Michelle Spencer is an ice cream lover extraordinaire. She teaches you about choosing and making ice cream at home. Here is one of her top tips. If you are using a machine that needs ice, it likely also uses salt in the freezing well. Placing the machine at the edge of a porch where the brine will drain off well is good, though it may cause havoc with your landscaping. Placing the freezing well, or freezer, in a foot tub or other basin to contain the brine is a good way to catch the runoff as the ice melts. Salt water can cause a big mess, and over time can erode cement or treated wood. Take special care if you make ice cream a lot to keep your work area clean. With a traditional crank freezer of a 2-4 quart capacity, you will need at least 15 pounds of ice, either crushed or in small cubes. Crushed ice will allow for faster freezing as it maintains more direct contact with the can. You will also need about 3 pounds of coarse crystal salt. When picking up your supplies, be generous and pick up a bit more than you need, just in case. Ice and salt are readily available and relatively inexpensive. A rule of thumb ratio for freezing is 1 cup coarse salt to every 8 cups (2 quarts) of crushed ice. Layer the salt and ice in the freezer well up to the top of the can, but don't cover the lid with salt. The salt can bleed into the container and leave you with salty ice cream. Whether motorized or outfitted with a hand crank, you will want to continually crank the ice cream for 15 to 25 minutes. You will know it's done when the crank becomes difficult to turn, or the crank motor sputters. Muscles or machines, the ice cream will let you know when it's ready. At this point, it's time to remove the freezing can from the unit. If your ice bucket has a plug, remove it and allow the melt water to begin draining. Carefully remove and wipe off the crank unit (remember that salt is corrosive over time). Remove the can from the ice and wipe it off, before moving it to a work space. Wipe off the lid of the can with a clean cloth to remove as much salt as possible so it will not leak into your fresh confection. Unship the lid and remove the dasher. Scrape the dasher against the rim of the can, removing the bulk of the ice cream sticking to it. Set the dasher aside in a sink or bowl of cool water. This makes cleaning easier. Pick up a copy of Selecting the Perfect Ice Cream Maker by Michelle Spencer to become an ice cream maker professional at home.