In the alte heim, the truly affluent yidden may have had a metal storage chest style of “refrigerator” with a block of ice added every other day or two. Presumably, there was an analagous debate about whether it was ok to open the ice chest on shabbos since it arguably would accelerate the melting of the ice block. While it is generally agreed that if one allows the ice to melt into liquid on its own there is no concern, whereas there is presumably greater concern that by introducing warm air into the chest by opening the door one would directly be causing the ice block to melt faster.
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