Any Mr Zippy Owners Out There?

[The Wiz]

We currently have a unit at our Super Wal-Mart outparcel car wash site that was installed in May. Initially the unit had a lot of issues that took about 4 months to correct over the peak summer season with JCC, so sales were spotty with lots of down time.

We have had little success with water sales and marginal success with ice. We have tried several different pricing models and currently we are at $1.25 for 12 lbs of bagged ice and $2.00 for 25 lbs. of ice. We are trying to be differentiate with Ice House America about 2 miles away. Currently I am losing about $1000 to $1500 a month on this venture. On peak days the unit runs out of ice so I am concerned that it doesn't have the capacity to make a profit.

We ran a TV add for 3 months and have signage posted all over the site. Any ideas on how to get this thing to make money?

Any suggestions to be successful in the ice business?

 

[raisetheprice]

Unfortunately, I've heard similar stirrings about Mr Zippys elsewhere as well. The only way to keep up with demand on peak days is to build up an inventory with an additional freezer next to your machine. But that defeats the purpose of the stand alone ice vending machine all together if you have to stand there and sell ice manually. Or you could produce smaller bags and charge less. 25lbs is a lot of bulk ice to vend for such a smaller machine. Someone is putting a Polar Ice in today just down the road here...I have a feeling they'll have the same problem with peak days. The storage bins in these smaller machines are simply not large enough. Another problem I see...Wal-Mart sells ice.

 

[MEP001]

I've heard the very same thing, particularly that the storage capacity is too small and the recovery too slow, so that when things are just right to sell a lot of ice, it runs out. Perhaps the unit can be modified for faster production or with more storage.

 

[MikeV]

Here in Houston there is a company called "Twice the Ice" I don't know if they are based in Houston or not, but the units they put in have since been taken out. Both near the bay and on busy highways.

 

[raisetheprice]

Maybe Ike got them and they're wading through the insurance to replace them. Twice the Ice is the industry leader...with 1400 machines across the country. They're build in Georgia.

 

[raisetheprice]

Stopped by the new Polar Ice machine this morning on the way to work (not a direct competitor here yet, this machine is 45 mins from me). You have to tear a bag off of the role to the side, then try to hold it up to the chute while trying to push this foot pedal thing on the ground to make the ice come out after putting your money in. Sounds like way too much coordination for the consumer unless they have a cooler and don't have to fumble with the bag. I didn't use the machine, but from the looks of it, a bag could hang outside to be touched by someone else etc etc. Not exactly santitary. My customers put their money in, push a button, and walk away with a bag of ice that noone else has touched in all of about 20 seconds...no fumbling or confusion.

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[MEP001]

I would have thought such a machine would vend the ice bag rather than leave them hanging for anyone to take or handle.

 

[raisetheprice]

I would have thought such a machine would vend the ice bag rather than leave them hanging for anyone to take or handle.

They have a sign up that reads: $5000 reward to anyone who turn in those who tamper with or destroy this machine. Cameras in place, yada yada yada...

So maybe their $.15 bags are safe at least from being taken.

 

[pitzerwm]

Seems like someone didn't think that concept out very well. 25 years ago when I had a coffee/chocolate machine that dropped the cup, kids messed with the cups and I got rid of it.

 

[cleaning up mud]

Ice

The machine just cost so much, what is the payback time?

 

[The Wiz]

Post

I can't say what the payback period would be becuase I am not even covering my variable costs right.

 

[The Wiz]

Capacity

We didn't add another ice maker because we only sell out on holidays. It would not be worth the $15K investment to sell a couple hundred dollars more ice 5 days of the year. It would be nice if the machine had an open closed led sign tied to the out service status in the PLC so when it did run out of ice customers could tell visually without having to get out of their cars. The ideal situation would be additional capacity for weekends and holidays. If it had a larger storage bin and could be programmed to ramp up the ice production and fill the bin to maximize capacity when needed, it would be great. For example during peak season Thursday - Saturday fill the bin up to maximum but then for the rest of the period just keep it at half bin full.

 

[hunter]

Are you having any better luck with it?

Ive been looking into both Mr.Zippy and twice the ice houses, Ive seen some very impresive #'s from twice the ice but still skeptical.

Whats your opinion?

 

[The Wiz]

Mr. Zippy Performance

The machine is working fine after some initial troubles the first year. I wouldn't buy a Zippy unless you know you will sell a good amount of water. Our water sales are practically nonexistent. I can't really speak to the Ice House as I have no experience with it. I can say that I don't think purified ice is a real selling point for my customers. I will say that the Zippy machine is much better looking than Twice the Ice and much smaller than their standard model. All of my profits go to the bank so I have better uses of money than the ice business all together. I am going to stick to car washing and leave the ice business to those that want to focus on it exclusively. I will be renting space to those that want to run an ice machine. I recommend speaking with owners of both machines before making a purchasing decision. Our Zippy is for sale if you are interested in saving $25K over a new unit.

 

[teamplex65]

Do you have the 2000lb add on feature to make 4000lbs a day? If this industry is anything like the carwash industry you make your money on 20 days a year, the rest of them are break-even days (if your lucky).

I have to ask, what is the cost of one of these units. They look like a very expensive ice machine.

Is the ice edible or is it only to be used for cooling purposes?

 

[patrickw16]

I read your post about the Mr. Zippy's machine. Where is yours located? Are you in an area that has really high temperatures?

 

[The Wiz]

We are located in front of a Super Wal-Mart in Moncks Corner South Carolina. We are near a large lake with lots of boaters and fisherman. www.WashWizardCarWash.com