GRAND JUNCTION, Colo.—Tom Slappey is a cold businessman. So cold, in fact, his business is a 32-degree frozen asset.
Bagged or in bulk, Slappey sells ice as well as purified water at a number of roadside vending machines popping up across the Western Slope.
“The concept has been around for about eight years now,” Slappey said while demonstrating how the new Twice the Ice machine located in the Alco parking lot off U.S. Highway 50 on Orchard Mesa works.
First, water is pumped into a water softener. Then it enters a reverse-osmosis system that removes 100 percent of the impurities within the water.
It is then stored in a tank, nearly at a freezing temperature, which is used to make the more than 6,000 pounds of ice on reserve, or it is pumped into bottles for customers on demand.
As a last safety feature, the water is filtered by a high intensity UV light to kill any bacteria that may be in the water.
“The thing with this ice is it’s never touched by human hands until the customer grabs the bag,” Slappey said.
The vending machines are high-tech and much more complicated to install than one might expect.
In addition to finding a wide, well-lit space, the machine requires hookups to a main water supply, three-phase electrical service, a sewer system, plus a phone line for Internet access.
Slappey can run any one of the three machines he owns right from his Verizon Droid phone.
If, for example, there is a jam in the ice chute, Slappey is automatically alerted of the problem via his phone. He then can remotely trigger the reset button for the machine on Orchard Mesa even if he is at his home in New Castle.
“It’s a whole new concept,” Slappey said.
The machines are manufactured by Ice House America in Moultrie, Ga. More than 1,858 ice machines have been sold since the company began eight years ago.
Slappey became familiar with the company’s headquarters while selling steel products in Jacksonville, Fla.
He said he always wanted to live in Colorado, but he could never figure out how to make a living in this area.
“So we just threw caution to the wind and bought the distribution rights to the entire Western Slope,” Slappey said.
He built his first Twice the Ice machine outside Choice Liquors in Rifle last year. It took nearly a year to finally open the business, he said, “But it’s been very pleasant the way things have worked out in Rifle.”
He put his next ice-vending machine next to Cottonwood Liquors on U.S. Highway 6 & 50 about a month ago.
That machine was a popular draw for revelers at Country Jam last month who were treated to a free bag of ice with the purchase of a case of beer from the store.
“We gave away almost 200 bags,” liquor store owner Denny Barbour said.
He also noticed the machine is popular among oil and gas workers who use it early in the morning to fill their coolers and lunch boxes, plus fill water jugs in preparation for a hard day’s work in the sun.
Then, there are those using the machine before heading the other direction for fun, hauling tent trailers and speedboats to Lake Powell.
“Now people can get everything they need here: beer, ice, propane and gas,” Barbour said.
Both of the vending machines nearly sold out during the Fourth of July holiday weekend.
“It’s because it’s cheap,” Slappey said.
The ice costs $2.50 per bag, considerably less than the usual going price. He said there isn’t much overhead to pay, which keeps the cost down.
Slappey has been so pleased with the reception by the public and the cooperation of the city of Grand Junction, he plans to place six to eight more machines in the Grand Valley within the next two years.
“The city has just been great to work with, top to bottom,” he said.
He said he also is looking for investors who may want to buy and operate their own ice-vending machines on the Western Slope.
