Important Considerations When Choosing an Ice Crusher and Blower System

If you are in the entertainment or snow-making industries, you need an ice crusher and blower system. This equipment is heavy duty, and can be used over long periods of time. At SEMCO/SEMCOLD LLC you are able to design the exact ice crusher and blower system that you need. If you need high capacity, fast output, or a certain fuel type, SEMCO/SEMCOLD LLC can help you get exactly what you’re looking for. In order to know what you need, you first have to know what is out there and how it can serve your business.

What Ice Crushers and Blowers Are

Ice crushers and blowers are actually two separate machines. Your business may call for one, the other or a combination.

  • Ice Blower – Ice blowers are commonly used to make it look like it is snowing, such as for a video or photoshoot. A motorized fan propels crushed ice into the air. The blower’s design, fan, and motor can be adjusted to change the distance the ice is propelled and the output. SEMCO/SEMCOLD LLC wants to make sure that you get exactly the system that you need.
  • Ice Crusher – The ice crusher does exactly what the name suggests. It crushes ice. This machine tends to be large, but it is still quite simple. Ice is fed into the machine and pushed along towards the crushing mechanisms. The crusher has blades which a motor turns. These blades crush the ice and feed it back out of the machine. This gives you snow-like ice particles.
  • Crusher-Blower Combination – It’s fairly easy to see that these two machines would work great together. Ice blowers need a supply of crushed ice, and ice crushers can provide that supply. This will allow you to have a longer-lasting snowing effect. Having the blower also means you do not have to shovel the crushed ice up.

If you need an ice blower or an ice crusher, chances are you want a combination. It will give you a better use of your crushed ice, and it makes for some great effects.

Customizing Ice Crushers and Blowers

Because every business is not the same, it is important for ice crushers and blowers, like other machinery, to be versatile. Some of the many options that exist for ice crushers and blowers include the following:

  • Size and capacity – You can get a machine that can hold up to 300 pound blocks of ice or even 400 pounds.
  • Output speed – You can get a machine with an output as low as about 25 tons per hour all the way to speeds of 2000 pounds per minute.
  • Cost – With the different options you can choose to get or not get, there is a wide range of cost as well. This means that you can find something in your price range, no matter what that is.
  • Maintenance – You can choose what fuel type it is and what type of mounting is required.
  • Blowing Distance – As discussed earlier, these machines can be set to blow shorter or longer distances. Some machines can even propel ice to distances of 300 feet.
  • Ice Type – You can also get machines that crush different types of ice—cubes, blocks, fragments or tubes.

Contact SEMCO/SEMCOLD LLC for Assistance

Contact SEMCO/SEMCOLD LLC to get the machine that’s right for you. We can help you build the perfect system for your business. Don’t settle for getting a cookie cutter machine; build your own customized ice crusher and/or blower today.

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Cooling Methods for Pears Post-Harvest

There’s no flavor quite like the sweet, delicate taste of a pear. Pears are popular snacks and recipe ingredients, and are eaten around the world—but in order to reach consumers’ tables and fruit bowls in the best possible condition, pears must be carefully treated and properly stored. At SEMCO/SEMCOLD LLC, we know that it’s important to keep pears cool after harvest, and there are many different ways this can be done.

Pear Overview

Over 3,000 varities of pears are grown around the world, although the plant was originally native to Europe, Central Asia, and North Africa. Pears have been consumed as food since prehistoric times, and they are one of the oldest cultivated fruits. Various cultivars are created specifically for cooking, eating raw, or creating drinks like pear cider; pears also have great cultural significance in many parts of the world.

Pair Storage

When properly cared for, pears can last from 60 to 90 days in storage, giving them some of the longest shelf lives of any fruit. Generally, they should be stored at a relative humidity of 90% to 95% in order to prevent water loss—which can lead to shriveling, drying, and loss of salable weight. In addition, pears both produce, and are sensitive to, ethylene, a ripening hormone given off as the fruit matures. This means that pears should not be stored either with produce that is sensitive to ethylene (such as berries, carrots, or avocados) or with produce that gives off ethylene (such as apples, bananas, or peaches). In addition, overripe pears should be immediately separated from unripe ones.

Pair Cooling

Pears should also be kept cool in order to retain their freshness. Cooling helps to slow ripening, retard metabolic changes, reduce moisture loss, and prevent spoilage due to bacteria, fungus, or pests. Pears are best stored at a temperature that is close to freezing. Although they are often fairly warm when they’re on the tree due to sunlight and the ambient temperature of the air, they should be cooled as soon as possible after picking.

Refrigeration Units

Refrigerated rooms and other facilities can be used to help hold temperatures down, but they usually are not a complete solution on their own. Most refrigerated rooms and cooling mechanisms are designed merely to hold fruit at a specific temperature after they have been pre-cooled, not to drop their current temperature. There are a number of precooling measures that can be used to lower the temperature of pears after harvest.

Hydro Cooling

One of the most common options is hydro cooling, which involves placing the pears in chilled or ice water. This not only helps the fruit to rapidly decrease in temperature, but can also help prewash it. Hydro cooling can involve simply placing the pears in containers of water, or it can involve more convenient and efficient hydro cooling machines.

Top Icing

There are also a number of techniques that can be used after the pears are packed. One popular technique is top icing, which involves placing a layer of ice across the top of the packaging. This is one of the most highly efficient cooling mechanisms, since a single pound of ice can cool three pounds of produce by more than forty degrees Fahrenheit.

Slush Cooling

Slush cooling is another excellent choice for pears. This method involves injecting a slushy mix of water and ice into a box of pears, and then allowing the water to drain away and leave behind a thin coating of snow around the fruit. This is an excellent way to remove as much heat as possible from the fruit and keep it cool in transit.

Fruit Protection at SEMCO/SEMCOLD LLC

Here at SEMCO/SEMCOLD LLC, we know that our clients have worked hard to produce their crops, and we want to help them protect their quality. We offer a wide variety of cooling mechanisms, cold storage facilities, and ice production equipment that can help keep pears cool and fresh. SEMCO/SEMCOLD LLC equipment can help keep pears in great condition for consumers.