At first glance, a banal situation: you approach a friend or relative and are interested in: “We need transparent ice. "How can we make sure that the cubes are not muddy and cracked, and even without the specific smell of the freezer?" The strangest thing is that in 99.9% of cases you will receive a recommendation to put the ice mold in the freezer and wait a couple of hours, accompanied by a mocking look. Yes, it will always seem to the interlocutor that you asked a ridiculous and absurd question, the answer to which even a first grader knows. But he will remain in this happy confidence until he himself tries to make transparent ice. It seems that everyone understands and knows how to make ice cubes, but in practice, not everyone succeeds.
There is a problem
Any modern refrigerator in its standard equipment contains an egg tray and shelves of different caliber and purpose, as well as a miniature mold for freezing water. Incidentally, inventive housewives not only use it for its intended purpose, but also freeze fragrant herbs, berry, fruit and vegetable purees in it, which are then used to prepare a variety of dishes.
Such skill, however, does not mean at all that at least half of the experienced girls are aware of how to prepare the elementary component of cocktails and soft drinks - transparent ice. How to make it crystal clear and beautiful, such as it is served in bars, restaurants or shown on television spots?
The usual freezing of water always gives an unexpected and rather unsightly result. The cubes look unaesthetic, they contain inclusions of unknown origin, multiple chips and cracks, in addition, they have an uneven consistency.
Indisputable condition
So what's the deal? Why is it so hard to get clear ice at home? How to make it clean, like a tear, smooth and shiny? The answer to the question is quite simple: then the cubes will be perfect when the conditions are favorable. There are several of them, and now we will talk about them.
Firstly, the raw materials from which you plan to make perfectly transparent ice should also be ideal. What does this mean? It's simple: tap water does not suit us. In the substance that the utilities supply through pipes, it is rather difficult to determine the composition. Impurities of metals, chemicals and other muck during freezing do not allow water molecules to crystallize as expected, they break the clear structure of ice originally.
Secondly, liquids often contain air, small bubbles prevent the frozen water from becoming transparent and smooth. This suggests the conclusion: the water should be clean and free of gases. Distilled water can be an ideal raw material , but doctors strongly do not recommend using it in the diet.
So, how to make transparent ice at home? First of all, you need to prepare the raw materials. Drinking water purified under industrial conditions is suitable for this purpose, but not mineral, enriched with salts and minerals, but a simple table and still water. Before pouring liquid into an ice mold, it must be boiled. During heating, air bubbles evaporate from it, which greatly increases the level of transparency and purity of ice. You can also use the water that flows from the tap, but it must be cleaned with a household filter, and then boiled. To achieve maximum effect, the procedure can be repeated twice, that is, filter the water one by one, boil, clean again, and then bring to a boil again.
Ice "Drunk"
We figured out the water quality, but no less important factor will be the creation of the right microclimate for freezing. In general, this topic is likely to concern lovers of soft drinks (of different levels of strength). Muddy cubes in a glass with soda or alcohol are quite suitable for personal needs, then guests do not really want to regale themselves with such drinks, so the question of how to make transparent ice cubes is relevant for many people.
It has been experimentally observed that ice is then cloudy and ugly when it freezes unevenly. To reduce the likelihood of temperature fluctuations, it is important to quickly freeze water with a stable microclimate.
Here, the opinions of experts already differ somewhat. Some argue that the faster the ice forms, the more beautiful it will be, and for this, water must be placed in the freezer at the lowest possible value on the thermometer. Others, on the contrary, advise to set the thermostat to -1 º and allow the water to freeze under such conditions, the main thing is not to open the chamber in order to avoid the ingress of warm air from the outside.
Holiday on a grand scale
Many readers may be interested in the question of how entertainment facilities manage to create a large number of ice cubes. How to make transparent ice so that it is enough for hundreds of visitors and guests? For this, special units are used - ice makers. With their help, you can freeze a lot of water, they maintain optimal temperature inside the chamber, which allows you to make ice transparent.
But even when working with such a machine, it is important to observe certain conditions. In addition to the fact that the water quality must correspond to the specified parameters (the absence of impurities is mandatory), lots of ice must be done simultaneously. That is, adding water to the cells, while ready-made cubes remain in the chamber, will lead to a poor final result. Liquid is best used at room temperature: as practice shows, cooler water freezes unevenly, and the ice turns cloudy.
Cold art
Last but not least, a curious question - how to make ice transparent at home, if it is needed for sculpture? Ice statues and figures are a magnificent sight. Without exaggeration, their creators can be called great masters of their craft. Some of them create magnificent masterpieces, work on their works all day long in terrible conditions, so that grateful spectators can enjoy the winter fairy tale.
But here's the problem: where to get blocks of ice of such a colossal size so that huge sculptures can be cut from them? Sometimes artificial ice is used for this, but it is very expensive, in addition, the blanks are made in standard sizes, which the sculptor does not always like.
In the winter, the most appropriate option would be to use natural ice, which is cut into blocks directly in water bodies. This is a rather dangerous trade, because there is always a serious danger of being under the ice, and you have to work in special clothes so as not to get wet.
As you can see, the chances of making a block yourself - at home, in the freezer - are extremely small. In winter, of course, you can freeze ice in any container, if the air temperature allows it, but with some reservations.
Pros recommend
To create ice masterpieces, it is necessary to use a solid block of uniform consistency. Loose ice will quickly crumble and melt, and this will not make it possible to carve a beautiful sculpture.
To work with too much frost is not only difficult, but also dangerous - the ice freezes so hard that during processing very hard and sharp fragments fly off from it, which can easily be injured. In addition, it will not be possible to glue together several parts of the product with water - it will freeze too quickly, and a warm liquid can cause the explosion of the entire composition due to a sharp temperature difference.
You can create ice blocks yourself using special freezers. They are imported and domestically produced. A plus of Russian freezers is the ability to order a camera for individual sizes.