Your Freezer Needs an Ice Bag
I don’t know how or where you grew up, but I was raised Southern, both in Mississippi and in Los Angeles. My people drink iced tea, so having a constant supply of iced water is essential, especially when it’s hot outside, which it almost always was.
A key component of this lifestyle is having some sort of ice storage capacity so you can build up the surplus. Taking it straight from the tray means you have to finish that batch of ice before you can make more ice, which is unacceptable. Almost every freezer I came across as a kid had some sort of ice container, and it was perfect for one small flaw: the ice would sometimes absorb refrigerator and freezer odors, ruining an otherwise fine drink.
And while an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of fresh ice, and there are some fancy airtight ice containers you can buy to block out wafting odors, the most elegant solution is to use a freezer bag. Freezer bags are for the freezer, and they are. Give your ice cubes an extra layer of protection against odors, not to mention drips and spills.
I don’t even have an ice basket these days—I put it in a gallon ziplock bag in the freezer door for free—but you can always put the bag in the basket and then close it on top if you like. the frame of the trash can brings into the freezer. Fill the bag with ice as it freezes, preferably in large cubes , until you have excess ice (no flavor) so you can drink tea, shake and stir smoothies, and make small ice baths to shock blanched vegetables. and hard boiled eggs.