Ice Magic – hire or sale of mobile, synthetic/artificial ice skating rinks. Contact us.

Purchase Questions

We are not the cheapest product on the market, but we do believe that we are best. With a choice of ‘ice panels from 20mm to 6mm in thickness, there is an Ice Magic® surface to suit all skating requirements and budgets. Ice Magic® panels have been endorsed by the National Ice Skating Association, professional skaters and ice coaches and are suitable for all types of installation (indoors or outdoors).

Dependant upon the type of ‘ice panel chosen, Ice Magic® warranty is from 5 to 15 years from date of purchase and assuming continuous daily usage. Our unique rink barrier system has a 10 year warranty, but excludes kicker boards and for obvious reasons. All support items such as skates, rink cleaning machine, skate grinder, etc (if required) come with full manufacturers warranty and with our chosen suppliers being industry leaders within their particular field.

First and foremost there is obviously greater frictional resistance on a plastic surface. This brings with it both positive and negative aspects depending on the ability of skaters using the surface.

• For beginners and recreational skaters, it is an excellent surface and great fun. Not quite the same as ice but very good for learning the basics. Because of the additional friction, there is not so much initial glide and therefore your feet do not tend to disappear from under you so rapidly.
  
  
• For mid level skaters who have experienced the glide factor of ice, plastic demands more work but nonetheless is a fun activity.
  
  
• For upper level skaters, again you have to work harder to generate speed and you have to adapt your technique. That said, it is still possible for top skaters to perform all the major jumps and even back flips. Spinning is also OK.
  
  

With proper maintenance and care, Ice Magic® maintains a consistent glide factor of 90% for the life of the product. By comparison and dependant on resurfacing capabilities, wet ice starts with a glide capability of 100%, reducing to 80% after a few hours. Under normal circumstances, a wet ice rink then has to close for re-surfacing. However a synthetic rink can remain open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Apart from ensuring that the rink surface is kept clean, the only other task is to spray the surface with a fine coating of glycol (diluted 1:3 with water) at irregular intervals. This can be achieved by rink staff on skates or in their normal footwear using back pack spray applicators, therefore there is no requirement to clear the rink of skaters during the task. The glycol is non toxic, environmentally friendly, safe and very inexpensive.

Most certainly. We supply our ‘ice’ panels to event management companies for the staging of spectacular ice shows and allowing experienced skaters to execute all of the movements, jumps and spins that they would perform on real ice. As for ice hockey, Ice Magic^® is ideally suited for practising technique and including stops, slap shots and goal tending and can be installed within a domestic setting (basement, garage, garden or driveway), or a commercial environment such as (sports and leisure centres). Regular use of Ice Magic^® ‘ice’ panels will improve stamina, hone technique and avoid muscle strain due to the lack of extreme temperatures.

Any firm, flat, level area is suitable. Previous installations have been carried out on car parks, tennis courts, sports halls, town squares, shopping malls, school playgrounds and similar. If installation is on grass, a suitable sub floor (such as plywood sheets of timber) is require to be provided to prevent seepage of rain water onto the rink or subsidence of the ice panels.

Ice Magic^® panels are 100% ultra high density polyethylene throughout and therefore able to be skated upon on both sides. Our Pro Skate 20mm panels, for example, have a life expectancy of at least 15 years. The more you skate on the panels, the better the experience.

The Ice Magic^® product range is manufactured, prepared for delivery and dispatched from our factory premises in the UK using reputable shipping agents. Dependant upon location of client and size of order, we palletise equipment for dispatch by sea or airfreight or overland by container lorries. For overseas clients, we are able to provide Harmonised Customs Tariff codes where appropriate.

Hire Questions

This will of course depend on available access to the proposed location for the rink. That said, the following timetable for our standard size of rinks is a good indicator.

We work on the basis of 3m² of ‘ice’ floor per skater. Therefore a 15m x 20m (300m²) rink will accommodate up to 100 skaters. The actual number of skaters can be influenced according to the age of skaters and their skating abilities.

Ice Magic International has carried out in excess of 500 ‘ice’ rink installations, so has a good track record in knowing what works and is acceptable to the general public. We would suggest between 30 to 45 minute skating sessions (no longer). After this length of time, most skaters are tired and start to come off the rink of their own volition.

Skating charges should include the supply of ice skates. On average and across the UK , the following charges have been found to be acceptable, although clients may feel that their own locality requires a lesser charge or could in fact sustain greater skating charges.

Grass is not the best surface for installation. We would prefer to install on a firm, flat, solid, level area that can ultimately support both the weight of equipment and the maximum number of skaters. We have however carried out numerous installations on grass, but in each case, have required the client to supply and lay a sub floor (often timber/plywood) prior to the rink being installed.

For Staffed Hire work we supply either 72m² or 144m². For Dry Hire contracts, we supply 200m² or 300m². All rinks have a 2m wide gap for entrance/exit.

Yes. We provide a complete turnkey package that includes ice skates, skate racks, bench seating, rubber matting, rink cleaning and skate sharpening equipment. The skates supplied by our company are of the ski boot style with quick fastening clasps as opposed to time consuming laces. Children’s ice skates are adjustable, therefore offering greatly flexibility with stocking levels.

Yes, the skates we use are standard ice skates as used on real/wet ice rinks.

In nine year’s of providing synthetic ice rink equipment, our company has never had a claim made against our public liability insurance. The National Ice Skating Association also state that they believe synthetic ice to be the safest skating environment for novice skaters. Accident can however happen, but with good stewardship of the rink and ensuring that preventive measures are in place, they can in most cases be prevented.

Yes, at least one rink steward will be first aid certificated.

Yes, but due to the sleek design of Ice Magic^® barriers, it does not allow for banners with eyelets and rope to be secured. The best way of advertisers/sponsors maximising the rink barriers for publicity, is by the use of vinyl graphics similar to how commercial vehicles are sign written. More information is available on request.

We do not promote our product as a fund raising tool, rather a unique attraction that allows individuals to experience the thrill of ice skating in a safe environment. The only realistic way to acquire an 'ice' rink for fundraising, is to approach local businesses to provide sponsorship toward the cost, the return on their investment being the opportunity to locate their promotional material on the rink barriers.

No we only hire for a fee.

For Staffed Hire, when the rink is staffed by our own personnel, the hire fee includes up to 7 continuous hours per day– after midnight hours counts as double. There is no restriction of operating hours when the rink is dry hired.