Clear Ice Cubes
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I have heard the same. It never made sense to me. But I never tried to prove or disprove it.
I got a clear ice cube doodad today and will be playing around with it in the work fridge. I'll post the results, as work and the holidays permit. Since it's mid-December and I'm running all over the place for work, have some patience.
First attempt is with tap water. I'll play around with filtered water, bottled water, etc.
This is what I got off Amazon to play with. It makes 10 spheres at a time, 1.7 inches in diameter:
First attempt is with tap water. I'll play around with filtered water, bottled water, etc.
This is what I got off Amazon to play with. It makes 10 spheres at a time, 1.7 inches in diameter:
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Test was a failure. Purified water on the left, distilled on the right. Both had a small cloudy center but the odd part was the large bubbles inside the blocks. Both jars remained in tact and were still under vacuum when removed from the insulated lunch box.
Interesting, I’d love to get a needle in there and determine what’s in the bubbles. As it cools the water shrinks, so increases the vac and maybe creates bubbles? Just a guess. exactly the opposite of what I predicted.
I have found that if I just drink high proof bourbon I don’t really care where the ice comes from. The yellow snow ice even works. Just roll with it.
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Yea, I have no idea. Obviously not a low micron level vacuum inside the jars, likely closer to what you wind up with when water bath canning.
The biggest difference between the two, the bubbles in the purified jar were in more of a star burst pattern, elongated, directed out from the center in all directions. The bubbles in the distilled water were in a more random pattern, scattered throughout, and seemed to be round rather than elongated.
I've always been under the assumption that water itself expands when freezing. The air in the jar would cool and contract, possibly leading to an increased vacuum prior to the water freezing. If that happened, maybe there were bubbles that were formed in the water just prior to or as the water was freezing. Doesn't explain the starburst looking pattern though.
I might have to do this again for kicks and change a couple things.
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Try stroking the cylinders of ice. Post the video.
It warms my heart to know your thinking of me doing just that.
It’s complicated, but water contracts as it cools until a few degrees before it freezes then it starts to expand.
Ok, well if that's happening, the water contracting and the air contracting would even further increase vacuum until the freezing point. Wonder if that would be enough to cause a boil at or just a tick above freezing temps. hum.....
We used t get "bubbles" in clear polycarbonate parts that were actually shrink voids, instead of bubbles. The material would shrink while cooling and pull the voids in the material. Might be something similar happening.
Kinda wondered if micro bubbles could cause that.
Admittedly skipping over much of this thread…. But….
wife had a counter top nugget ice machine that shit the bed the other day and started leaking. Looks like the things have gotten cheaper. I saw one that advertised clear cubes for ~$300. Interested….
wife had a counter top nugget ice machine that shit the bed the other day and started leaking. Looks like the things have gotten cheaper. I saw one that advertised clear cubes for ~$300. Interested….
had one leak all over the counter when it badly needed a cleaning and descaling. Forget the brand, GE has since bought the company.
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That was nickname in high school.
It's about the same size as a typical ice cube tray, but is about 5 1/2" taller. The Amazon details says 11.57" X 5.9" X 5.3". I haven't measured it, but that sounds about right.
So about the footprint of an ice cube tray, only taller.
It's in the refrigerator freezer at the shipyard where I work, filled with tap water. But I'm currently at the naval base this week. I'm planning on swinging by after work today to grab something else I need and if I remember, I'll take a look and see how things work. I'll post pics.
I just peeked at them. They're rough on the outside, but they don't look cloudy. I'll report back on the effects of rum later tonight.
Didn't get back to this thread until after I checked the work freezer and discovered the cube tray was missing! @Gowalready absconded with it to give it a test!
😆
Which is fine, because he has some ready stock of rum to test it out on. He's promised to take pictures, but apparently the aerated tap water from work came out decent. He'll knew more after pouring some deliciousness over one or two to check their clarity.
Next up will be bottled DI water and filtered fountain water.
😆
Which is fine, because he has some ready stock of rum to test it out on. He's promised to take pictures, but apparently the aerated tap water from work came out decent. He'll knew more after pouring some deliciousness over one or two to check their clarity.
Next up will be bottled DI water and filtered fountain water.
Overall, with nothing but tap water, these came out great. They aren't perfect, and initially they're just a little rough on the outside. And they look like boobs.
I put one in a glass of water and it cracked. Made it look cloudy but it wasn't really. Guess you'll need to watch for that.
After they sit for a few minutes one half becomes cloudy.
That's progress. The cloudy portion would appear to be the bottom portion of the spheres in the mold.
I'm wondering if that might be reduced if the tap water didn't come out of an aerator on the faucet. Something to try later.
But anything that looks like boobs is already lookign like a good start!
I'm wondering if that might be reduced if the tap water didn't come out of an aerator on the faucet. Something to try later.
But anything that looks like boobs is already lookign like a good start!
Scotsman Gourmet under the counter ice maker. Buy once, cry once. Do buy the warrantee.
This one has lasted over 10 years if you clean it a couple times a year.
This one has lasted over 10 years if you clean it a couple times a year.
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Got back to the office this afternoon after work at the base. Checked the cubes.
I THINK @GoWolfpack used DI water when he refilled.
The cubes came out nearly crystal clear, with just the faintest hint of air in the very bottom.
Top and bottom view:
I THINK @GoWolfpack used DI water when he refilled.
The cubes came out nearly crystal clear, with just the faintest hint of air in the very bottom.
Top and bottom view:
I kept forgetting to update this thread. I used the hottest hot water from the tap to fill the bottom and distilled water for the tray.
One of the sinks in the first floor bathroom is missing the aerator.
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After staying in a hotel that used laminar instead or an aerator I’m thinking about switching my house out to them.
They remove all the air instead of adding it.
They remove all the air instead of adding it.
I've got aerator removal gizmos somewhere which we can use if need be. But I think the break room sink just requires pliers (and some rubber to keep from marring up the aerator). I'll look into this, probably after the New Year.
Good laminar flow faucets are nice. They also provide a lot of the same benefits as aerated faucets, such as minimize splashing, maintaining high backpressure, and water conservation. And they're quiet!
There MAY be some taste difference though, because believe it or not aerated water can affect flavor and odor.
I don't usually care either way. The only time I really care is when the water flow is ridiculously low. While it's not usually an issue for a bathroom sink, I HATE that in a kitchen sink. I don't need low flow, water conservation cr*p in the kitchen sink where I'm doing things like filling pots and pans with water for cooking. One of the first apartments my wife and I lived in changed out the aerators for "water conservation" aerators which made the kitchen sink flow insanely slow. I swapped it out for a cheap Lowes aerator and tossed theirs under the sink to be reinstalled when we left.
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Jesus. You’d need a small chest freezer just to house one of those things. lol
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