playing outside and immediately stuck his hand up inside the ice chute in the refrigerator door. No telling where his hand had been or if he’d done this on other occasions, so…um…:eek:. Well, a little :eek:. I wasn’t too worried about it. And one died or anything. But I’ve never been able to look at those kinds of ice makers the same way since. ---
**Author:** ![AllShookDown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d9b06d/32.png) [@AllShookDown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AllShookDown)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-ice-baby-or-do-you-regularly-use-ice-in-your-home/719969/64 "2015-05-14T19:15:43Z")
No ice maker on fridge but I make giant cubes for my Manhattans and for ice water and I have trays that make tiny cubes for margaritas (or any other cocktail that will be shaken and strained.) I have trays for normal cubes but haven’t used them in ages. ---
**Author:** ![missred](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/missred/32/14096_2.png) [@missred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missred)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-ice-baby-or-do-you-regularly-use-ice-in-your-home/719969/65 "2015-05-14T19:57:16Z")
American here who doesn’t use much ice at home. I buy a bag if I’m planning to entertain. After the gathering, I put what is left in freezer containers for the one off guest who does like ice or gin & tonics in the summer. At restraunts and bars, it’s OK. ---
**Author:** ![Arrendajo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Arrendajo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arrendajo)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-ice-baby-or-do-you-regularly-use-ice-in-your-home/719969/66 "2015-05-14T20:14:33Z")
My refrigerator has an ice maker but after my neighbor’s feed line for his ice maker ruptured **twice** and flooded parts of his house, requiring major repairs, I decided I didn’t need ice that badly. I don’t use ice a lot at home because I usually drink wine or beer, but if I have a soda or water with my meal, I want ice in it. I buy it by the bag from the grocery store and dump it in the ice bin in the freezer. A bag lasts me many months. Sometimes I lose more ice to sublimation than consumption. It’s so cheap I don’t care. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-ice-baby-or-do-you-regularly-use-ice-in-your-home/719969/67 "2015-05-14T20:18:10Z")
Most days when I get a glass of something to drink with dinner. My wife rarely if ever uses ice. No icemaker, just trays. ---
**Author:** ![overlyverbose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/9dc877/32.png) [@overlyverbose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/overlyverbose)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2015, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-ice-baby-or-do-you-regularly-use-ice-in-your-home/719969/68 "2015-05-15T16:34:58Z")
We live in the U.S. and very rarely use ice. Sometimes I do if I make soda (love my soda stream) or I’ll toss some in my kids’ drinks if they ask for it, but other occasionally using it to chill water infused with herbs - basil water is AWESOME - I don’t generally. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2015, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-ice-baby-or-do-you-regularly-use-ice-in-your-home/719969/69 "2015-05-15T16:39:07Z")
I never use it. Sometimes my wife makes some for her own purposes but I never touch it at home. If I’m filling a drink at a self-serve place I won’t put any in but I don’t bother requesting “no ice” from a server. I’m not against it and it’s not a “I’ll get more drink in my cup” thing, I just figure that the soda, iced tea or lemonade is already cold when dispensed. > [@Arrendajo](#): > > My refrigerator has an ice maker but after my neighbor’s feed line for his ice maker ruptured **twice** and flooded parts of his house, requiring major repairs My sister had the same thing happen and, in fact, most times when I see an ice maker in a fridge door I’m warned away from it due to technical issues (not that I wanted the ice anyway, see above). When we bought a new fridge a few years ago, it was a little bit of a chore to find one without an ice/water dispenser but we weren’t planning on hooking one up and didn’t want to waste the freezer space with its mechanics. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2015, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-ice-baby-or-do-you-regularly-use-ice-in-your-home/719969/70 "2015-05-15T16:45:46Z")
> [@FairyChatMom](#): > > I’m not sure I understand the comments about ice from ice makers being unsanitary - and I’m not being snarky here. The ice making part in our freezer is pretty much self-contained, and the crescents are dispensed thru the door. I’ve never noticed an odor or particulate matter in the ice, and believe me, I generally notice that sort of thing. > > Do I have an exceptional ice maker, or am I that oblivious?? > > Not that I’ll quit using it. I’m pretty sure my husband would leave me if I removed the ice supply. 😉 My ice maker makes ice and dumps it into a tub in the freezer (the same way you’d do if you made your own ice). I then can put my grubby hands in there and fish for a piece of ice. Then it makes more ice and puts it on top of the old grubbed-up ice, and the old ice sits there being festering and grubby for gosh knows how long. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2015, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-ice-baby-or-do-you-regularly-use-ice-in-your-home/719969/71 "2015-05-15T16:51:31Z")
> [@even\_sven](#): > > American, generally not big on ice and don’t make it for myself at home. With rare exceptions, I prefer my drinks to me more towards room temperature. That’s pretty much me as well. I keep ice for making the occasional cocktail ( _very_ occasional these days ), but otherwise I as often as not don’t even bother to refrigerate things like diet soda. ---
**Author:** ![OneCentStamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/13edae/32.png) [@OneCentStamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OneCentStamp)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2015, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-ice-baby-or-do-you-regularly-use-ice-in-your-home/719969/72 "2015-05-15T16:53:51Z")
All the time, for water, tea, lemonade, or all manner of cocktails. I have special silicone ice trays that offer advantages: - Dishwasher safe, so they stay nice and sanitary and non-funky - Big ice cubes (in the shapes of brains and TARDISes and golf ball-size spheres) that keep my drinks cold but melt slowly ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2015, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-ice-baby-or-do-you-regularly-use-ice-in-your-home/719969/73 "2015-05-15T16:58:07Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > Beer & wine need no ice. . A sangria with ice and citrus is very refreshing. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2015, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-ice-baby-or-do-you-regularly-use-ice-in-your-home/719969/74 "2015-05-15T17:27:07Z")
American. I don’t like having fewer than 5 ice trays in the freezer because otherwise you end up with two that are sitting dead empty over by the kitchen sink and two in the freezer that just have a thin skin of ice as of yet. Wtih 5 or more, you don’t tend to run out. Of course a built-in icemaker where you just shove the drink glass against the front of the refrigerator and it plops out ice cubes on demand, and makes them in perpetuity behind the scenes without you having to refill ice trays, is better. Ice goes in ice water, seltzer water, dark and stormies, mint juleps, jack daniels & water, iced tea of course, iced coffee, various sodas especially if the cans aren’t already cold; you pulverize a whole tray of them to make frozen margaritas, sno-cones in the summertime, and (fittingly) americanos. And on a hot day you grab one or two cubes as you pass by the fridge just to suck on. While we’re at it, the proper way to ice a glass, for those of you who might be hosting an american guest and the guest asks for their beverage to be over ice: You add ice cubes to the glassware in question until you get to the point that no more will fit in the glass. Only then do you pour water or other beverage over the ice. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2015, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-ice-baby-or-do-you-regularly-use-ice-in-your-home/719969/75 "2015-05-16T20:27:45Z")
I personally don’t, but that’s because I find that the benefits of ice are outweighed by the drawbacks. Ice keeps things cold by absorbing their heat, making the ice melt. The melted ice then dilutes whatever it is I’m drinking, making it not worth drinking. Just keeping the fridge cold and only getting out drinkable portions as a time works a lot better for me. If I’m where I can’t be near a fridge, I’d generally rather have a hotter drink–or I’ll just drink water, which can have as much ice in as I want. I’ve tried various non-ice chilling solutions, but none have really worked out. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2015, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-ice-baby-or-do-you-regularly-use-ice-in-your-home/719969/76 "2015-05-17T00:56:33Z")
I do not use ice myself – I feel like it interferes with drinking my beverage! I just make some if people are coming over. To chill injuries or for in coolers, I have ice packs in the freezer standing by. ---
**Author:** ![Bad\_News\_Baboon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/5fc32e/32.png) [@Bad\_News\_Baboon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bad_News_Baboon)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2015, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-ice-baby-or-do-you-regularly-use-ice-in-your-home/719969/77 "2015-05-17T05:40:46Z")
My refrigerator came with an ice machine but I never use it. Why? Because I have a separate ice machine. My first house came with one and I was hooked. I rarely drink anything other than water, and iced is the best. Freezer ice (the kind coming from the refrigerator) can taste and smell awful. Newer freezers are better at sealing off the ice from that nasty smell/taste. Where I can guarantee you that your ice machines are gross are in the parts you can’t see or access easily in a refrigerator machine. I clean mine out often and the places that are the worst are the tubing and the tray where the water sits before it is siphoned into the freezing trays. ---
**Author:** ![Flughund4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f17d59/32.png) [@Flughund4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flughund4)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2015, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-ice-baby-or-do-you-regularly-use-ice-in-your-home/719969/78 "2015-05-19T06:10:31Z")
I don’t use ice at home. I just put a cozy (koozie?) around my drink as soon as I take it out of the fridge and it stays cold enough while it’s consumed. If I ever buy pop at restaurants, I keep the ice to a minimum. That way I usually get more, and it doesn’t get too watered down as the ice melts. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2015, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-ice-baby-or-do-you-regularly-use-ice-in-your-home/719969/79 "2015-05-19T15:46:55Z")
American, I never use it at home. I have an icemaker but I have it turned off because my ice always evaporated before it got used. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2015, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-ice-baby-or-do-you-regularly-use-ice-in-your-home/719969/80 "2015-05-21T01:22:55Z")
> [@Flughund4](#): > > I don’t use ice at home. I just put a cozy (koozie?) around my drink as soon as I take it out of the fridge and it stays cold enough while it’s consumed. If I ever buy pop at restaurants, I keep the ice to a minimum. That way I usually get more, and it doesn’t get too watered down as the ice melts. In bars in Thailand, cozies are commonly used, and the slang for them is “condom.” Really. So if your waitress asks if you want a condom, don’t freak. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-ice-baby-or-do-you-regularly-use-ice-in-your-home/719969.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice-ice-baby-or-do-you-regularly-use-ice-in-your-home/719969.md?page=5)