Shopping for an under counter
Icemaker 15" wide. We have a beverage center area in house plans which
calls for an ice maker. Great! Didn't know it would be such a hassle. My first
search, I thought I wanted a model with a drain pump because that seemed better
than just gravity. I'm not sure what else a drain pump does for you.

1) If the drain is beneath the unit,
is the gravity drain sufficient? It seems less expensive AND I also read in an
install manual that homes with a Reverse Osmosis system should only use a
gravity drain. I'm not real clear why.

2) I can understand an undercounter
RO system not providing enough water psi but a whole house system shouldn't
have a psi issue so why would a gravity drain or drain pump make a difference?

3) There are many noisy unit
complaints and I wondered if it was the drain pumps making all the noise. Since
we have a drain underneath the location of the icemaker, it seems the gravity
drain would work fine. Am I missing something? For you icemaker owners: Is it
the drain pumps making some/most of the noise?

4) I've heard that only the very
very expensive brands actually have a cooling feature, therefore, most units make
the ice and the cabinet is basically a Styrofoam cooler wrapped in
plastic/metal. This means, if you don't use the ice, it will eventually melt
especially if the door is frequently opened. Is there a drain hole in the
bottom of the bin that continually drains the melted water down the drain or
will I end up with a bin full of cubes melted into a clump with fresh cubes
landing on top?

5) Is there anyway to slow ice
production down? In other words, I'm sure we won't use 50 lbs a day, probably
less than 20 unless entertaining and somedays even less, seems wasteful to make
it constantly and let it melt away?? Is there a model that can be turned off
for a week at a time but be restarted without issues?

My ideal model: filter unnecessary as whole house RO system
in place, not particular in shape of ice clear or not, prefer not to have it
too noisy the wall backs to the family room, want to be able to have ice on the
ready but would rather not be tossing ice because we don't use what it can
produces or the ice gets stale or melts, built in or freestanding-no
preference, unless further educated it seems a gravity drain is fine.
Recommendations?