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My GE side by side frost free fridge freezer has no ice dispenser so I manually make ice in plastic ice cube trays prior to use in my favourite cocktail.
I then transfer the ice into a plastic container.
The ice however has shattered prior to this transfer leaving me with a slushi.
A “friend” has advised that the trays should be dryed prior to re-use but this has not resolved this most serious issue.
The freezer temperature has been adjusted and is currently -25c however these adjustments fail to resolve this most important issue.
Help! before I’m driven to drink (ing warm alcohol)
Re: My ice cracks up
The ice must be very cold indeed then…when you transfer it to a warmer environment (your G&T etc) the surface of the cubes warm very quickly while the inside doesn’t which through expansion creates enormous tension in each cube and hey presto…CRACK!!!
The answer is simply to knock back the drink very quickly before the ice melts altogether, or alternatively drink beer instead.
:rotfl:
I’m drinking as quickly as I can!!
Warm beer? NO No No
You don’t understand!!
It shatters whilst in the ice cube tray prior to putting into a larger storage container.
Dear Dear Dear
Re: My ice cracks up
Perish the thought of warm beer!!!!!
lol….the cause is still the same however, if the water is blast frozen very quickly (positioned in the cold air supply stream maybe), or the very cold ice is moved to a much warmer environment then stresses are created within the cube….water itself is not such a great conductor of thermal energy so a change of ambient temperature will cause the surface of your cubes to warm (or cool) quite quickly whilst the interior relies on much slower conduction of the temperature change through the ice itself.
Another factor is that water is a very unusual substance in that it doesn’t follow the rules of expansion and contaction. As you are no doubt aware when things are heated they expand, and when cooled they contract….except for water that is. When water is cooled it does contract but only until it’s temperature reaches 4C. If it is cooled further it actually begins to expand again and become less dense. This is why ice forms on the surface of a pond and not at the bottom….and why the ice cubes in your drink float too.
The net result is that large or quick changes in temperature to ice (or turning water to ice) create large stresses within within the ice that cause it to crack.
So….if you want the perfect ice-cube you need to freeze the water more slowly, and ‘acclimatise’ them before use.
Personally speaking, and particularly with the weather we’re having down south, our household hasn’t got time to do that…the kids love to eat the ice in their drink before they drink it anyway! :rotfl:
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