We have some really great 'techy' type guys here who are, as they have been exploring the FD mechanics and sharing that in their posts, writing what is turning out to be a 'troubleshooting manual' for us less capable folks.
Maintenance Simply filter and replace the oil every 20–25 cycles. (The oil can be filtered and reused one time.); this is a straightforward task that takes only a couple of minutes.
The current and emerging food crisis in the United States has millions of Americans very concerned about the future. From supply chain shenanigans to food processing plants “inexplicably” being compromised to bird flu decimating the poultry industry, it’s pelo wonder there has been a sharp rise in the “prepper” food industry.
That also goes for dense foods like mashed potatoes. Liquids or soft foods can be put in silicone molds and frozen. Then pop them out of the molds, put them on the freeze dry trays, and put them in the machine when it’s ready.
Obviously things like ice cream and marshmallows you would want to let the freeze cycle run longer. When I'm ready to start the drying cycle, I open the door, remove the insulator, and check the temperature of the food on the trays with an infrared thermometer. As long as it's below -10F I start the dry cycle. A side note for TonyC, have you ever thought about attaching a mirror to each side of the tray rack to reflect the radiant heat back in to the trays? I've looked at some mirror finish stainless on ebay, and it looks like you could do it for about $40. Not sure if it's worth a try or not. I would think it would let you get more water out in a cycle because the radiant heat wouldn't be warming the ice on the chamber walls. Just a thought.... Edited December 16, 2015 by Pipsqueak duplicate post (log)
If you or a family member has Celiac Disease, you know it’s not easy to come up with a last-minute meal. My freeze dryer has made this website so much easier!
My son is a teenager who is starting to date. He was asked to a school dance last year and the group ate dinner at someone’s house. The host of the dinner contacted me to find out what would be safe for my son to eat.
So I corrected the oversight - I drilled and tapped the elbow to add the port. Here is a picture. It worked great today when I flushed the pump to clear out the gunk.
Colin Arnason Albert was very responsive and answered any questions or concerns I had. Great product and I’m enjoying using it.
Pre-frozen food takes less time to process since the machine doesn’t have to completely freeze the food. Your climate (humidity and temperature) can also affect the cycle length. My average load takes around 24 hours, but it can be significantly longer.
Unlike other conventional methods of drying, the original structure of the food is preserved with freeze-drying which ensures better quality for the consumers.
So the bottom line is this: If you can afford the money, space, and time to spend on freeze-drying your own food and you believe the need for the food is many months or years away, then eventually the Harvest Right freeze dryer will pay for itself.
The set up booklet was easy to follow and the initial bread run went smoothly. I do find the touch screen very sensitive and have made a couple taps in error. An error correct Shop Now button might be helpful. Now the learning curve begins as the food is processed.
Pelo longer do I have to ask what every ingredient is in each dish. And I don’t have to ask for the sour cream to be left out of the mashed potatoes. I can take a meal of turkey, ham, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, and yams that I freeze dried throughout the year.