TurnKeyInfo
Refurbished Soft Serve Ice Cream Machines
Refurbished Soft Serve Ice Cream Machines | Used Soft Serve Equipment
When shopping for a soft serve ice cream machine, the amount of brands & choices out there is pretty significant. We’ve got Taylor and Stoelting, who are the most well known i'd say. We also have Electrofreeze, who I would say makes some of my favorite machines, and we also have Donper, Spaceman, which are industry standard, built-in-china machines, as well as the up and coming ISTRO also manufactured in asia.
While there are even more soft serve ice cream machine brands floating around, I generally tend to avoid them for two reasons:
- I'm personally not familiar with these machines, and as such I can’t in good faith sell them to a customer.
- The above listed brands offer more than enough variety and have at least some form of credibility in the soft serve ice cream machine market.
While choosing one of these machines doesn't guarantee success, I believe the risk of wasting money on a machine that does not work is significantly reduced if you stay with one of these brand machines.
What Soft Serve Ice Cream Machine Should I Get?
Well, now that you know the top soft serve ice cream machine brands, your selection of machines shrinks to around a few hundred… which obviously doesn't help much when you're not sure what you're looking for, or quite frankly looking at. So, let's start with the basics.
Parts of an Soft Serve Ice Cream Machine:
To the right is a an example of a basic soft serve ice cream machine, with the major parts that almost of soft serve machine will have labeled. Below I listed what each part thats labeled in the phone, from top to bottom:
- Hopper Cover:As the name implys, it is used to cover the hoppers so that nothing contaminates the mix/product.
- Control Panels:Used to control the soft serve ice cream machine tempature, viscosity, as well as manage any troubleshooting. Is different for each machine.
- Switch:The soft serve machine power switch. Is usually below the control panel on the left or right side.
- Discharge Door:The door used to dispense product. Will have 1-3 handels usually, depending on machines capcity.
- Leakage holder:Used the capture and spillage from serving product.
Air v.s Water Cooled Machine?
If you have good ventilation, you can go air cooled. If ventilation is an issue, water cooled is a better option. If you have more than 6 machines, there is a water cooled option called a “glycol system” which might be a better option than running 6 water lines. It’s not cheap at about $15k, but it protects the machines and keeps your air conditioner from working overtime.
That's the TLDR version of why you’d want an Air or Water cooled machine. If you’re still confused, you can read our older post that goes more in depth on air & water cooled machines.
Gravity Machines
The most common machines you will see on the market are gravity fed machines. This is for a number of reasons, but I’d say the real main reason is their ease of use. In terms of all the different varieties of soft serve ice cream machines, gravity fed is as simple as it will get in terms of a functioning soft serve ice cream machine.
Pressurized Machines
Pressurized machines are a bit more complicated. They have more moving parts and loose pieces, and are definitely not as easy to use as the gravity fed machines. With that being said, the Pressurized / Pump machine will produce higher volume and a better texture than a gravity machine can.
The TLDR version is this: For first time ice cream ventures, gravity feed will be the cheapest and easiest option for beginners, while the pressurized machines will be the winner in terms of quality and quantity, but will take much more work overall to maintain properly.
Types of Soft Serve Machines:
Now, there are a few different types of soft serve equipment, each serving an important use. Those machines are including but not limited to:
- Single flavor machines, which as the name implies serves a single flavor.
- Twin-Twist machines, which generally serve two flavors and a mix of the two.
- Shake Machines, which generally are used to make milkshakes &
- Combination Units, which serve both ice cream cones and cups as well as milkshakes
Each machine definitely has their pluses and minuses, but they all can be really great machines. Which you choose will mostly depend on what you need for your store.
Thank You for Reading Wednesdays Post! Now that you know the basics of refrubished soft serve ice cream machines, check out some used soft serve machines avalible today!