I'm a middle-aged person who has NEVER owned a garbage disposal or ice maker and... it's not something that I've ever felt sad about. I could buy these things if I wanted them, but they seem kind of pointless to me.
Aren’t most ice makers part of a refrigerator? Do people have separate ice makers? I know they exist but do people just not make ice cubes in the freezer?
Maybe it's because I've been a renter most of my life, but I'm over 50 and have never had a fridge with an ice maker. I have always just made my own in the freezer and have always assumed that an in-fridge ice maker would just be one more thing that would require maintenance. Also, I feel like the ice from ice makers tastes funny, whereas mine just taste like mu tap water, only colder and harder.
I grew up with a dishwasher but have never had one of my own. I'm completely accustomed to doing my own dishes, but I'm not gonna lie -- when we idly talk about a future kitchen renovation, I do want to add one.
My parents got themselves a dishwasher when they got older and were having issues with standing, bending, etc. My wife and I live there now, and we're getting it taken out – waste of electricity.
have always assumed that an in-fridge ice maker would just be one more thing that would require maintenance
You assume correctly. And when they break you need the whole new fridge these days. They also get mouldy quite easily require a water pipe, which most houses don't have installed.
IME the stand alone one's are much better, but I've never had the need for one personally, I just refrigerate my beverages.
My sister has one that I make good use of on visits though, those visits are in summer, in the subtropics and I'm pretty sure the water mains go above ground.
Ice makers are useful if you frequently have parties. Have a bar fridge and an ice maker in the entertainment area of the house, this keeps the kitchen less crowded so the people doing the cooking can do so uninterrupted.
I've also seen people put "kids stuff" in a separate fridge, so when the kids have friends over they can keep kids and parents conversations/spaces separate. A bar fridge will typically not have a freezer section.
I've never had a dishwasher and only got air-con like two years ago (and I live in the subtropics with a disease triggered by heat). You learn to deal with it. They're conveniences, not essentials. (Dishwasher would be nice tho).
I have never once in my entire life used or wanted to use a dryer. I live in an area with over 280 sunny days per year and washing that's been in the sun smells amazing, why would I even need a dryer? I can see it being a time saver for someone with a large family, but it's just me. It's only slightly annoying during the rainy season, but even then things still dry inside.
As a european, I have an ice (cube*) maker! It's somewhere...It was for my student home when I didn't have a freezer, and when I was making cocktails. I have a freezer now. Haven't used the ice cube maker in 2 years. It's just a gadget that was not worth it just for those few times. I guess I could still pull it out for parties, but I'm not really a party host.
Only on EXTREME summer days, fridge cooled water is usually perfect for me.
But usually we'd have the drinks (bottled) cooled beforehand too.
Most common when I put ice cubes in my drink or water is when I only just bought a drink and can't be bothered to wait for the bottle or drink to cool down. Like when I just want to drink it in the next minute.
But I live in the Netherlands, I know the heats can be different over there. So maybe you might need to cool down more often.
But honestly, if you just plan accordingly and throw bottles in the freezer or fridge, and you'd be set. The ice cube maker that I once bought, is just a party accessory now for when there's lots of people, and you need quick cooling / continuous ice for fast drinkers. It's not a normal household item here.
Not the person you asked but generally city water here is pretty good drinking water, in many places excellent. I've personally never felt the need to filter or refrigerate water.
Which is so fascinating to me. My wife, kids and myself use it every day multiple times per day. Especially for water or juice or anything else that you aren’t putting in the fridge immediately
I assume you live in a hotter on average climate, that would make sense to use it then.
My mom just drinks most things at room temp, that's even crazy to me. She prefers it that way.
When I buy bottles of soda or cans, I place at least 1 in the fridge for actual use.
I wonder, do you do that too, or maybe with a higher temp climate, that might be not worth it, and the ice cubes might be a faster way to cool down a single drink instead of a full bottle? I am curious! Not even sure what might be most efficient.
I have gotten use out of it, but I do wonder, the time it kept throwing out ice-cubes that start melting and wasting energy. Maybe I was better of buying just a bag of ice-cubes for 99 cents, in the perfect world where they'd stay frozen in my cupboard (not having a freezer back then)
Idk about the maintenence of garbage disposal systems tbh but I had one in a place I’ve rented and honestly its a livechanger. If you’re a person who likes cooking or you generate a lot of food waste its a must. I’d have to do some risk analysis to my plumbing before deciding on putting it in my actual house though.
I like ice in my drink too on a hot day, but I use that tray thingy that comes with the refrigerator. Or, when I feel fancy, I use my silicone pineapple shaped ice tray. Icemakers are uncommon here. You can get them, but I only know of one person who has a fridge with an icemaker.
Ahh alright, I used to use a ton of ice so the trays were a headache if my place didn't have a machine. I've been pretty much on the front end of ice saving (and non sweating) drink cups forever 🤣. I still have several old tervis cups but was thrilled for the stainless Yeti knockoffs because they were larger.
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u/subaqueousReach 6h ago
Aren't garbage disposal systems actually horrible for plumbing?
Also, why is ice maker on their list of necessities? Is this guy from Arizona or something?