Not sure if it's worth repairing, as I don't know what the problem is or what it would cost to fix. I do know that ice machines haven't fundamentally changed over the last few decades. I'd look first at the Manitowoc SM50 for its build quality, quietness, filtration, interior lighting, and neat crystal-clear octagonal ice cubes. It even has a button that will temporarily cease ice-making for 2 to 6 hours if you need perfect quietness, as it is designed for quiet office boardrooms as well as residences. The Scotsman Brilliance or their somewhat less expensive DCE33 series, are good second choices. It too makes crystal-clear, nicely shaped ice, and like the Manitowoc has a convenient high-mounted ice-storage area, and is 15" wide. The Brilliance has a lighted bin. Both of these should be reliable, especially the Manitowoc - these companies mostly build larger machines for commercial customers like restaurants, hotels, and bars where reliability is crucial. These devices need a drain; if you don't have access to one that's below the level of the machine, you'll need to specify the optional water pump. Don't know much about the Sub-Zero. I don't like the Whirlpool-built ice machines (a.k.a. Kitchenaid, Maytag, Jenn-Air, Kenmore, etc.) - small rectangular ice cubes and lower, harder to reach ice compartment. The Marvel also has an oddly low ice compartment, rather than at the top of the unit when you open the door. I don't have much/any experience with GE's, U-Line's or Perlick's ice machines, beyond that only U-Line has an undercounter refrigerator that makes clear ice cubes (24"w).

Hi Monica, As long as you're honest ... and level with your ice cube trays, you can freeze in a chesty with no problem. You may find that when you put the water in, a quiver may move over the surface, as the water starts thinking that they want out - it's too cold in here for any good use! The freezer on a frig carries the freezer portion at a few degrees below freezing, but freezers operate at down near 0 degrees F.: you may have noticed the difference in texture of ice cream depending on in which location it had been held. Cubes from there will pull your drink down to lower temp: and ones from a stand-up one will do the same, of course. I defrosted the old chest freezer here at uncle's when I came to stay after hs wife's death, seven years ago ... and it's getting near ready for another go. I don't open it frequently. Even in summer, no need to worry about coolers, etc. (except maybe for ice cream, if you choose). Stick the stuff into some carboard boxes from the store. If you get large ones, stow the ice cream in the middle, surrounded by the other stuff. But don't fret ... maybe your family will enjoy (slightly softened) ice cream. Turn the exhaust of the vacuum cleaner down into the chest and you'll be surprised at how soon the ice drops off. I have no idea how it would work if you tried it with a Room-ba). As others suggest, pick the ice up and put it into the sink (or a water jug if you'll be doing warm work for a while). After a quick wash, followed by a rinse with baking soda? vinegar? in the water (but not the two together) let it dry and you'll be surprised at how soon you'll be able to return the contents to the freezer - probably various items in a different location. Should be fun ... or at least not a major chore. As you place the items, make a chart with A at the left, moving to H, M or whatever you choose from left to right and 1 to 6 or 8 from back to front, then a to e, g or whatever to indicate depth and write the list of the various items of contents in the list. I like the chesties better than the stand-up ones, as they don't spill all of the cold air out onto the floor and your ankles the instant you open the door. Which saves energy. And the automatic defrost ones run the freezing equipment for while, ... then occasionally the heater, which heats the contents a tiny bit ... then back to the freezing again. That seems a rather unnecessary increase in the use of precious energy, all because quite a lot of people want to avoid one more simple - and occasional - chore. ole joyful

I have a Lello with compressor/freezer. There are many things I like about it (not the price!) and some things I find frustrating, but I would never choose one that requires freezing the bowl. The thing I find most frustrating is that this is a simple machine--sturdy as a house--which has only two controls and a timer: Cold on/off and Churn on/off. I would like to be able to adjust the temperature and speed. With the cannister/bowl from the freezer you have even less control over the temperature because ambient is such a great impact, and you're generally setting the freezer for optimal food storage rather than optimal ice cream. The only version that has tempted me is the one that goes with the KA mixer, because one could whip for frozen mousse. One of the great things about the Lello is that the bowl is not removable. Yes, that's one of the best things. There are no seams or crevices around the bowl for gunk to get into. The whole thing is steel, including the dasher, which is super easy to remove--just a capnut with textured sides to unscrew. Then one uses a sponge and bowl to clean. I keep a dedicated sponge in the machine. It's a little more work than just cleaning a bowl in the sink, but so much less work than trying to get gunk out of unexpected places! What I have is actually somewhat between an ice cream maker and gelato maker. It doesn't have the up and down action of a standard gelato maker, and isn't as fast as a standard ice cream maker. It's best at custards, which come out with an amazingly good, silky texture, and not so good at low/non fat because the water freezes too quickly. The same is true for ice creams with a high fresh fruit content, again because there's so much water that it actually makes them low fat. That's a standard problem with any freezing method. Usually, gum is added, but I don't really like doing that. I may experiment with starch this Summer, which is traditional for gelato and might work with leaner mixes. Cooking down the fruit will reduce the water, but perhaps not enough unless you take it down to jam. I also want to experiment with using a mixer or blender to aerate the mix before freezing. I don't know if the churning will knock out the air, but it sounds fun to try. Recommendations: The more control you have over temperature and speed, the more you can make the machine adapt to you rather than you adapting to the machine. The more easily you can clean, especially right around where you're likely to spill, the less likely you'll have sour gunky messes requiring toothbrushes and elbow grease. You'll get more consistent results with a machine with a compressor/freezer. The easier and less complicated the method is, the more you'll use it. Accessories: One thing about homemade ice cream is that it may not keep well in the freezer, especially if it's not full fat. Again, the water freezes too hard and crystallizes. Even full fat ice cream can get unpleasantly hard, and having to thaw to get one scoop is not good for the ice cream or your patience. The only really good answer is to have a special ice cream freezer that you keep to the optimal temperature. For the full fat ice creams my machine is best at, however, these insulated containers keep it well in the regular freezer. If you're keeping your ice cream in the freezer, it also helps to have a solid body scooper with a thick neck, rather than the food scoop or lever style. There are a great many books and treatises out there about ice cream. Sometimes, however, you just want a clear recipe that makes great ice cream without hours of study. I highly recommend The Ultimate Ice Cream Book by Bruce Weinstein. Every recipe I've made from it has been great, including the fresh strawberry. That one didn't keep well in the freezer, but straight from the machine it was fluffy clouds of strawberry goodness. Re ingredients, you get what you pay for. The same chocolate ice cream recipe is vastly different depending on your cocoa powder, for instance. Trader Joe's fancy cocoa powder gives you standard chocolate ice cream. Valrhona, even reduced in quantity to compensate some for the higher fat content, is stupendous, intense and fudgelike.

Hi L G, We ended up with all True for the bar appliances. In the living room bar, we ended up doing the True ice Maker and a True beverage center. We opted to put the ice maker here, as opposed to basement bar, since we figured we would use it much more often in the main living area as opposed to basement which is more used for movie watching and parties. So far that has turned out to be a good choice, since with two small children, we aren't hosting as many parties (yet). For the basement bar, we went with a True refrigerator, a True dual zone wine refrigerator, a True freezer, and a Miele dishwasher (Lumen, I think - I can get the exact model if you want). To be honest, so far this bar hasn't gotten a lot of use but we are still settling into the house, and I think it will be great once we are a little bit more up and running. It's been nice having the extra fridges for the beverage and wine storage. Overall we are happy with the selections. The quality and aesthetics are great. As someone recently posted on one of the threads, the True ice maker isn't "whisper quiet". You can hear it filling up water, clearing out drain, and dumping ice into the chamber periodically throughout the day. I honestly don't really notice it, and without basis of comparison, I imagine it's similar if not better than other ice makers due to the nature of the operation, but if appliance noise is a concern, I would definitely try to check out one and see if you are comfortable with the noise level before committing to one. But we've been very happy having it, and having it near the living space means it gets used a lot, and it's super nice making a cocktail and having a fresh supply of clear ice right by everything. Hope that helps, if there's more information that would be useful please let me know. -joe