Ice Bath Chiller vs Ice vs DIY Freezer: Which to Buy

There are three real ways to get cold water at home: fill a tub with bagged ice, run a chiller, or convert a chest freezer. We fit and test these every week, so this is the honest version — what each one costs, how cold it actually gets, and what it is like to live with.

Option 1: A tub plus bagged ice

This is the cheapest way to start. Buy an insulated ice bath, fill it with cold water, and tip in ice. A session takes 10–15 kg of ice to reach the low single digits.

The catch is twofold. First, the cost adds up — a bag of ice is about £4, and you need three or four per session, so roughly £12 each time. Second, the temperature drifts. The water is coldest the moment you add the ice, then warms as it melts. You are also tied to the supermarket freezer aisle. It is a fine way to test whether you enjoy cold-water therapy before spending more.

Option 2: An insulated tub, no chiller

A well-insulated tub holds the cold for longer, so one fill of ice can stretch across more than one session in cooler months. It is a small step up from Option 1. In summer, though, you are still buying and adding ice, so the running cost climbs with the temperature.

Option 3: A tub plus a chiller

A chiller recirculates the water through a small cooling unit and holds it at whatever you set — a true 3°C, day after day, no ice. You fill it once, set the temperature, and it is ready every morning. This is where most people who stick with cold-water therapy end up.

The upfront cost is higher. The running cost is not: we put a meter on our 0.9HP Recovery Pro Chiller for a month and it drew about 1.2 kWh a day, which is £15–25 a month at current UK rates plus a few pounds for filters. A built-in filter and ozone also keep the water clean, so you change it far less often.

Option 4: The DIY chest-freezer route

You can line a chest freezer, seal it, and run it as a cold plunge. It gets very cold for very little electricity, which is why it is popular online. We would still steer most people away from it. It needs proper electrical safety (an RCD, sealed connections), a food-safe liner, and frequent cleaning to stop mould. Done badly it is a real hazard near water. If you are handy and patient it works; if you want to fill it and forget it, it does not.

The numbers: what each really costs

Here is how the three main routes compare for a daily plunger. The chiller figure is measured; the ice figure assumes about £12 a session.

Want your own figures? Our running-cost calculator uses your sessions per week and electricity rate, and the full UK running-costs guide shows the measured numbers behind it.

So which should you buy?

It comes down to how often you will plunge.

• Just curious: a tub plus ice, or our portable Inflatable Plunge. Cheap, low risk, easy to stop.
• Winter-only and budget-minded: an insulated tub. UK tap water is cold enough from October to March that you may not need a chiller at all.
• Regular or year-round: a tub with a chiller. The Arctic One bundles both; already own a tub? Add the Recovery Pro Chiller.

What we would choose

For nine out of ten people who plan to plunge more than a couple of times a week, we fit a chiller. The cost of ice and the daily faff are what make people stop; taking both away is what makes the habit stick. If you are still unsure, start with ice for a month — then upgrade when you find yourself going every day.