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ref_hater
Harvey Hacksmasher
Registered: Mar 2015
Location: USA
Posts: 18 |
Arena curling club - Freezer temp for rock storage
I curl at an club which converts hockey arena ice to curling ice for club play on a weekly basis. We store our rocks in freezers to keep them cool between curling sessions. What is the optimal temperature to store the rocks? Obviously, too hot and the rocks will be very slow. Is there a reason to keep them warmer than the desired ice surface temperature, around 24 degrees Fahrenheit? Is there an optimum?
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02-13-16 02:23AM |
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curlky
Drawmaster
Registered: Oct 2013
Location:
Posts: 559 |
The ideal way to store rocks is on the ice that you will play. So, you should measure the surface temperature of the ice in a few spots (center of each house, mid ice, hog line, and set the freezer temp to the coldest ice temperature you find. Rocks take a long time to change 1 degree, so if you leave them too warm, they will burn in somewhere on the ice.
My guess is the ice will be colder that you would like, because hockey players tend to like colder/firmer ice than curlers, so dotn set to the 24 degrees you want, set to the temp the arena has the ice at.
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02-13-16 11:14AM |
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Phil_D
Drawmaster
Registered: May 2014
Location: Joliet, IL
Posts: 629 |
quote:
Originally posted by curlky
My guess is the ice will be colder that you would like, because hockey players tend to like colder/firmer ice than curlers, so dotn set to the 24 degrees you want, set to the temp the arena has the ice at.
It is my understanding that the opposite is true...club/curling ice tends to be a few degrees colder than hockey ice because skaters want ice that's a bit softer (easier to skate on as blades can dig in) while for curling a harder/firmer surface is better as it's generally more level/playable and less prone to "damage."
As an arena curler, I find that clubs tend to be a lot colder than the hockey/arena ice I've played on, which would make sense if the ice is colder.
__________________
Recreational curler & resident armchair curler at Windy City Curling Club.
Co-host of the NerdCurl podcast & occasional blogger.
http://www.nerdcurl.com
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02-13-16 01:12PM |
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ref_hater
Harvey Hacksmasher
Registered: Mar 2015
Location: USA
Posts: 18 |
Thanks for the feedback. We have been setting the freezers at around 32 while the ice surface is around 25, sometimes warmer (footing gets quite slick). Unfortunately, the temperature control swings greatly from week to week based on the air temp in the arena, which varies greatly depending on how hot it gets outside and how much activity is in the arena that day. Sounds like we should try dropping the temperature of the freezers and see if it helps. Thanks!
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02-13-16 04:26PM |
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curlky
Drawmaster
Registered: Oct 2013
Location:
Posts: 559 |
The firmer the ice, the faster people can skate. Most hockey players want to be fast. Figure skaters want soft ice you can dig into. curlers like 24 degree ice. You should google how they make speed skating ice. it is fascinating and amazingly involved, almost installed like you would a tile floor.
I would guess 32 is way too warm to keep your rock. The ice, no matter what will be colder than 32. So that means that your rocks will 100% be guaranteed to burn into the ice, meaning they would be constantly be melting the ice the whole time that you are playing. Try 24, and see what happens if you dont have the ability to measure the ice. Also, if you measure teh ice, dont use an infrared thermometer, as they struggle with accurate ice measurement.
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02-13-16 06:05PM |
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Phil_D
Drawmaster
Registered: May 2014
Location: Joliet, IL
Posts: 629 |
quote:
Originally posted by curlky
The firmer the ice, the faster people can skate. Most hockey players want to be fast. Figure skaters want soft ice you can dig into. curlers like 24 degree ice. You should google how they make speed skating ice. it is fascinating and amazingly involved, almost installed like you would a tile floor.
Interesting...I'll have to look into that. Thanks for the info!
__________________
Recreational curler & resident armchair curler at Windy City Curling Club.
Co-host of the NerdCurl podcast & occasional blogger.
http://www.nerdcurl.com
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02-13-16 06:32PM |
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Grat
Hitting Paint
Registered: Mar 2014
Location:
Posts: 107 |
The recommendation I received was to store the stones at 38-40 degrees. In a curling rink the stones stay somewhere between ice temp and air temp - around 40, and once you place them on the ice the bottom of the stones should cool to appropriate temp pretty quickly (10 minutes, ie. pebbling time).
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02-14-16 11:15PM |
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curlky
Drawmaster
Registered: Oct 2013
Location:
Posts: 559 |
quote:
Originally posted by Grat
The recommendation I received was to store the stones at 38-40 degrees. In a curling rink the stones stay somewhere between ice temp and air temp - around 40, and once you place them on the ice the bottom of the stones should cool to appropriate temp pretty quickly (10 minutes, ie. pebbling time).
If your rocks have ceramic insert running bands, they will chill fast. If they are granite, this is not true, and they will change temp very slowly.
But also consider the physics of cooling a rock. The easy thought it that when you sit a hot rock on ice, the cold chills the bottom of the rock. But the other thermodynamic action, is that the heat in teh rock is being sucked out of the rock via the running band. So the rock is basically a source with lots of heat (if stored at a higher temperature) and all of that heat will fight the cold from the ice to set the temperature of the running band. Until the heat well of the rock is empty, the running band will always be hotter than the temperature of the ice, adn thus slow and try to burn into the ice.
But you have an issue in teh freezer if you have any moisture. The moisture can condense on teh rock, and then it will freeze (like how walls in a freezer chest will eventually get thick with frost. If it does condense, and freeze, now you have a thin layer of frost or ice on teh rock, and you have to deal with that now. So one advantage of keeping the rocks at 33 degrees, is that there is no risk of frost or ice. So you will have to learn your situation to see what works best.
Last edited by curlky on 02-14-16 at 11:46PM
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02-14-16 11:42PM |
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