How to make ice using REALice®

Building new ice with REALice®: Use the REALice® hand unit only with cold water

When building new ice, the water should be added in thin layers. There will be more water coming out from the unit than what there seems to be. Never stand still, move slowly backwards, from short side to short side as you cover the rink.

The REALice hand unit should be pointed at about 45° upwards. Move it constantly from one side to the other.

For your first coverage, divide the rink into five parts and work your way through all five until all the ice is done. Allow the water to freeze before applying the next layer.

For the next layer, this time you’ll need to go the other way, from long side to long side. This time, divide the rink into 10 parts and work your way through all 10 until all the ice has been covered.

You need to build approximate 10mm or 1⁄2” until the ice is strong enough to use the ice resurfacer.

REALice® on existing ice:

Begin by planing down the ice approximately 0.59″ – 0.79″ (15-20mm), or to the point on the ice where any advertisements, logos or other graphics might be.

Make sure the blades of your ice resurfacer have been sharpened beforehand to make the cutting easier. Approximately 2mm will be cut each round and with a run rate of approximately four rounds per hour, this process will take about three hours to complete.

After the ice has been planed, you may begin rebuilding the ice with REALice-treated cold water only. Approximately 1mm of ice per round should be built, taking about 3 rounds per hour. To build the required 1cm – 1.5cm, allocate approximately 4 hours to complete the job. Total processing time with existing ice: 6-7 hours.

The water for the new ice must be applied in thin layers that has enough time to freeze in between the ice being refurbished. It is sufficient enough to add 0.59″ (15mm) of the new ice since it will be considerably stronger then the old one.

Raise the ice temperature from the start gradually and over time!

For example start from 16ºF (- 8.88°C) to 18ºF – 19ºF (- 7.77°C to -7.22°C) and then gradually
work your way up to 23ºF (-5°C) or even 25°F (- 3.8°C) — in small increments.

If you leave the ice temperature at 16°F (-8.88°C) and use cold water to resurface the ice, the water will freeze too fast.

Download ice resurfacing instructions and tips related to a REALice® installation