Yes, my experience is that steel reusable ice cubes are the most efficient because they are so temperature conductive. But that's technically a good thing, as you want your drink to be cold as soon as possible, right? Do Certain Materials Work Better? The stone ones seem to stay cool for longer, up to 30 minutes, while the steel ones last about 20 to 25 minutes. I made sure two glasses of water had the same temperature and then took out the ice cubes every ten minutes to measure the temperature. I've tested out stone and steel reusable ice cubes and placed them in a cold drink. The stone ones take a bit longer and sometimes over 3 hours. In my experience, the steel ice cubes tend to cool down the fastest in the freezer and typically are ready in about 2 hours. The silica ice cubes that I said you should avoid will probably take less time to freeze, and on average, I'd say that a plastic one will take 2 to 3 hours. The one on the steel plate will melt a lot faster as there is more temperature exchange. You can prove this by taking two water ice cubes and placing one on a steel plate or spoon and the other on a plastic plate. Those trays are typically also made of plastic, which is not a good conductor of heat and cold. If you have plastic reusable ice cubes, then they will take about the same amount of time as regular ones that you make in ice cube trays. And I'll just get into some basic physics to give you an idea of which type will help your drinks stay cold. This is an important part of choosing the right reusable ice cubes. And with steel, you have the added impact of iron ore mining.Īs I said, these things won't cause any kind of drastic change in the climate and environment, but it's still the right thing to do. The cutting process is far less energy-intensive than creating steel. They do need to be cut to size, but they are usually made from cut-off pieces used in construction and home furnishings. Lower Carbon Footprintīased on my research, the stone ice cubes seem to have the lowest carbon footprint. So, by switching to stone or steel ice cubes, you can remove one more piece of plastic. There's a health risk, but you should also be doing everything possible to reduce the amount of plastic in your home. I mentioned above that I wouldn’t recommend the plastic and silica reusable ice cubes to keep drinks cold. It's also not going to be a huge water saving since other areas of your home use infinitely more water.īut, there are still some benefits to using regular ice cubes. OK, the first thing I will say is that making a switch to reusable ice cubes isn't going to be the action that will save the planet. Is There Any Environmental Benefit of Using Reusable Ice Cubes? I generally prefer the stone ones as they tend to have a lower carbon footprint than steel, but I'll get into that shortly. If anything, these types of ice cubes could actually be a lot safer in many places around the world where drinking water isn't entirely safe. Solid Ice CubesĪs long as they are made either from a non-porous rock or you choose food-grade stainless steel ice cubes, you should have no risks to your health. Now, they are not lethally toxic, but when you use them a lot, then those toxins will build up and can cause some serious health conditions. And when you have these ice cubes in everyday use, then they can and will eventually crack and break. And secondly, stay away from the silica ones.īoth silica and BPA are toxic if they leak into your drinks. First of all, they should only contain non-BPA plastic. There are two things you need to consider with plastic ice cubes. There are two ways to look at reusable ice cubes when you're trying to figure out how safe they are. What I like about the stone-type ice cubes is that you can get them in different colors to make them look more effective with different types of drinks. When marble is highly polished, it won't absorb any of the liquid, which is important to avoid a reusable ice cube attracting bacteria or mold. You'll often see these advertised as whiskey stones, and they are most often made out of different types of marble. Stainless steel ice cubes also tend to be a bit smaller because of that effect, making more space in your glass for a drink. I'll get into the details of how different types compare for the cooling effect shortly, but steel is highly conductive, so they freeze fast and then cool down your drinks fast as well. These are small solid blocks of stainless steel, and they are possibly one of the coolest looking and most effective ones you can buy. Here are the main types of reusable ice cubes with some information on whether I would recommend them.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |