Howe Rapid Freeze, Service Manual

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23
THE INSIDE STORY
1)
The cut away picture from the previous page will allow you to locate the position of the parts as
well as showing that Rapid Freeze® Flakers are an open vertical stationary "barrel" style
evaporator. Each evaporator is an all welded, one piece design which provides superior
structural integrity and heat transfer characteristics. The heavy duty construction accounts for
a 25 year life time evaporator warranty. The barrel style evaporator allows the ice to fall
through the center of the evaporator and avoids extruding the ice to the top like commercial
flakers. This design eliminates the bearing loads created by extruding ice which accounts for the
short life of commercial flakers and high maintenance.
2)
The ice blade is made of investment cast stainless material. The investment casting process
assures that razor thin tolerances can be maintained indefinitely. Stainless steel is corrosion
resistant which is important particularly in areas with poor water quality. The ice blade never
comes into contact with the evaporator, which accounts for its long life. Since the blade was
introduced in 1986 The factory has rarely sharpened or replaced a stainless steel blade.
3)
The rubber squeegee is constructed of a USDA approved material which is resilient enough to
provide years of service without replacement. It assures that 100% of the daily ice production is
completely dry, crisp flake ice which contains more than 144 BTUs per pound of ice because it is
sub-cooled. This is an important feature when comparing Rapid Freeze® to a commercial
flaker, because none of the commercial units use a squeegee. As a result 20-30% of the daily ice
production in a commercial flaker is water which runs down the drain.
4)
The bronze bearing and shaft thrust washer included are impregnated with a lubricating oil,
grease fittings are also provided. The bearings are oversized to provide a lower level of friction
on the interior surface. This assures a very long life and substantially lower maintenance cost
compared to commercial flakers.
5)
The advantage of Rapid Freeze flake ice offers over the "granular" ice produced on commercial
machines is the greater surface area, dryness, lower temperature and longer life. Rapid Freeze
flake ice contains over 17,000 sq. ft. of surface area per ton. This equates to approximately 2
times the surface area of "granular" ice. Greater surface area provides more contact with the
product to assure better cooling. The temperature of Rapid Freeze flake ice measures
approximately 22
° F when harvested. This sub cooled ice contains more than 144 BTUs per
pound which assures a substantially longer life than "granular" ice.