Product Review: Whynter UIM-155 Stainless Steel Built-In Ice Maker
Company: Amazon
Price Range: $350 – $400
Feedback: Read Consumer Reviews on the Whynter UIM-155 Ice Maker
Who Would Buy This: Those shopping for an affordable, low-maintenance, built-in or freestanding ice maker for low volume daily ice production.
Features
- Built-in or freestanding
- No drain required
- Produces 12 lbs of ice per day
- Holds up to 6 lbs of ice
- Auto shut-off
- Manual defrost
- Includes ice scoop and removable ice bin
Design
The Whynter UIM-155 is a good looking ice maker that should look the part in any setting, whether it be in a kitchen or home bar. Its built with a smart black cabinet, which is fitted with a reversible stainless steel door. The door is well sealed to keep the interior temperature cold and intact. An On/Off rocker switch is located in the bottom right corner of the front venting grille, so the power switch is easily accessible.
The unit itself is pretty diminutive and has a look similar to that of a mini refrigerator. It measures only 25 inches tall, 15 inches wide with a depth of 18 inches.
A novel aspect of this Whynter ice maker is that it’s an under-counter model, but requires no drain. This helps keep installation cheaper and less complicated. In the box comes supplied a 9 foot 1/4-inch plastic water line connection for connecting the unit to a water supply. You’ll need some additional hardware to connect the water line to your water supply.
Functionality
The ice making process is very straightforward. Whynter included just one button on the unit, so operation is as easy as just turning it on using the front power switch.
Despite it’s compact size and even smaller interior, the UIM-155 is no slouch when it comes to ice production. It can make up to 12 lbs of ice per day and hold up to 6 lbs of ice inside the included ice bin. One batch of ice can be made in as little as 30-40 minutes. As it incorporates its own freezer, you can leave your ice in the machine as long as you want to. The type of ice it produces is crescent-shaped cubes that are rather soft, so are nice and chewable for drinks. The ice cubes it makes are “dry ice”, which is advantageous as it means the cubes won’t get stuck together in a clump.
Manual Defrost
As this isn’t a frost-free ice maker, expect some frost build-up. You should manually defrost the machine when the thickness of the frost on the inner walls is larger than ΒΌ inches thick. So expect to defrost it approximately every 4-5 weeks, depending on your regularity of usage.
Manual: Whynter UIM-155 manual
Guarantee: 1-year limited warranty.
Summary
For sheer value alone, the Whynter UIM-155 Ice Maker is a winner. This stylish workhorse is remarkably easy to use and quietly produces enough ice to meet most residential requirements. If you’ve been grappling with a high-maintenance ice maker for years, this will make a welcome change.
Its small size and flexible design make it suitable for use in a wide variety of different situations, such as home, small office or even RV’ing.
This ice maker will best suit people who have modest daily ice production needs, do not need clear ice and are after a compactly sized under-counter unit that’s simple to install and operate.
