Ice Cold
Creating snowflakes requires a rapid warm-to-freezing shift in temperature. A hot plate sits atop Gledhill's snowflake grower, while underneath the grower a cold plate -- made from a laboratory-grade chiller and hacked Coleman electric camping cooler (below)-- drops temperatures to -47 degrees Fahrenheit.
Ten years ago Gledhill's employer threw out the chiller, so he picked it up and stashed it in his basement. "That would have been a financial hurdle. These normally cost $3,000 to $4,000," Gledhill said.
