What brand is your dehydrator?

**frugal-fannie** · 11-19-2009, 08:11 AM

I have one of those cheap ones from TV and it works ok for some things but I am thinking of investing in a better one. Besides Brand, How does it work and do you like it?

**savvy_sniper** · 11-19-2009, 08:21 AM

I have an Excalibur that I bought used from craigslist. I found it within a month of doing searches. It it the 9 tray model but does not have the timer. If you want to use a timer you can buy one. I am home most all of the time; so a timer was necessary.

It costs more but it holds a lot and you don't have to rotate the trays.

Here is an article from Mother Earth News about dehydrators.

http://www.motherearthnews.com/Real-...ehydrator.aspx

You have to decide how much you realistically will use it, how much you can afford to spend, etc.

**frugalfranny** · 12-07-2009, 05:26 PM

I just bought a 'fairly cheap' Nesco last summer. And for now, it works great for me. I didn't want to put out a bunch of money until I found out: 1. if I even liked dehydrated food 2. if I was going to use it a lot 3. how a dehydrator would work for some of the things that I would be dehydrating.

It is a 4 tray that can go up to 7 or 8, I think it is. For extras, I did purchase the fruit leather trays as they can be used for so much more than fruit leather.

I like it all very much but - I am always home when dehydrating, so no timer didn't bother me. I am sure this will work fine for me for a few years and then- who knows. It truly helped me 'catch up' and stay ahead of my garden abdundance this past summer.

So - in short- nothing fancy at all but it works for me!

**RaineyDaye** · 12-07-2009, 05:30 PM

I have an Excalibur. I bought a five tray model, thinking the nine tray would be too big. Although five trays are usually enough, I would buy a nine tray model now that I know how much I use it. I love the Excalibur, but I don't have any experience with other brands to judge it "better" than others.

**jas** · 12-07-2009, 06:57 PM

I have the Excalibur also. I love mine. With the way it constructed you can use if for other things besides regular food dehydrating. I use mine a lot to rise my bread dough. You can also use it to make yogurt. Probably a lot of other things as well. It is a bit pricy, but worth it.

**monkeywrangler71** · 12-07-2009, 07:44 PM

I have the four tray nesco with the fruit leather trays as well. I don't use it enough to justify spending on a better one. I did find that the trays have started to warp after a few years - especially the fruit trays, which are now so wavy they are barely usable.
The actual operation of the unit is fine though.

**Domestic Gal** · 12-07-2009, 08:46 PM

I have a good4you.
It is fairly new company.
I got it for Christmas last year.
It is a 6 tray and it does the job that I want it to.

**zakity** · 12-08-2009, 07:57 PM

Excalibur

I only used it once so far. I just got it at the tail end of the apple season which was non-existant for me. Only two trees appled, one tree had eight apples and the other had about 20 tiny apples. So, I figure I will get tons of use out of it next year. But, I will have it when I need it next year.

**old_lady_in_the_shoe** · 12-08-2009, 08:56 PM

I have the 9 tray Excalibur. It is great and has a ton of room. It has the fan in the back so you don't have to move trays around.
I use it for a lot of things other than dehydrating food, I like to use it to make yogurt in, I use it as a proofer for bread when I am in a hurry, and I like to make fruit leathers in it too! It is very useful. I dry my herbs and teas in it too. I highly recommend them, I have had mine for at least 7 years now and it is great. I have had the round ones (like on tv) before and use them till they die. I have done it so many times, the Excalibur was really not that expensive when you thing about the waste of the $$ for the round ones that I kept burning out. I highly recommend it.

**madhen** · 12-08-2009, 09:51 PM

I have two Nesco's. They work great, but they don't hold up well. Several of the drying trays are already cracked (heat + plastic = problems). If I were going to buy a new dehydrator, I'd get an Excalibur. One of the staff at my Master Food Preserver's class has one, and we have used it for demo's, and I really like it. I didn't like how close the trays fit together (halved strawberries were too tall), but you could leave some of the trays out, if need be.

**frugalfranny** · 12-09-2009, 03:42 PM

Originally Posted by madhen

I have two Nesco's. They work great, but they don't hold up well. Several of the drying trays are already cracked (heat + plastic = problems).

How long did you use them before this started happening?

**madhen** · 12-09-2009, 03:53 PM

About the third year, with seasonal (but heavy) use. I suspect I'll get about one more year out of some of the trays. The heating element/fan/lid assemby is still fine, and you can buy the trays separately, so not a huge deal, but worth noting when factoring in cost.

**frugalfranny** · 12-09-2009, 03:58 PM

Thanks MH - good to know...not sure I would use it enough to 'justify' the price of the Excalibur. I might just buy new trays if/when this happens. Have seen the xtras on Ebay for 'reasonable'......cheaper than going to the company.

**madhen** · 12-09-2009, 04:07 PM

I am pretty rough on mine, so I am sure you could extend their life if you babied them a bit more. For example, I throw them in the d/w rather than hand-washing, and I will flex them slightly if I have trouble getting a cemented-on piece of dehydrated strawberry off the tray. Nothing brutal, but I could be more gentle.

**frugalfranny** · 12-09-2009, 11:41 PM

Originally Posted by madhen

I am pretty rough on mine, so I am sure you could extend their life if you babied them a bit more. For example, I throw them in the d/w rather than hand-washing, and I will flex them slightly if I have trouble getting a cemented-on piece of dehydrated strawberry off the tray. Nothing brutal, but I could be more gentle.

Glad you mentioned the DW part........haven't done that with mine yet. They fit perfectly in my sink......so I soak them. Works great, I come back later and they are clean. Guess I will keep doing this as opposed to putting them in the DW.......the heat/hot water has got to be hard on them!

Sure saved me from a lot of waste this summer.......or a lot of giving stuff away!!