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Harvestright freeze dryers

5 years ago

I am intrigued if not likely to buy one of these appliances. Does anyone have any experience with them? This I know is a Grainlady question - I do miss her incredible depth of knowledge!

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Comments (5)

plllog
5 years ago
Last we heard Grainlady was going to buy a freeze dryer. I think it is was in the $4000-5000 range. It also sounded like something I'd be more interested in than a dehydrator, but way out of my range for the amount of use I'd get from it. Let us know what you find out.
annie1992
5 years ago
I don't have one but I would like to. Why? Beats me, they are far more machine than I would ever need and my Excaliber does a perfectly fine job of dehydrating.

If you pay any attention to Amazon reviews, it only gets 2.5 stars, and it seems that people love them when they work, but a large percentage of them don't work well or even at all. This is relatively new to the personal consumer market, so hopefully they will get better and cheaper, as most devices do after some time.

I did enter a contest that had one as a prize, but I obviously did not win, LOL.

Annie
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I can't recommend this product. The videos and websites and blogs (which appear to work on commission or something) do not mention the realities of operating this machine - it is heavy, over 100 pounds, and requires it own dedicated 20amp circuit. Demos show this machine being used in a kitchen, but this machine is so loud, that being in the kitchen at the same time it is running is impossible. It is hot and takes a long time. Cycles last 12-24 hours. We had to put it into the garage, but who has heating and cooling in their garage to maintain the recommended operating temps for the machine. The vacuum pump (not shown in the fancy videos) is highly sensitive and frequently drips or sprays its hot oil. Not only that the oil has to be drained from the pump and filtered after each use. Messy and annoying! None of this is mentioned in the videos and on their fancy website. Although we were assured by customer reps that the machine is "easy" to use, it is far from that. Our experience was very unpleasant, involving us being sent a damaged machine, and after that, as a replacement, a machine so poorly constructed that it never once functioned properly. The hose for the pump was not even the correct hose and leaked air so it never achieved a vacuum. Then, a cable inside turned out to be the wrong cable. We had to submit a claim to the BBB before our concerns were taken seriously and we could finally get a proper refund. Beware - if you order and even try to use the machine, it voids the return/refund policy. It could quit one week after you get it, having used it only once or twice, and you'll be stuck with it, no refund possible. They'll try to help make it work again, but as we found, working with their customer service is a very protracted and nerve-wracking experience. The amount of food we lost trying to get the machine to work and the time we wasted on trouble-shooting was very frustrating. After 3 months, we finally got our money back.
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I would freeze it in a bowl or container overnight, unmold it frozen, and seal the disc in a vacuum sealer or in a ziploc with the air sucked out. Sealing the air out is a good idea. You can do that with the plastic laying on the top if you just want to leave it in the container, but be careful not to fold the plastic into the surface, or you'll have to tug it out. The trick, you see, is peeling off the plastic before it thaws. Things take forever to thaw in my fridge. I have about a quarter cup of beef stock that's been thawing in there for a couple of weeks and isn't even halfway melted. So to use it, I'd put the ganache in the fridge overnight, then put the container in a pan of lukewarm water until it was thawed and workable but use it cold. Microwaves are uneven, so I wouldn't warm it in there. You also don't want it to break. If you want to warm it you can unmold it from the fridge into the double boiler you're going to warm it in. Start it low until it's fully defrosted, then warm it. If you have induction, you don't need the pan of water, and can just warm it in an enamelled pan on low.
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If you keep all the water piping within the insulated space, I doubt you'll have freezing problems with them or standing water in the washer/traps. I'm assuming insulation at R-19 levels. For your situation the floor/roof should be greater. Wintertime here often has protracted temps in the teens and water does not freeze in an insulated but unheated shop. During a single digit spell a pan of water ( 'bout a gallon's worth) developed surface crystals only. The water tank (presumably, water heater) idea isn't so bad, BUT: If it is radiating, then you are normally wasting power. No doubt a seasonal strategy could be devised. Unless it's a small tank, you're adding a substantial floor load, a concern from your other post.
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Run the machine briefly on a warm fill with the supply hoses disconnected so residual water in inlet valves can drain out. Then pour some RV/marine antifreeze directly into the drum so it mixes into whatever residual water is in the pump/sump. Can run it on Spin Only for a few seconds so the pump runs to mix the water and antifreeze. Run a cycle when the machine is put back into use to flush out the chemicals.
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dcarch7 d c f l a s h 7 @ y a h o o . c o m
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
It is a very complicated piece of appliance. So many motorized moving parts and electronics to go wrong.

I don't think this will ever be a mass produced common appliance, so it will always be expensive, and even more expensive for replacement parts.

I don't think there will be local factory repair shops in most areas. Imagine how much it will cost to ship this heavy big chunk of metal back for repairs.

dcarch
sleevendog (5a NY 6aNYC NL CA)
5 years ago
A good discussion on egullet. Some have them. One on-line reviewer gave a good report but says they are more like tending an appliance that needs maintenance and often like a car. It is not a toaster easily replaced at Target.

Needs oil changes. Takes hours to run for very small trays. Maybe with a big garden and lots of berries/fruit/veg. But you will run it 24/7 for a couple months.

I did read about great customer service/trouble shooting.

Popular in more high end molecular gastronomy restaurants.

When it first came out I researched. I was working on a project making freeze dried soups for kayak and boating trips. Much better quality than dehydrating. I purchased freeze dried foods and spent probably way less than a hundred. A dozen varieties of veg. (nearly zero weight so 4-6 oz is a lot of food). And this was a few years ago.

I calculated even if I spent 100bucks a year, I could purchase for 30 years what the freeze dryer cost. I still have half of my original foods. (all out of the leeks and the mushroom flake). Makes excellent travel soups. Storm emergency soups.

Maybe an 'ender' prepping and stock piling would find use with a big garden. Once the world wide power grid goes out, call it useless. : )
dcarch7 d c f l a s h 7 @ y a h o o . c o m
5 years ago
"----Needs oil changes.---"

High vacuum pump oil is not the same as regular motor oil.

Commercial high vacuum machines have filters and dehumidifiers to keep the oil pure. It is important to have pure oil to achieve high vacuum.

I don't know about these home freeze dry machines, I would not be surprised that you need to change oil after a very few uses. 1? 2? 3? ------5 times?

dcarch

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