FRIGIDAIRE EFIC452-SS 40 Lbs Extra Large Clear Maker, Stainless Steel, Makes Square Ice

10/2025- UPDATED 5 year review!! (Probably the last unless it hits 10 years) Bumping to five stars as well due to longevity. Updated review of the update. I may have messed up my latest update so I guess I have to start over. Here we go. I’m one month shy of FIVE years, but due to the recent dramatic drop in price, I felt inclined to chime in. My experience is probably not the norm, considering all the horror stories I hear. But here we are. I recently experienced a scare after cleaning the unit and it acting strange. Left it unplugged for a couple of hours and it went right back to making ice! If I had to do it all again, only bottled water. My filtered tap doesn’t cut it. Cleaning is still a pain. Bought a cleaning kit and the brush pulled out some horrific stuff. Seriously, clean this thing like it’s a full time job! This thing just keeps on making the ice! I think that whatever machine you get, buy the insurance. Remember, my first machine leaked, and this one appeared used. Good, or bad, this ice maker has brought me more joy than just about anything else I own. Well, that’s all folks. Stay frosty! UPDATED 2 1/2 year review (7-23) I've now had my unit for just over 2 1/2 years and still going strong. It's used pretty much every day with a rare day off. One of the things I wanted to correct from my earlier review (that i realized shortly after and had a 'duh' moment) is that I was wanting a way to only make X amount of ice. I had been just adding X amount of water to achieve that and right after leaving the review realized I just kept over looking that timer button. DOH! Now, on to an update: It's still a pain to clean. I occasionally think that the bullet style makers would be better as the Ice sheets need to be broken up if using smaller glasses or cups. The thicker you make the ice the harder it is to break up, especially while still in the machine. Took awhile to figure out, but it seems the coating on the metal part that forms the cubes is flaking off and has to be cleaned out. Occasionally it needs to be unplugged to 'reset' as it will not respond every so often after clearing ice when it shows full. You also need to have it plugged in to fully drain all water in the reservoir. But these things are trivial, I only mention them so others have a full understanding and can compare accordingly. Overall, I still enjoy this machine very much. The minor annoyances are nothing compared to having fresh cold ice relatively quickly. I especially consider myself lucky when I see so many others have their units fail frequently, which is something that would make me consider a much cheaper unit. Also, consider getting a larger scoop that the one that comes with it. Also, remember the scoop is almost useless when the ice is still in thick sheet form, so maybe consider getting a pair of tongs to go with it. ------------------ I have now had this for 7 months and found a more than a few pros and cons. I'll get the company, and not the machine, related stuff out of the way right now. First unit I was sent leaked water from some spot and at first I wasn't sure if this was condensation or what. I returned the first unit because whether or not that was a defect I wasn't going to use a machine that leaked all over the counter no matter what. Second machine arrived and NO leaking at all. So the first unit was in fact defective. However, second unit was obviously a USED machine! I kept the second machine (maybe a poor choice) because it at least did not leak, and the 'used' factor was only noticeable really due to the water spots and a bit of grime in the reservoir. Nothing major, just a good cleaning before any real use, was required. Let's start with the pros: Clear ice (keep that machine clean though) Sheets of ice that last (melting is slow) Adjustable time to make thicker sheets (cubes) I run this a few hours every day. 7 months, every, single, day. Cons: Most noticeable is the cleaning factor. I have smallish hands for a guy and I still can't reach areas well enough to give this thing a deep clean. That's really it for cons I suppose. There are some things I can nit pick if anyone cares. Read on if that's the case. Included scoop is useless. This thing makes 'sheets' of ice that laugh in the face of this minuscule scoop thingy. (not a big deal, but if this kind of thing is important to you, maybe just buy one of those bullet ice machines) Other people seem to know how much ice this can make with X amount of water. I, however do not. So I would love an option to select X amount of sheets (this thing makes sheets of ice remember) to be made. Description says it runs on 120watts. Really? I didn't test this with a Kill-o-Watt yet, but I did try and use it with two different portable battery packs that could not handle the initial load. So this thing must spike well over 300watts (seriously, 120watts ??) and only consumes the stated 120 when it's in the 'hey, about to dump this sheet of ice out' stage, or they simply meant it runs on 120v. I'll need to test this for off grid use. Overall this is a great machine. I'm listening to it in the 'I'm about to dump this sheet of ice out' stage right now as I type. I did encounter a defective initial machine, then the 'here, have a used one' after that, but I am still happy with my purchase. I don't remember the exact reason I chose this over the 'bullet' style machines, but I think it was based on output(?). However, I think I would have been happy either way. Those bullet machines put out individual cubes, which would make the included scoop in this machine actually useful! This machine puts out 'sheets' of ice that you can break up if storing in your freezer or whatever. Personally, I use them in my tumblers. One sheet fits well when broken in half. Solid sheets seem to last longer when used in a cooler for other stuff. I think this all comes down to personal preference but honestly you could simply go with which ever unit was cheaper and be just as happy. Hope this helps someone reach a decision. Once I get my solar set up in place and see how this machine fits in I'll update my review.

Review is for the Frigidaire EFIC452-SSRED XL Maker, Makes 40 Lbs. of Clear Square Ice Cubes A Day So I just received this today....we have been using a Frigidaire brand "bullet" style ice maker and it just can't keep up with our ice consumption, this....despite a fridge/freezer with two ice makers....go figure. Got this, Red one....rinsed it out, cleaned everything, and filled all the way with water. I figured, since I had to wait at least one hour for the oil in the compressor to settle, I would give it a good cleaning, and run water through it. Put the end over the sink, removed the drain plug and ... NOTHING. No water is draining. NOTHING AT ALL, despite the reservoir being completely full of water. Must be clogged, or the tube from the reservoir must be blocked or pinched. Checked the manual. Nothing to do except take out the drain plug. (there is a screw on cap, then a silicone "plug"...yep I removed it) So, what to do. I figured it must be a twisted or blocked tube, SO I TOOK THE WHOLE BACK METAL COVER OFF, so I could take a look at the tubes and see if there was a block. Its not hard to take off the metal cover....10 screws and then shimmy it off. Be careful. The metal is thin and sharp. Looked around....NO water in any of the tubes, despite it being full. Checked the drain "filter" in the reservoir and took it out, just in case. Nope, no water coming out. Checked all the tubes. Not blocked. GUESS WHAT IT WAS?? I plugged in the ice maker, just in case....NOTHING is said in the manual. The pump started working right away, and VOILA! water started running out the back drain, which was still open. Apparently to fully drain this, you must have it plugged in...(I didn't turn it on, just plugged it in) I believe the pump will close the lines so it can't drain, once it is shut off. NOTHING IN THE MANUAL TELLS YOU THIS!!..So if this happens to you, don't return it because it won't drain. Just plug it in, and it will start draining after the plug is taken out. Hope this little trick helps you. Now onto the ICE. First batch set on +4 took like over 20 minutes, and it makes pretty thick ice at this setting. Changed it to 0 and it took about 15 minutes. We use chilled, filtered water in our fridge, since using cold water makes ice faster, so the machine doesn't need to chill it down as much. The way this ice machine works is the water from the reservoir is constantly dripped over the square metal grid, which is chilled by the ice maker. This means that the all the water in the machine is constantly "cycled" over this grid, bringing the temp down on all the water. Might as well start with chilled water to help the process. Even on a setting of 0 the ice coming out of this machine is thick and clear for the most part. Love it so far. Its not "loud" but its constant "on" like a mini fridge, until it cycles when the ice is ready. Because of the thickness of the sheet of ice that dumps out, its quite loud when it dumps. I love that it dumps in a sheet. This makes it super easy to bag it up in sheets for storage to use later. This ice is SOLID, and since its clear, it doesn't have hardly any air in it, unlike the bullet style ice makers. This thing is going to get a lot of use, so will see how long it lasts. The price is about double what you would pay for the bullet ones, but so far I think its worth it. Time will tell. *Update* 10/6/22 - well...its been a few days of almost constant use. The ice that this makes is almost clear....for the most part it is, and its SOLID ice, not full of air and cloudy. The bullet style ice makers, make ice with a lot of air in the ice, so that ice doesn't last too long, melts fast. This ice makers ice lasts a good long time, probably double the amount of time for the same "amount" of ice than the bullet ones. The only down sides I can see with this ice maker is...1. that loud noise when the ice "drops" out of the grids. Its pretty loud when it lands in the "bucket" when there is little to no ice in there. Once you get a couple of drops of ice in there, then its almost silent when it drops. 2. You could view this as a negative and or positive. The ice drops most times in a sheet, that you then need to break up. I don't mind this....makes for easy storage. To break it up, we put it in a zip lock bag and then just bash it. It breaks right away, and I don't mind doing this extra step, since the ice lasts so long, and you can get long strands of ice too that fit nicely in your flask or large cup etc. This machine is a little larger than the bullet type, so keep that in mind. I tried +4, 0 and -4 for ice settings, and didn't notice any difference in the ice made, so now just leave it on a default setting of 0. Plug it in, fill with chilled water, and hit the power button and thats it. You don't need to use chilled water, and often times I will put some ice in the water, just to keep it colder in the beginning, to speed up the first batch, which seems to take the longest. Recommended. We have lots of ice now, and with this running, can stock up. *UPDATE* - Love this ice maker. First batch takes a while to chill down the water, but the amount of solid ice you get out of this is a big WIN. Solid ice "cube sheets", but very easy to break up.The ice lasts a good long time in drinks, since the ice doesn't contain much air, since its clear. Just get this. I don't think you will be disappointed!! I still get startled when the ice drops....LOL! *UPDATE 12/12/22* Have had this a while now, and use this almost daily. This ice maker is a WIN! The ice lasts a good long time, and even if you let it run until the bin is full, not that much ice melts in the bin. We do this and then bag it, check the water - add whats needed and continue on making ice. Couple of TIPS- While the ice maker cycles all the water in the machine from the top reservoir where you add fresh water, drips over the grid, then drops into the bottom holding bin to be sucked up and cycled over the grid again, this ice maker will not pull water and empty the bottom holding bin. If you forget to empty the ice from the bottom, and all that ice melts into the bottom holding bin, I have found that it will stay full of water. So don't panic, just start scooping the water from the bottom bin, into the top bin manually to lower the level to under the Ice bin, then continue to make ice. Haven't had any issues with this ice maker yet. *time for another update* 10/26/24...wow its been over 2 years of use and still going strong. This machine makes a lot of ice, and we use it almost daily. I have been using filtered water always, but still clean it about every 6 months, if I notice the water leaving residue. Cleans up very easily with this product: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0BCJQ5SZX/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1 This stuff is a win! Easy to use, I dump it in and let it sit a while, then just run the machine like normal, letting the water solution circulate and make ice. I make ice for a couple batches, and keep running water through the machine...once the ice becomes clear again, then I fill up the reservoir and empty from the drain plug. I do this a couple of times, then all done. Of course this type of ice maker is loud when the ice drops, but other than that, it has lasted very well for us in almost constant operation.

My wife was getting hip surgery and was told that she needed to use ice on her hip for at least 3 weeks following her operation. My fridge icemaker was just not going to be able to keep up with the demand, so I started reviewing ice makers. This Fridgidaire icemaker was reviewed well on Amazon, and advertised that it made clear ice. Most importantly, this unit advertised that it could make 40 lbs of clear ice in a day, which is much more than many of the cheaper ice makers. Since I figured it would be nice to use this to make ice in a home bar after she was done with it, I bought this unit. This unit works by dribbling water over a vertical metal grid that looks like an ice cube tray. The metal is cooled and the water freezes as it pours over the grid. The longer you let the water flow, the more completely the ice cube forms within the grid. You can adjust the thickness of the ice within the grid by a setting on the touchscreen. I set mine to maximum to get solid, clear cubes. When the freezing is done, the water stops flowing and the ice cubes are pushed as a "block of cubes" into a bin. The Good: - If you use filtered water, the ice is indeed clear and doesn't have those annoying hollow "holes" in the ice that I associate with cheap ice makers - The product looks great. I really like the red and black coloring, and it looks good, not cheap. - It will make 40 lbs of ice in a day if you are diligent about emptying the ice cube bin frequently. - The ice maker makes about the same amount of noise as a dorm fridge. There is certainly a fairly loud clunk each time a sheet of ice falls into the tray, but the overall ice-,making process was less loud than I expected. The Bad: - The ice cube bin holds maybe 4 or 5 "sheets" of ice before it fills up and the machine stops. Since the bin is not cooled, the ice starts to immediately melt unless it is taken out and placed in a freezer or cooler. - That means about every hour or so, you must go into the machine and remove the ice and put it somewhere cold if you want to max out on the ice production. It would have been much nicer if the holding bin kept the ice cold. The ugly - If you fill the unit with water and let it run overnight, you will wake up to 4 or 5 sheets of mostly melted ice in the tray. - The ice machine works well, but is a bit difficult to drain completely during cleaning. I worry that you could easily leave some water behind which might lead to mold. Overall Grade: I give this a B+ overall, I used the heck out of this thing for almost two months. I bought some ice machine descaler and cleaner, and cleaned it once during my ice-making marathon. Cleaning and descaling was a breeze. I would have given this a perfect A+ if the ice holding tray area could keep the ice from melting.

Love this ice machine but our first one accidentally got broken so we ordered the same one. The new one arrived completely BROKEN because it was clearly dropped/damaged during shipping. My issue is, Amazon just put it in a NEW Amazon shipping box and failed to inspect the machine in its original, BROKEN packaging. Ordered a replacement so hopefully they don't make the same silly mistake. This ice machine works well and is generally pretty quiet. It recycles the melted ice water which is a plus. ONLY USE FILTERED WATER or jugs of filtered water. Tap water has way too much minerals and other things in it and will mess up the machine and ice quality. Use a basic "ice machine descaling solution" from here on Amazon to clean it. It should be cleaned about every month or every other month. It's cubed ice so you can't really chew it, but you can stick it in a blender if you want crushed ice. We tried getting a nugget ice machine but NONE of them recycle the melted ice water which sucks in my opinion.

I had high hopes for this ice maker as a replacement for my freezer’s broken ice maker, but my experience has been far from ideal. Here’s a breakdown of the issues I encountered: 1. **Inconsistent Performance** – It does make ice… when it works. 2. **Excessive Moisture** – The ice comes out very wet. 3. **Constant Monitoring Required** – You either have to wait for ice to accumulate before transferring it to the freezer or move small batches when the bin gets full. At least twice if you fill thw water well. 4. **Freezer Dependency** – Since the ice is so wet, I have to solidify it in the freezer. I use metal containers (hotel pans) specifically for this purpose. 5. **Tedious Once solidified, the ice needs to be broken apart. I use a metal meat tenderizer for the task, but if done immediately after freezing, the chunks stick together and become difficult to separate. 6. **Problematic Ice Cube Settings** – The thick setting is too thick, while the thinner setting produces partial slabs. The "0" setting is somewhat effective, but it still requires hammering each batch. 7. **Lack of Cleaning Functionality** – Surprisingly, there’s no dedicated cleaning function—just instructions to wipe things down, which seems inadequate. 8. **Build Quality Concerns** – On its first use, the button panel started popping up, exposing the unit’s inner components. While I could press it back into place, this doesn’t inspire confidence in its durability. 9. **Deteriorating Performance** – After about ten uses, the machine began making unsettling noises and eventually stopped producing ice altogether. 10. **Inefficiency** – The entire process—from ice formation to freezing, transferring, and breaking—takes far too long. I could easily fill ice trays twenty times over in the time it takes to manage this machine. Ultimately, this ice maker demands too much effort for too little payoff. If reliability, ease of use, and efficiency matter to you, this might not be the best solution.

This is one of the best counter ice makers I’ve had. I holds more ice than other ice makers I’ve had in past and it makes real ice not those hollow bullet ice things that melt fast. The speed it makes the ice is impressive. I was so impressed I even bought another one in case anything happens to the one I’m using now. We only have been putting filtered jugs of water into n our to help keep it from calcifying due to our tap water being hard. Very happy with this one.

I searched for a counter-top ice machine when my refrigerator ice maker failed and I really didn’t like the ice it made anyways – half moon, cloudy, sediment filled soft ice. The choice became chewable nuggets, more half moons or cubes. Since I use ice primarily for iced tea, lemonade and cocktails, I wanted clear cubes. Hence, this was my choice and I picked Frigidaire for the brand. My choice was also influenced by the ratings. However, I read all the negative reviews as well. Unboxing: Mine arrived undamaged with no signs of prior delivery, unpacking or use. It was new. Unpacking was easy. It’s good looking. Manual: Poorly written, confusing, and only makes sense after playing with the machine. Plastic ice scoop: Awkward to use when retrieving ice and can’t break up the sheets of cubes. I replaced it with stainless steel ice tongs. Set-up: I waited the recommend hour of upright standing before I plugged it in. I filled the top tank with bottled drinking water – not distilled. I positioned it on my counter with plenty of breathing space behind it. It does put out warm air in the back when making ice. Sound level: Surprisingly very quiet. Also, the machine only runs when it is in the producing cycle. Ice product: It makes clear sheets of 24 ice cubes, each cube 7/8” square. The dimension of each cube remains constant, but you can change how full each cube is with a setting from -6 to +6. The +6 fills the cube completely but is a very solid sheet. The -6 you can poke your finger in the exposed, indented side (the only side that is not touching a cooling element). I chose +4 and like the result. Ice making is fast, about 15 minutes a sheet on +4. When the cycle completes, the sheets fall out of the freezing element into the bin (called harvesting) and generally remain intact, i.e., the cubes do not separate. The sheet of cubes, however, is easily broken with a small ice pick, knife handle or your ice tongs. The ice is clear and cold and does not rapidly melt. It looks great in your drinks. It lasts. Some people apparently just run the machine to make sheets of ice which they put in bags and put in their freezer and break up in the bag when they are going to be used. My intent is to keep the machine on and for it to constantly supply ice on demand. But I have also stored some sheets in my freezer in pint ziplocks. Issues: Sometimes the ice sheet does not fall all the way down if the bin is full or will trigger the “full bin” mechanism (stop making ice) even if the bin is not full. The mechanism is a lever the ice sheet is supposed to depress when it falls if the bin is full. This is easily rectified by just rearranging the ice in the bin. However, you do have to check the machine occasionally for this. I had one occurrence when the frozen sheet did not completely separate from the freezing element yet triggered the full bin lever. The machine stopped making ice and the ice in the bin melted overnight, leaving water in the bottom of the ice bin. Solution: move the partially melted sheet to the bin and the ice making resumes, quickly using all the water in the bin for fresh ice. Icons: There are 2 icons, one telling you the ice bin is full and that ice making has stopped and the other telling you to add water. The add water icon only goes on when there is no water in the back reservoir where you add water nor in the bottom tank. Melted ice water is recycled from the bottom tank to make new ice. Timer: There is a timer function, but I have no idea why anyone would use it. Ambient temperature: The displayed temperature is warmest when making ice and coldest when not. It has nothing to do with room temperature. Not sure what it is for. Useful life: I don’t see any indication of the machine being short-lived. But I bought the $20 four year warranty just in case. Bottom line: It makes cold, clear, cubed ice. The small inconveniences of having to break up the ice sheets or monitor the machine are worth it. Next best alternative: bagged Crystal ice from the grocery store.

This machine might be the best ice maker under $200 but there were too many things I didn’t like. First, I didn’t like the ice cube shape/size, I like bigger cubes. As many have already said, you have to break up the ice after it’s released. If you want solid ice cubes, it hard to break up. Things I didn’t see in other reviews that I think are important: manual recommends cleaning this machine every 3 days. To clean it you need to muscle it around to access the drain plug in the back. This machine is heavy, it’s not fun to have to move it to clean in. After you clean the ice bucket area and run soapy water through it you need to rinse it with clean water and allow all this to drain out the hole in the back of the machine. To get all the water out you’ll need to hold it at an angle until the water stops. After doing this there is still a significant amount of water still in the machine after draining. When I attempted to repack for return water went everywhere on the floor, in the box, on the styrofoam, trailing into the bathroom. I was surprised how much water was still in this thing after draining it. Too hard to clean and move for ice cubes I don’t like that much to begin with.

es practico para llevar y muy portatil... hace hielo cristalino

Al cambiar de ciclos tiene un ruido extraño que no hacía cuando recién empezamos a utilizar el producto.

It arrived on time and works great! The ice is crystal clear and tastes great! It comes out in sheet cubes and a little tap with a metal meat mallet after bagging works great to break up sheets, It arrived on time and great service from the seller. It made 40 lbs of ice in 24 hours as stated, Popped it in my freezer in ice bags.

Funciona perfectamente! Es eficiente y fácil de manejar.

I ordered the Frigidaire EFIC4520-SSRED XL Ice Maker which arrived next day - Oct./Nov. 2024. Great sale price! — (don’t be waiting around and end up paying 25 or 30 % more ! ! !). Factory packaged very well to prevent just about any damage. Much nicer appearance than I had expected - classy red wine colored stainless steel with Black accent trim which will look great in any modern kitchen or home bar. LED control panel. Unit might be ever so slightly larger than regular ice makers but is hardly noticeable, if at all. N.B. - *Check open lid height to ensure you will have needed clearance if being utilized under your cabinetry. For ease of filling and use, I think it is best placed in an open location without a close overhead cabinet or shelf. This machine utilizes a totally different process to create selectable sizes of square “Clear Ice”. It makes an ice that is clearer in your drink and, more importantly, is a very much harder and longer lasting than the usual bullet shaped, soft ice made by most regular ice machines. It also has a larger than usual water reservoir located at the back rather than right beneath the finished ice, as most machines do, therefore it won’t cause the ice to melt as fast. It also appears to have more insulation than other machines I have used previously, which generally have none at all. The ice is therefore able to last longer in the machine itself. It produces 40lbs a day versus the regular ice machine output of about 28 lbs. The noise level while making ice is similar to that of a home fridge, except that there is a louder “clunk!” when the ice block drops from of the evaporator. I do not find the noise level to be at all excessive or bothersome. The actual ice produced looks like a small slotted ice cube tray, requiring that you break it up a bit into 24 individual cubes which are about 3/4” square. Not fussy about having to do that however, thankfully, it’s quite easily done with any safe knife or metal scoop. I will gladly accept that one slight inconvenience in order to obtain the much better quality, and much longer lasting ice that this particular type of ice machine produces for me! The included instructions are an absolute embarrassment to Fridgidaire. Some Manager there should be fired! Thankfully, this ice machine is quite easy to use anyway. ( *N.B. - If machine shuts off as a result of insufficient water in the tank - After refilling, . . . turn power off, then turn it back on to reset ice making cycle. ) After using continuously, 24/7, for several weeks, not even one minor issue or failure of any kind to report. Comes with One Year Warranty. Very, very happy with this product so far. I just ordered a second one (to have as a spare) because this ice machine does such a great job and the price is so very good as I write. I want to be certain to have an identical replacement when this one, which I am using now, decides to pack it in !! If you want an abundance of real good quality ice from a stylish, easy to use, trouble free, machine you should check this one out. If you want the softer quicker melting bullet shaped ice don’t choose this ice maker. No fear buying here. Nice purchase for me. Good Luck!