Clear Ice Systems

I've had the cube version of this for a couple of weeks now, and it's absolutely great. It takes a little getting used to, but now I can unload 4 cubes, reload, and have it back in the freezer in 10 minutes. It's slow to freeze, but I've found out that you don't have to wait for the entire unit to freeze, only the top 4 cubes. I can do two cycles a day easily. The only drawback I've seen is that it's not practical to use the bottom section for usable ice, so energy is wasted if you allow the freezing process to go full cycle. There's nothing like dropping a garlic stuffed olive into a cocktail glass, adding a cube, filling with Bombay Sapphire, whispering "vermouth" over the top of it, and serving the best martini in the world to a guest. Even better if you keep the Bombay in the freezer as well.After using it for a couple of months, I love it. But it needs to have the fill tube reinforced. It's fragile, and if you bump it and cause even a small crack at it's base, you'll have the reverse of the China Syndrome. A quart of water will flow down to the bottom of your freezer and solidify. Also, much easier to harvest the frozen cubes BEFORE the bottom section freezes. Experiment to find out how long it takes just the 4 cubes on top to freeze. In addition, for loading, it's easier to put the thing together while it's wet, but better to fill and add the styrofoam when it's dry. Don't spill water between the plastic and the styrofoam or it will freeze and make harvesting the cubes more difficult. Another negative point is, that while 1 cube is absolutely perfect for a martini, you can't use a martini glass for it, lol..

I've made one batch of cubes so far and they turned out well! They have some bubbles but are otherwise pretty clear. I used regular tap water and had them in the freezer part of my refrigerator for about 13 hours (they probably should have stayed in another hour as 2 of the spheres weren't completely formed yet). The whole set up was easy to assemble and use. My only wish is that it came with a little funnel for filling the tube.Updated review:I have owned the sphere version of this clear ice system for probably 8 months. When I came back to purchase another, I was surprised by the negative reviews so I decided to address some of the criticisms noted in those comments...First, people have complained about the black insulating foam breaking or having chunks fall out. I have been using mine for months, as noted above, and mine is still in perfect condition. All I can assume is that people are trying to pull the two halves apart when they may be partially frozen together from spilled water. I would recommend leaving the whole unit sit on the counter for 10 minutes after removing from the freezer to eliminate this possibility.I have also seen comments about the two halves of the black foam not fitting snugly together. This is completely user error. As you are assembling the pieces, you need to push down on the lips of the green silicone spheres so that they slide into the insulating foam correctly. If you do this to every sphere on both sides, the foam will come together perfectly.As to the unit being difficult to fill, yes this can be a challenge. Here is my method: I fill the gray tray with water through one of the large holes that the sphere will fit on until it is almost full. You then want to jiggle the whole thing a bit to remove any air locks. Next, wet each half of the spheres with water as it will make putting them together much easier. Make sure that they are completely sealed all the way around. It will also make them easier to push onto the gray tray. Once you have all green silicone pieces in place, fill more water until the spheres are about 2/3 full. At this point, attach the black foam insulating piece, being sure to push on the lips of the green silicone so that they slide all the way into the fitted area. After everything is assembled, finish filling through the fill tube. It would be easier if a funnel was included, but I just use a measuring cup with a spout. Then you can carefully transfer it to the freezer. If you have a bit of spillage, just add more water from the measuring cup after its in the freezer. Yes, all of this takes a bit of work but to me the beautiful clear ice is worth the effort. I get lots of positive comments from friends and my ice is always a hit.Does the ice last longer than regular cubes? I definitely believe so. There are many factors that determine the overall longevity such as the beverages starting temperature, the outside temp, and the glass you use. I have noticed that in my insulated glass (not one of the famous name brands), I will still have ice in the morning, which isn't the case with regular cubes. These aren't magic and of course the ice will still melt, but they do have more lasting power than your normal ice.Since this only makes 4 cubes at a time, I make a batch every day, then store them in a freezer bag so that I have enough when we are entertaining.Lastly, I have read complaints that the ice doesn't come out clear. I would strongly contest this as my ice is nearly perfectly clear. I do end up with some bubbles in the ice but these virtually disappear when the sphere is placed in a beverage. My tip for best results is to remove the unit from the freezer before the ice is solid in the gray tray. This takes a bit of trial and error to figure out the right time frame but makes the best end product. As a further note, I use water straight from the tap and we have well water with lots of minerals in it.I hope this review helps others make an informed decision about purchasing these clear ice trays. I love mine and will order another one!Update: I have now made several batches of ice with this system so I thought I would share some additional tips. I started to suspect that I was having some air lock issues when filling the tray through the tube as I noticed that by the time I made it to the freezer, I often could see room at the top of the green silicone and then I actually had a batch that came out as only half spheres. So I now fill the bottom tray full of water, assemble and attach the silicone molds, and then fill it the rest of the way through the tube. This method seems to work better and I am now getting near perfect ice balls. I would also recommend that you remove the cubes before the ice in the gray bottom tray freezes all the way. It will take some trial and error to determine what time frame is required for your freezer, but it is an absolutely necessary step to make sure that your ice is perfectly clear.

The Tovolo King Cube Clear Ice System claims to produce, "four crystal-clear 2" King Cubes" that are, "ultra-slow melting and won't dilute your favorite spirits". To be fair, it achieves its objective of "four 2" King Cubes", but the results are far from crystal-clear. Yet, what truly makes this product horrible is the execution of the product design and the process used to produce the ice cubes. The problems are so numerous, I'm not going to bore you with the details, but suffice it to these points: Messy process, water spills everywhere and causes the components to freeze in place, making disassembly for accessing the cubes virtually impossible (ours froze in place, causing the Styrofoam insulation components to break after the second use). The ice cubes produced are only partially clear, evidencing the cubes are not freezing slow enough to purge the trapped air. This results in a cube that melts faster than it would if the air was not trapped.There are great ways to produce clear ice for your craft cocktails. This product is not one of them. Spend your money elsewhere.

Its a bit finicky, but works as advertised. The green molds need to be fully seated on the reservoir in order for the foam to fit well and close completely, and there is always some splashing and leaking from the sink to the freezer, but once I figured it out, it makes perfectly clear ice balls. I use hot water and top off the molds after placing it in the freezer (and always put it on a towel to keep water from dripping into the freezer. I have only had it for a few weeks at this point and have been very careful when placing and removing the foam cover so I haven't run into any of the cracking or crumbling issues other reviews have mentioned. If you take the time and care to use it correctly, it works very well. My only complaint is that when filled with hot water it takes ~36 hours to freeze the spheres- which of course is what creates the clear ice. To get around that, I plan on ordering a second one

Works as advertised. You can't leave them in forever. My freezer gets the cubes within 12-16 hours so I remove them around that time. There's a chance the plastic would break if you left it indefinitely. Cubes come out clear and square if filled properly.

This product works well to make clear ice (using tap water) and the size of the cube are perfect for a cocktail old fashioned glass. Been able to use this product again and again so far.The ice cubes are not clear everywhere throughout (unlike the photo on the box). There are always some oddities.The polystyrene is fragile and need caution when disassembling. Not sure how long it will last.

Tried a bunch of ice cube trays/systems to make clear ice.This is the only one that does the job.Well designed, easy to use. Love it.

While I love the Tovolo 81-22904 King Cube Ice Mold System for its ability to create large, clear ice cubes that melt slowly and keep my drinks cold for longer, it's important to note that it can be fragile. When trying to remove the ice cubes from the mold, especially when they are frozen, the mold can crack or break. I have personally experienced this and unfortunately had to replace the mold. However, with careful handling and patience, I have been able to successfully create many large ice cubes with this system. Overall, I still recommend the Tovolo 81-22904 King Cube Ice Mold System to anyone looking for a high-quality ice mold, but just be aware of its fragility and handle it with care.

It needs a bit of fettling to make sure there are no air pockets in the corners. I push the corners of each cube in to let the air escape after filling but once I had that figured out I was very satisfied.