Ice Maker Installation
There are a few things I discovered along the way about icemakers. First, they make ice, lots of it. Second, it takes considerable energy to do so if you count on using your generator for your underway power source. And lastly, ice from the icemaker costs about $1.00 a pound considering Generator maintenance, initial purchase price etc., and the marinas charge about $.18 a pound. Having said all that, it is one of the most convenient things I have put on the boat since the first mate and would probably give it up in the same order if it became necessary.
Storage at a premium, finding a place for the thing was a challenge. I looked to the cockpit, under the wings, since I was rebuilding them with SeaBoard as well, a U-Line Model SP-18, the smaller one, would have fit there with some modification and protrusion under the bridge ladder. I decided against it as I felt it would have quite an exposure to the elements over one that was inside. That and the sun beating on the door part of the day lead me to a different model and place. So I went for a U-Line model BI-95.
If you checkout the icemaker.jpg you can see the finished installation. Basically, I put it under the salon desk, using the aft most side due to air condition ducting etc. in the fore side compartment. Additionally I used the fore side compartment to house a shore power receptacle, and brought the units power cord through a 1 ˝" hole to plug it in. The reason for this is I expect to put a 1000w inverter in the fore compartment next to the outlet in the near future. That way, I just pull the plug from the outlet and put it in the inverter while underway. Simple and fool proof. No switches needed.
The dimensions supplied with the unit are very exacting. I placed blue tape around the proposed opening in the cabinet so as to not disturb the existing finish. Then carefully measured the opening several times, and proceeded to mark it with a grease pencil and cut it with a chainsaw. Only kidding, I did have to use a hatchet though to get the very bottom part of the cabinet where the hand saw would not quite reach. I just had to tap the backside of the hatchet a few times to get through.
Running water to it was simple. I used the good quality water supply hose from West Marine and have a full house filter system on the main cabin supply line. A friend just did his on a MS-I in the cockpit. He used regular hose, had some taste problems with the ice, but fixed that with a filter as well. The whole deal worked out fine as power and water ran right under the cabinet and was easy to reach.
So there you have it, "How the IceMaker Changed My Life". Now if I can just figure out how to get the rum, coke, and the lime in the glass…..