Casting Techniques: Ice Cubes

Let's be honest, while there are several ways to utilize your AlumniMold, we're pretty confident that making branded ice cubes is your primary intent. As such, it's probably helpful if we pass along a few helpful tips. Feel free to read through our words of wisdom like an ol' cowboy on a bar stool, or check back soon to be entertained by some how to videos .

Filling Your AlumniMold

If you look closely inside any one of the six wells within your mold, positioned along the sidewall at the bottom of the logo there is a small ledge. Theoretically, this indention, or line, is the fill line to ensure the water in the well has room to swell as it transforms into beautifully branded ice; yes, water expands as it freezes and actually contracts in on itself as if freezes from the outside in, causing that pesky hazy impurity in the center (ok enough science). However, if you are impatient and unwilling to be that precise like we are - after all it's just ice - fill the well full and snap the lid down, it'll be fine. 

Now a quick note on the lid. If you overfill the wells, you are liable to squish some water out and make a mess. One way to prevent that from happening, is to lay the lid down on one of the far end of the tray and slide your hand along the lid as you lay it down to ensure the lid seals tight against the tray. Otherwise, if you place the lid down flush all at once, you will create an air pocket between the lid and the tray/wells of water, which when compressed will displace water out of the wells.

Check back soon for tips and tricks on how to make more than just a standard branded ice cube.

Making Ice

This one is simple. Pop your AlumniMold in any freezer and let that magical device called a heat exchanger that makes your freezer cold do its thing. AlumniMolds are designed to permit sufficient air flow around them to support consistent freezing even when stacked. That said, it still takes approximately 8 hours for an efficient and cold freezer to yield solid cubes of ice. Of course there are several factors here out of our control, so we highly encourage you to not be in a rush and leave yourself ample time to make new cubes. One option to ensure you never run out of cubes though, fill wells as you empty them - your future self will thank you.

Removing Ice Cubes

This is it, this is the important section of this blog. First and foremost, don't worry about damaging the silicone tray in attempting to remove ice cubes. You actually have a better chance of breaking the logo off the body of the ice cube long before you damage the silicone. That said, removing the ice cube takes a little bit of effort with even more know-how; watch the video below to really get the hang of it.

If you are not impatient like we are, let your AlumniMold sit out on the counter for a few minutes. This will allow the sidewalls of the tray to warm up causing the outer walls of the cubes to melt a little so the cubes slide out easier. However, we have found that letting the cubes melt too much actually makes them even more difficult to remove in the future.

After getting the snap secure lid out of the way, hold the body of the tray firmly with both hands and grasp the top edge of the sidewalls around the ice cube with your fingertips. As you pull the sidewalls down and away from the cube, use your thumbs on the bottom-side of the tray to push the cubes up; we recommend applying force across the entire face of your logo to ensure it doesn't bind or break. While holding pressure with one of your thumbs, probably your dominant hand, use your other hand to grasp the cube and gently work it out of the tray to reveal a beautifully branded ice cube. The first cube is always the most difficult to remove, and it may take you a few attempts to get it down; you'll be an expert by the 6th cube.

Have any useful tips, please feel free to share with your fellow alum in the comments section below. 

Replacing Ice Cubes

In the event you pull out an extra ice cube and don't plan on using it, you can place the cube back in the tray well - make sure you align it appropriately. However, please note that it will not, despite your best effort, slide all the way back into the well and as a result the snap secure lid likely will not close all the way. That is due to the depth of logo and how tight of a seal the ice makes with the silicone, trapping air underneath the ice cube which is preventing the cube from being re-seated to its full extent in the well. This is actually why it is difficult to remove the ice cubes too, as you are fighting against a vacuum seal, and why you need to pull the sidewalls down and away from the cube to let some air into the tray well.