[Guest]

Hi, I searched the backlog and didn't find this one. So here ya go:

You have an old-fashioned refrigerator with a small freezer compartment capable of holding seven ice cube trays stacked vertically. But there are no shelves to separate the trays, and if you stack one tray on top of another before the ice cubes in the bottom tray are fully frozen, the top tray will nestle into it, and you won’t get full cubes in the bottom tray. You have an unlimited supply of trays, each of which can make a dozen cubes.

What’s the fastest way to make full-sized ice cubes and what is the most you can make?

[Guest]

Hi, I searched the backlog and didn't find this one. So here ya go:

You have an old-fashioned refrigerator with a small freezer compartment capable of holding seven ice cube trays stacked vertically. But there are no shelves to separate the trays, and if you stack one tray on top of another before the ice cubes in the bottom tray are fully frozen, the top tray will nestle into it, and you won’t get full cubes in the bottom tray. You have an unlimited supply of trays, each of which can make a dozen cubes.

What’s the fastest way to make full-sized ice cubes and what is the most you can make?

You can make 12 ice cubes in one tray.

Then use these 12 ice cubes to separate 7 trays from one another by putting 2 cubes in between two trays on diagonally opposite ends.

In this way, u can make ice cubes in fastest way.

[Guest]

Is the freezer able to hold 7 ice cube tray stacked slightly nestled like they are intended to be used or can you just offset the trays slightly forward and backward to prevent the nesting? Or if you don't have any room forward backward use some outdoor caulk to fill in the spaces under to trays (just a few key locations is all you need) and then the trays won't 'nest' anymore.

Fill 4 trays with water and separate them using 3 empty trays placed upside down in between the 4 trays being frozen. Then add the 3 remaining trays and separate them with two of the frozen trays turned upside down. But if you are not allowed to turn the frozen trays upside down because the icecubes might fall out (which never happens to me, I have to beat the tray to get those cubes to come out) then after the 4 are frozen, remove the spacers, add 2 filled trays on top with 1 upside down tray as a spacer, and then finally freeze the last tray on top. This all being said, I'm guessing I'm still missing something since the OP made a point to say you have an unlimited number of trays. Maybe the point is that you can make 4 trays at a time and fill a bag each time ??

[Guest]

So based on Kewal's method you can make 72 cubes each freeze cycle after the 1st cycle. unless you used my caulking trick in which case you can make the full 84 cube each cycle

[roolstar]

You can make 12 ice cubes in one tray.

Then use these 12 ice cubes to separate 7 trays from one another by putting 2 cubes in between two trays on diagonally opposite ends.

In this way, u can make ice cubes in fastest way.

Seperating with ice cubes is the same as seperating upside down in term of SPACE!! And less practical too, I might add!

Both your techniques would yield the same result after cycle 1

for Cycle 1 however, Doctor Moshe has a better result with 4 trays beating Kewal's technique who gets you just 1

This however does not mean this is necessarily the optimal approach.

That's the right of Joey D to determine

Edited October 19, 2009 by roolstar

[Guest]

maybe I read more into Kewals answer but I assume Kewal means use the 2 ice cubes and put them into the other six trays so that those cubes hold up the tray(s) above it while the water in the remaiing 10 openings freeze. As for the optimal approach, (not including my caulking idea or using other things like cardboard to separate some, would be to do my 1 st round to get 4 trays and then use a few of those ice cubes and do the rest using Kewal's trick.

[Guest]

You can make 120 cubes (10 full trays) in the time it takes to freeze two trays. First, fill four of the trays with water and turn the other three upside down and use them to space the four apart. That gives you 48 cubes. Next, empty the four trays and put two ice cubes in diagonally opposed corners of each of six of the trays. Fill the remaining holes — and the entire seventh tray — with water. Using the ice cubes to hold the trays apart, stack all seven (the seventh tray should go on top), and freeze them. You’ll get an additional 72 cubes. You can get 72 cubes for every batch except the first, for which spacer ice cubes are not yet available.

Edited October 20, 2009 by Joey D

[Guest]

However, having said that, I think I really like Dr. Moshe's idea about turning the full treys upside-down. Seems easier, no?