We purchased a medium Harvest Right freeze dryer with the upgrade to an oil-free pump in early 2022. Ours is now an outdated model with only 4 trays.
We’ve found that a sturdy bench made of food-grade stainless steel works well, especially with its lower shelf for our trays and storage equipment.
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Check the warranty. A freeze dryer machine contains of a lot of specialized parts that can wear out over time. Check to see what technical support the manufacturer offers, as well as how expensive replacements parts are and whether they’re covered by warranty before making an investment.
Foods with higher water content, like watermelon or cucumbers, typically require longer cycles than drier foods. Many modern freeze dryers feature automated sensors that determine when the process is complete, optimizing both time and energy usage.
We did not include those riser racks in our capacity calculations and comparison since they aren’t true tray capacity.
For users looking to increase their freeze-drying output, accessories that allow for capacity expansion can be invaluable. These might include additional tray sets, larger vacuum chambers, or modular components that can be added to existing systems.
Freeze dried food is lighter than dehydrated or canned food – Dehydrated food retains about 20% of its water. As opposed to freeze dried food that is about 2% water. Canned food retains all of its moisture, and you also have the weight of the can to content with.
Freeze drying food is an effective way to store it indefinitely. One of the main advantages of a freeze dryer over a food dehydrator is that you can use a freeze dryer to preserve foods that can’t be placed in a dehydrator, such as eggs or dairy products. Freeze-dried meals and stacks can come in handy during inclement weather, or any time travelling to a grocery store is difficult.
We do recommend that you skip the ticket system if you’re in a hurry though, and just give them a ring.
A few have used marketing tactics to increase listed ‘capacity’ by including stackable drying racks that fit inside of the tray to take advantage of vertical space without additional trays.
If you are thinking of purchasing a freeze dryer there are a number of things you will want to consider. A freeze dryer is a long term investment after all, just like a washing machine or any other large appliance. Here are a few things to think about before spending your hard-earned money.
I enjoy digging into the details, like finding the break even point for pounds of food needed to process for the investment- or learning more about how they work by taking the freeze dryers apart.
Once frozen, the food is then exposed to a vacuum, which pulls nearly all of the moisture from it by way of sublimation (2), which transforms the ice directly into vapor, bypassing the liquid stage. By removing all but a tiny percentage of the water in a food item its lifespan is more info transformed from a few days to two or even three decades.