Hamilton Beach 32100A Digital Food Dehydrator, 5 Tray, Gray review and price compare 2025
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you can compare the product price from Costco, wayfair, bestbuy, lowes, target, homedepot, Walmart, ebay, amazon to find the best price for you
Product overview
| Brand | Hamilton Beach |
| Material | Plastic |
| Color | Gray |
| Wattage | 500 watts |
| Item Dimensions LxWxH | 10.5 x 13 x 11 inches |
product features
- by entering your model number.
- 48 hour timer with auto shutoff and clear lid so you can easily check food
- Adjustable digital thermostat lets you adjust drying temperature (100-160° F)
- Continuous airflow provides even drying
- Five stackable drying trays and powerful 500 watts
- Includes one fine-mesh sheet for drying small food like herbs and one solid sheet for making fruit rolls
This fits your .
From the manufacturer
Hamilton Beach 32100A Food Dehydrator, Gray
Looking for snack options that are high in nutrients but low in calories? Want to offer your family delicious food options to dress up morning oatmeal or replace that bag of potato chips at lunch? The Hamilton Beach Food Dehydrator helps accomplish these goals by taking food preparation to the next level. It opens the door to endless possibilities deemed too difficult to do in the past.
With five stackable drying trays and 500 watts of power, it’s easy to dry a variety of fruits and vegetables, and even make beef jerky. The continuous airflow feature provides even drying, eliminating the need to rotate trays. This dehydrator includes an adjustable thermometer for better performance and a timer with automatic shutoff.
The Hamilton Beach Food Dehydrator comes with two specialty sheets for added versatility. Use the mesh sheet to dry garden herbs for year-round enjoyment, or puree summer fruits and spread on the solid sheet for homemade fruit rolls. Wholesome, home-made snacks for the entire family. ..now that’s Good Thinking.
- 48 hour timer with auto shutoff and clear lid so you can easily check food.
- Adjustable digital thermostat lets you adjust drying temperature (100-160° F).
- Continuous airflow provides even drying.
- Five stackable drying trays and powerful 500 watts.
- Includes one fine-mesh sheet for drying small food like herbs and one solid sheet for making fruit rolls.
Sensational Snacks
A food dehydrator lets you make healthy foods at home like crunchy green beans or dried sweet potato sticks. Have a sweet tooth? Banana chips or dried apples with cinnamon are the perfect fix. And since the fruits are not bogged down with additives or preservatives, their natural sweetness shines.
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Dehydrating Fruits and VegetablesPreparing your favorite fruits and vegetables is simple. For best results, use produce that is in season to capture vibrant flavors and enjoy them for months to come. When your selections are made, just wash and slice. Cut your foods to the same thickness, size and shape to obtain consistent results. | Simple DesignThe Hamilton Beach Food Dehydrator’s continuous airflow feature provides even drying, eliminating the need to rotate trays. Once you’ve lined the trays and adjusted the temperature and timer, there is nothing to do until the timer goes off. However, if you like to watch, the clear lid allows for easy viewing. | A Little Time Reaps Big RewardsFoods may take a few hours to dehydrate, but they can be enjoyed for months. When stored correctly, dried fruits can keep up to a year and vegetables can last six months. Even beef jerky can last up to two months at room temperature in an airtight container. What are you waiting for? It’s time to fill your pantry with nutritious snacks for the whole family. |
Make Fruit Rolls at Home
Turn your favorite fruit into a delicious, on-the-go treat by creating your own fruit rolls. Fresh, canned and frozen fruit can be pureed for this simple concoction. Higher pectin fruits such as apples, apricots, blueberries, grapes, peaches, pears, pineapples and plums work best for rolls with a nice leather-like texture. Other favorites such as grapefruits, oranges, strawberries, and raspberries can be used when combined with higher pectin fruits.
Drying Garden Herbs
Enjoying garden herbs doesn’t have to be limited to a few months a year. Capture the fragrance and flavor of fresh basil or rosemary by drying them for year round use. To prevent smaller leaves from dropping through the trays, a special mesh screen is included for optimum results.
product description
Looking for snack options that are high in nutrients but low in calories? Want to offer your family delicious food options to dress up morning oatmeal or replace that bag of potato chips at lunch? The Hamilton Beach Food Dehydrator helps accomplish these goals by taking food preparation to the next level. It opens the door to endless possibilities deemed too difficult to do in the past. With five stackable drying trays and 500 watts of power, it's easy to dry a variety of fruits and vegetables and even make beef jerky. The continuous airflow feature provides even drying, eliminating the need to rotate trays. This dehydrator includes an adjustable thermometer for better performance and a timer with automatic shutoff. A food dehydrator lets you to make healthy foods at home like crunchy green beans or dried sweet potato sticks. Have a sweet tooth? Banana chips or dried apples with cinnamon are the perfect fix. And since the fruits are not bogged down with additives or preservatives, their natural sweetness shines. The Hamilton Beach Food Dehydrator comes with two specialty sheets for added versatility. Use the mesh sheet to dry garden herbs for year-round enjoyment, or puree summer fruits and spread on the solid sheet for homemade fruit rolls. Wholesome, home-made snacks for the entire family. Now that's good thinking. Tip: Post treatment of meat after dehydrating may result in a more desirable jerky texture. Try each treatment to determine which jerky you like best.
product details
important information
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Questions about Hamilton Beach 32100A Digital Food Dehydrator, 5 Tray, Gray
Q:
What is the tray height? I am looking to dry a non-food item that is 1 inch tall
Answer: I don't know the actual height but it comes with 4 trays. However each tray is approximately 1 inch tall. We have used our Hamilton Beach dehydrator with great success. Also good instruction booklet with receipts
Answer: The lower trays give you an inch, the top almost 2 inch. But the unit works great.
Q:
Are the trays plastic? are they bpa free?
Answer: The video stated that the trays are BPA free
Answer: The trays are indeed plastic. I emailed Hamilton Beach and a few days later they responded that "all plastics used in our products are BPA free in all food zones." They also claim their products are tested by independent laboratories.
Answer: The trays are plastic and dishwasher safe but I am not sure if they are BPA free.
Answer: Yes plastic. User guide does not state BPA free.
Answer: BPA free plastic
Answer: in the video it says bpa free
Answer: I don't know about bpa free. But yes they are plastic
Q:
Can I just use 1 or 2 trays if I'm only dehydrating a small amount or do I have to put in all the trays?
Answer: You do not have to have food on all trays but you need all trays stacked on the machine while drying foods. Right now I have 4 filled trays and 1 empty tray running. If I had planned better I would have had all 5 trays filled to make better use of the energy.
Answer: You can any number of trays you want. All or only one. I have found do many times.
Answer: The manufacturer says use all the trays, and to use the fruit-leather tray (this set includes one) on the top tray to improve the circulation among the lower trays.
Answer: Yes, but must include the top tray that has the center cap.
Answer: You can place all your food o the bottom trays and leave uppers ones empty, it allows for better air flow while running.
Answer: yes, you can use any number of trays you wish.
Answer: Instructions say to use all the trays
Answer: Manufacturer says to use all trays, all the time. Doesn't matter if they are empty. I am sure there is a reason, I don't know what it is, but it is no extra work to follow the instructions.
Q:
What is the temperature range?
Answer: Temperature can be set from 100 F to 160 F.
Answer: 100F - 160F or 37.8C - 71.1C
Answer: I have the book in my hand, I see 100F to 160F. I hope that helps you!
Q:
Is there a drip tray?
Answer: The top of the motor/fan base is the drip catcher, below the last removable tray, it catches drips. As long as you keep the center hole clear of stuff nothing falls into the fan it all goes to the bottom and can be wiped out with a damp cloth or if you are very careful not to get water into the fan opening or the base it could be washed out with a sprayer from the sink faucet.
Answer: No but the bottom of the machine wipes up real nice
Q:
does anyone know where I can get an extra fruit roll sheet for this
Answer: You Can order off Hamilton Beach website under parts for $6.99 each. I use the trays to dehydrate mashed potatoes for instant mash potatoes later. I needed extra trays to do it effiently.
Answer: You can make one from plastic mesh you get from a craft store.
Q:
i see a lot of complaints that the unit will break/melt aftet 2-4 uses, what protection/guarantee will i get that mine qon't just junk out?
Answer: Mine hasn't broken out of 2-4 uses... It still works. It's definitely a long process, and you have to follow directions. But it works just fine! Good Luck!
Answer: I have used mine at least 2 times a week for the last 6 months..thinking about buying one more.. it works fantastic
Answer: mine died after two uses. they said to send another replacement if i pay 10$ postage. now after four weeks i am still waiting because they said it was sent to wrong address!
Answer: Not sure about a warranty. I've had mine for over a year. Dried about 100 lbs of meat. No problems at all. Never had to use a warranty. Great dehydrator
Answer: Product has “Limited 1 Year Warranty” in US. “Warranted to be free from defects in material and workmanship “. However, you are responsive for all costs associations with returning product and all costs for them to return product or component back to you. Excluding cover glass, filters, normal use, non conformity with printed directions, accident, alteration or misuse. According to booklet. But mine works fine so far and I like it. Probably would be an expensive hassle to return.
Answer: I've got hundreds of batches of jerky and no problems.
Q:
Do you have to rotate the trays?
Answer: I don't either; I tried rotating trays once, but I don't notice any difference. I do think the top trays get a little more airflow and heat than the bottom ones, and if I'm drying a variety of foods I try to arrange them so that I've got the foods that need relatively more dehydrating go on top and so forth.
Answer: No, I have never rotated the trays. If doing multiple items, I put the longer cooking on bottom and shorter on top. So if I need to pause I can then remove items from top trays and then turn the hydrator back on to continue it's process.
Answer: No, I have never rotated the trays. If doing multiple items, I put the longer cooking on bottom and shorter on top. So if I need to pause I can then remove items from top trays and then turn the hydrator back on to continue it's process.
Answer: Nope. Unless you are OCD or you just want to. It does take a little getting it right. Right temp and time. Just use the pause to check once in a while. You may need less time.
Answer: I don't and everything comes out great.
Answer: No. I suppose you could but I don't know what purpose it would serve. I never have and it works great.
Q:
How do we store food after it has been dehydrated?
Answer: I put the food I dry in ziplock bags and date it. Then either refrigerate or freeze until I want to eat it. But some items can be put in jars and left on the counter. (Chickpeas, kale, etc).
Answer: Place it in a closed glass container, and enjoy every time you open the container!!
Q:
What is the average wattage pull on this? It goes up to 500 Watt but 500 Watt over 24 hours is a lot of electric!
Answer: Better to ask an electrician, but, until then, ponder; it only takes heat equivalent to that produced by a light bulb and a small fan to move that heat away from the source continually. Expense of that is a small price to pay for all that goodness, considering the hours spent in sweaty effort and the cost to preserve same in canning, or freezing, without the lovely benefit of fellowship offered by the bouquet of aroma arising from the unit as it works, allowing you to anticipate the reconstitution of your bounty without so much effort. You won't regret the kwatts at all! Sorry I couldn't be more specific.
Answer: Hi this was a xmas gift for a family member who I will be seeing this sunday I can ask him I am sorry I took so long to reply I gotten this for his camping trip with the family
Q:
Has anyone used this for baby snacks? The kind that melt in their mouths.
Answer: No I am sorry I have not, but Tammy Gangloff has great recipients in her new book, and you can watch her on YouTube.
Q:
can you dehydrate chicken and fish? how long does it take to do something like this?
Answer:
Answer:
Q:
Would this be good for preparing food for hiking?
Answer: I would say yes, it would be good to dehydrate most food for going hiking. My daughter-in-law buys about a pound or two of.beef and has it sliced very thin by the butcher to make some delicious beef jerky. I think fruits would be another good thing.
Answer: Sure dried food will last a long time and light to carry.
Answer: Yes, it would be excellent. I use mine to make dried fruit during harvest which I then mix with nuts and use as topping for my yogurt. Sometimes I eat it just as it is. There's a dehydrator book available on Kindle. It would help you enormously.
Answer: Don’t see why not since product is essentially trail mix.
Answer: yes
Q:
Can you put the trays into the oven on a high temperature?
Answer: The trays are made of a plastic material that would most likely melt in an oven. Temperatures on the dehydrator range from 100 to 160 degrees.
Answer: I doubt it. The trays are plastic
Answer: I really do not know but I would not be confident in doing so. My guess is that the plastic would be OK at 200F or so but anything higher might melt or warp the trays.
Answer: No, they are plastic.
Answer: No I wouldn't
Answer: No
Q:
Does this small thing really use 500 watts? If it does that seems extremely inefficient? Even 100 watts should be sufficient to dry food in this
Answer:
Answer:
Answer: Checking the label on the unit confirms 500W. I suspect that it does not draw the full wattage continuously and may be dependent on the heat level selected. Temperature ranges from 100-160 F. I dried apples cut into 1/4 inch rings at 135 F in about 12-13 hours and have not noticed my electric bill spiking. Hope this helps.
Answer: Yes its says 500 watts on the bottom of the machine. I am really happy with it, though it is a bit noisy...like a blow dryer. works well
Q:
Can I use this with nuts?
Answer: I don't see why you couldn't. There's nothing about the device that would preclude using it for nuts, unless the kind of nuts you use are so small that they fall through the screening. Pine nuts might be too small. Might be trial and error to determine a time and temp. I've now made a bunch of salmon jerky and dried some herbs and chilies and it does a great job for me every time. I continue to be impressed with it, especially in light of its reasonable price.
Answer: yes
Answer: I think so
Q:
What trays does it come with?
Answer: 6 trays an 2 tray liners. I am making jerky right now. Love it.
Answer: It is exactly as pictured. Several plastic trays that stack up. There is a separate one for fruit too
Answer: Just the trays shown. I gave as a gift it is very good quality
Q:
can i order additional solid sheets for making fruit rolls?
Q:
I've had this almost a year and the fruit trays have been out of stock at Hamilton Beach's website. Does anyone know where I can get more?
Answer: Might be at Ebay or Craigslist, you never know!
Q:
what is the voltage range of this product? ( 120v or 120-220v)?
Answer: 120v
Answer: 120 V only
Q:
How do you wash the trays?
Answer: I use warm soapy water in the sink and a light brushing! Probaly dishwasher safe also
Q:
as there is no product description on the voltage, frequency mentioned i wonder if your above product can be used in Malaysia. please advice.
Q:
does it have a fan?
Answer: Yes it has a fan.
Q:
Please confirm if this will work with indian power sockets, which is 230 volts, 50 hz ac as the power source, 3 pin (type-d) or 2 pin (type c).
Answer: This is a 120 Volt AC appliance.
Answer: No, this unit works on 110 volts ac.
Answer: I do not know--Why not contact Hamilton Beach directly
Answer: Probably not.
Q:
how variable are the temperature settings for this product? What temperatures does it allow you to specify? Do the temperatures seem to be reliable?
Q:
are fine mesh sheets available for this? i dont see where to buy more.
Q:
can it make fruit like apple or strawberry crunchy like cereal or does it only make the chewy kind? I like it both ways. Just curious.
Answer: It says it can , but like I said earlier it was a gift to my girls. and they seem to like it and have been posting things they do with it in their FB pages... Smile.
Q:
Does anyone use this for drying edible mushrooms ?
Answer: I have only dried them once. They were very good dried. I stored them in the freezer after drying and pull out just what I need.
Answer: Yes, absolutely! It dries them very evenly.
Answer: Don’t know of anyone but I think it will work.
Q:
can you purchase more trays for this machine?
Answer: You should be able to. I went to their website & they seemed to have a verity of things to buy.
Q:
how would be the best way to add height to between trays? I want to do tracheas for dog treats
Answer: You cannot add height to the trays. They stack on top of eachother. The top tray is best for larger or thicker items because the top is higher.
Q:
Can you use the silicone sheets to dry the fruit leather
Answer: It come with 2 sheets one for herbs and the solid one for fruit rolls.
Q:
Does anyone know what to do when the Er message comes on the screen?
Answer: Well I would assume er means error. I don't know what you are supposed to do. But if you can't reset it by pushing buttons. I would unplug it to clear it and try again. It is relatively simple in that you push the top of a button arrow pointing up to have the settings go up for temp and for time..or the bottom of the button down arrow to have it go down. if that doesn't work you probably have a power or cord issue, maybe a short. Refer to the manufacturer.
Answer: No, never had a issue, check the manual.
Q:
can you order more trays?
Q:
Has anyone figured out the best temp, time and thickness to make sweet potato dog treats?
Answer: Cut the sweet potatoes thin with a knife about 1/4 of an inch. Temp 130 for eight hours.
Q:
do they have it in 220 v?
Q:
does it come with a book
Answer: It does come with an instruction manual and a few recipes. It also tell you how to dehydrate properly and the amount of time certain fruits may take to be dehydrated.
Answer: Yes. It comes with a manual and includes recipes.
Q:
Does it make crunchy or chewy veggie/fruit ?
Answer: It depends on how thick you slice, the temperature you set, the length of time set and the moisture content you start. I dry mushroom to total crispy. I make giant raisins that remains soft at 16 hours but add 2 more hours they become crunchy. The point is if you want long term storage dry to crispy. Rehydration is easy for all fruit and vegetables. Jerky doesn’t rehydrate very well. Keep jerky soft.
Answer: You have to get the hang of it. My kiwi fruit was hard, however, my bananas were not as hard.
Answer: Yes. It is a very good product..!
Q:
is it noisey?
Answer: It has a hum when turned on. If I were to stay in the room with it for hours, I might find it bothersome, but I use it in the basement and only check on it periodically. In the same room, one can easily talk with someone, so the hum is not loud. More like white noise.
Answer: Very very very !!! It is also much less effective than any of the other 3 dryers I have had over the years. My advice to you is to spend a little more and get a better machine. This is junk. Good luck.
Answer: Its far less noisy than a hairdryer. It reminds me of a white noise machine. You’d have to turn up the t.v., if its next to you, but it’s definitely tolerable.
Answer: Unsure! Bought as a gift for my dad. He loves it! Uses it all the time. Can't imagine it's too annoying or he wouldn't still be using it.
Answer: Not noisy. Very quiet, though you can hear it. But, does give off a bit of heat.
Answer: There is a slight humming noise from the dehydrating fan. Definitely tolerable.
Q:
Hello, Can you tell me the drying surface (area) that this food dehydrator has ??? Thank you !
Answer: mine has five rectagular racks that measure about 13" x 9"
Q:
Does anyone know if the plastic is BPA free
Q:
Has anyone tried making yogurt?
Q:
Extra fruit roll sheets? They are out of stock on HB, and cant find them on amazon...
Answer: Hey Paul, I had the same problem and ended up waiting a month and a half for a new shipment from HB. In that time frame I never saw any other provider that sold the fruit roll sheets.
Answer: On amazon they sell sheets for dehydrator, I just ordered them
Answer: Soory havent been able to find any either
Q:
Can I dehydrate shredded coconut?
Answer: Must be shredded, if not takes too much time
Q:
Are the trays dishwasher safe?
Answer: Yes, but stay away from sani-temp which means in other words I guess they may not like hot wash. Info with mine says use warm soapy water.
Q:
Does this come in 2 boxes?
Answer: No it comes in 1 box
Q:
What are the dimensions of the trays?
Answer: The dimensions of the tray--9"xl2" It's perfect for my needs--bear in mind that a circular tray will hold more--
Q:
Are the trays dishwasher safe with heated dry?
Answer: Thank you for your question. Yes, the trays used with this appliance are dishwasher safe. However, we recommend that the noted parts are not cleaned using the "SANI" cycle as referenced in the use and care manual.
Answer: I've placed the trays in my dishwasher multiple times without any issues.
Answer: Do not know about heated dry sorry
Answer: No - I would not put them in the dishwasher- pretty sure it will warp
Q:
how many watts is it?
Q:
Where can i get additional trays other than at hamilton itself? any hints/links? thanks!
Answer: Hamilton Beach has them on their web site for sale, but they have been on backorder for at lease six months. They are priced at $15 per tray. I just purchased a second unit to obtain more trays.
Answer: Sorry, but I have not found a source. I think it only supports 5 trays.
Q:
why lid does not fit properly?
Answer: It does not have enough lip. It does fit very loosely and comes off easily.
Answer: I do not have that problem with my dehydrator. It should fit on top fine.
Answer: It just sits on top, it does not latch or fasten in any way.
Product reviews of Hamilton Beach 32100A Digital Food Dehydrator, 5 Tray, Gray
SouthernAmazoner : Nice basic machine
This is the first food dehydrator I've owned and the reason I chose one of the least expensive. I like this machine a lot. I wanted it primarily to make chicken and beef jerky for my dog who is on a low carb diet to lose weight. This dehydrator works perfectly. It makes jerky in about three hours. The LED display shows time left and temperature. The trays are easy to clean. The dehydrator is a little noisy, but since I've never had one before, I don't know if that's normal. It comes with a user manual and a few recipes.
D Hunt : So Simple to Make Dog Treats
I wanted to make dehydrated chicken and beef for my canine. I'vee never used one before, and I was concerned it would be difficult. It's not! I slice the meat 1/8-1/4 thick and place on the trays. After 12-16 hours, I have dog treats my puppy cannot resist. Quick, easy clean-up too! I HIGHLY RECOMMEND!
Jessie Murphy : Used 7 times over 33 days and it died.
Had unit for 33 days before getting an ER message after the unit failed to heat. Being it's over the 30 day mark it can not be returned to Amazon. I called Hamilton Beach and they were happy to send a new unit as a replacement but I have to pay $11.95 shipping and wait 7-10 days. I guess it's better than nothing but I ran all of 7 batches of jerky through it in that time and it died on round 7. I was kept in my climate controlled garage on a work bench with nothing around it. Nothing funky done on my part, it just died.
Melissa : Love it!
I bought this for my parents since my mom seemed to like my dehydrator. I'm glad and sad to say that it seems to work better than my very well know brand. I chose this one because it was smaller for the space she had available, and I wasn't sure how often she would actually use it. It was a great choice. The smaller trays make the so much easier to clean since they fit right in the sink, and everything she has made as been dehydrated well, evenly, and it a very reasonable time. I'm actually considering switching to it myself.
Brandi H. : Junk
Stopped working. Or maybe it never worked well to begin with.
The first batch of jerky I made took 6 hours. The dehydrator temp doesn't go up high enough for the recipe I found. So that was already longer than it was supposed to be.
Next I made apple chips and it took all day, maybe 12 hours, and they never got that crunch, so I don't think they were fully dried.
Then I tried jerky again, and after 18 hours I said it's good enough and went to bed. That jerky went bad, growing mold. So it absolutely wasn't good enough.
I've used Nescos in the past and this product was a junky toy in comparison, so I returned this and will save up for the Nesco.
The first batch of jerky I made took 6 hours. The dehydrator temp doesn't go up high enough for the recipe I found. So that was already longer than it was supposed to be.
Next I made apple chips and it took all day, maybe 12 hours, and they never got that crunch, so I don't think they were fully dried.
Then I tried jerky again, and after 18 hours I said it's good enough and went to bed. That jerky went bad, growing mold. So it absolutely wasn't good enough.
I've used Nescos in the past and this product was a junky toy in comparison, so I returned this and will save up for the Nesco.
Jordan Swanson : Stops working after a few uses.
After one or two good uses, I tried to use this to make fruit leather. It has been giving me an "Er" message after shutting itself off after an hour or two ever since. Can't figure out why this is happening, and the directions give no indiction of what it means. I got it to start up one other time, but am now back to the same issue. At this point, I wish I had bought something else.
I expected better performance from this dehydrator. When it works it does an okay job, but it seems to break down too easily.
I expected better performance from this dehydrator. When it works it does an okay job, but it seems to break down too easily.
ChrisandDog : Still Great after a year and half!
I bought this in Jan 2020 and I am still using it. I make chicken Jerky for me and the dog. I make pineapple fruit roll ups and homemade corn chips. I use sheets to cover the trays for easy clean up. I use on of inserts as a templet. It is a bit noisy but it does not bother me. I normally run it over night. I love it!
Mira Hodges : my first dehydrator
Super loud and bulky but it is my first dehydrator and it works. I like being able to control the temperature. There are not enough tray inserts for making fruit roll-ups and drying herbs. And it is hard to get in all the crevices to clean. It takes a lot longer to dehydrate than described in the instruction manual. But it functions pretty well.
Mohamad Kamani : Not too loud, got the job done
I needed a dehydrator to start drying some vegetables I grow and to try my hand at making beef jerky. This has been my first ever food dehydrator and I must say it is failry simple to use and comes with a few accessories for the various things you may need to dry. Also has quite a bit of room to dry. I just could not keep it on at night in my room as it was somewhat loud. Not too loud tho.
J. Tant : Superior to my Nesco
I'm actually between 4.5 and 5 stars, but it's probably closer to 5.
I hike and camp a lot, and part of that hobby is making sure I have enough food out on the trail. When I was younger and didn't care so much about weight I went in for the full moisture MRE things (and I still do if I'm going some place where water availability might be a concern), but as I get older I've gone more for the dehydrated stuff. Thing is, commercial freeze dried food is kind of pricey per meal. So I started making my own dehydrated meals, figuring that the utility for freeze drying only kicks in if you are storing the food for a long time.
I'm comparing this to my that I've had for a few years. I found this Hamilton Beach model to compare very favorably to the Nesco.
First, big points for being square shaped...that means less wasted space and it's easier to load, at least for me. Total capacity is about the same between the two, and the scheme is the same...stackable trays, etc. I will say that for the dehydrating I do (more on that in a minute), I wish there were more mesh screens available. I actually made my own out of some plastic mesh sheeting I found at Michael's, and it seems to work well.
The overall design is different...the Nesco has the heating element on top, blowing the air downward. This has the element on the bottom, blowing the air up. Intuitively the Hamilton Beach seems to have the better design, since heat rises and the fan doesn't have to work so hard to get circulation through all of the trays. In practice I think the effect was minor but noticeable. The downside to this design is one extra part (a clear plastic lid), but on the other hand that's appreciated. With the Nesco I had to take the heavy top unit off to see if the food was ready, with this one I can look through the lid. So in terms of overall design and convenience, I think the Hamilton Beach product is superior.
As for the use and interface, the Nesco had a simple dial on the top. This one has a digital readout with temperature as well as a timer function. This itself makes the Hamilton Beach more utilitarian than the Nesco (which has no timer at all). I rednecked engineered one by using a lamp timer in conjunction with the Nesco, but having the timer built in is a serious nod to convenience. I also like seeing the exact temperature instead of a simple analog dial.
Results: well, (and people laugh at me for saying this), I found that cooked-then-dehydrated pasta cooks faster on the trail than does pasta right out of the box. This is a concern out on the trail since you have to carry fuel for your stove, and I don't want to carry more than I have to. Anyway, this dehydrator is large enough to dehydrate a pound and a half of cooked elbow pasta, spread thin among the trays on my homemade mesh screens (incidentally, I used mesh screens in all the trays to no ill effect....). I then pack it with some cheese powder/powdered milk into a Food Saver vacuum-sealed bag, and I have a trail lunch/dinner ready to go. The square design makes it easy to make other things, especially dried sausage or jerky...much easier to load straight food items in a square box shape, after all. I'm in the habit of rotating the trays halfway through the drying time, and I did here...though I'm not too sure that it's strictly necessary with this design. End result - it did a very good job on a variety of foods, and as the capacity is slightly larger than my Nesco I'm pretty happy with it.
This isn't really that silent when it comes to operation, but it's not overly loud either. Think of it as a pleasant white noise, perhaps a bit lower in volume than a window box fan. The sound never bothered me.
So I really do like this dehydrator. I found it to work very well. My main nit is with the control panel, as it has that plastic membrane over the buttons. I really like real buttons and stuff, not membrane keyboards. But that's the only real issue I have with this unit. It does a good job, offers the timer function (which is fantastic), and has little convenient touches like being able to look at how a tray is drying without disassembling the whole thing. It's a good product!
I hike and camp a lot, and part of that hobby is making sure I have enough food out on the trail. When I was younger and didn't care so much about weight I went in for the full moisture MRE things (and I still do if I'm going some place where water availability might be a concern), but as I get older I've gone more for the dehydrated stuff. Thing is, commercial freeze dried food is kind of pricey per meal. So I started making my own dehydrated meals, figuring that the utility for freeze drying only kicks in if you are storing the food for a long time.
I'm comparing this to my that I've had for a few years. I found this Hamilton Beach model to compare very favorably to the Nesco.
First, big points for being square shaped...that means less wasted space and it's easier to load, at least for me. Total capacity is about the same between the two, and the scheme is the same...stackable trays, etc. I will say that for the dehydrating I do (more on that in a minute), I wish there were more mesh screens available. I actually made my own out of some plastic mesh sheeting I found at Michael's, and it seems to work well.
The overall design is different...the Nesco has the heating element on top, blowing the air downward. This has the element on the bottom, blowing the air up. Intuitively the Hamilton Beach seems to have the better design, since heat rises and the fan doesn't have to work so hard to get circulation through all of the trays. In practice I think the effect was minor but noticeable. The downside to this design is one extra part (a clear plastic lid), but on the other hand that's appreciated. With the Nesco I had to take the heavy top unit off to see if the food was ready, with this one I can look through the lid. So in terms of overall design and convenience, I think the Hamilton Beach product is superior.
As for the use and interface, the Nesco had a simple dial on the top. This one has a digital readout with temperature as well as a timer function. This itself makes the Hamilton Beach more utilitarian than the Nesco (which has no timer at all). I rednecked engineered one by using a lamp timer in conjunction with the Nesco, but having the timer built in is a serious nod to convenience. I also like seeing the exact temperature instead of a simple analog dial.
Results: well, (and people laugh at me for saying this), I found that cooked-then-dehydrated pasta cooks faster on the trail than does pasta right out of the box. This is a concern out on the trail since you have to carry fuel for your stove, and I don't want to carry more than I have to. Anyway, this dehydrator is large enough to dehydrate a pound and a half of cooked elbow pasta, spread thin among the trays on my homemade mesh screens (incidentally, I used mesh screens in all the trays to no ill effect....). I then pack it with some cheese powder/powdered milk into a Food Saver vacuum-sealed bag, and I have a trail lunch/dinner ready to go. The square design makes it easy to make other things, especially dried sausage or jerky...much easier to load straight food items in a square box shape, after all. I'm in the habit of rotating the trays halfway through the drying time, and I did here...though I'm not too sure that it's strictly necessary with this design. End result - it did a very good job on a variety of foods, and as the capacity is slightly larger than my Nesco I'm pretty happy with it.
This isn't really that silent when it comes to operation, but it's not overly loud either. Think of it as a pleasant white noise, perhaps a bit lower in volume than a window box fan. The sound never bothered me.
So I really do like this dehydrator. I found it to work very well. My main nit is with the control panel, as it has that plastic membrane over the buttons. I really like real buttons and stuff, not membrane keyboards. But that's the only real issue I have with this unit. It does a good job, offers the timer function (which is fantastic), and has little convenient touches like being able to look at how a tray is drying without disassembling the whole thing. It's a good product!
Trish Telesco : I would have given all fives but for one thing
I had a very hard time seeing the display because it appears to have two colors. I found I had to sit back, look, sit forward, adjust - rinse and repeat.
Dried the jerky far more quickly than anticipated. Trying fruit next.
Lightweight, space savings.
Dried the jerky far more quickly than anticipated. Trying fruit next.
Lightweight, space savings.
Mia Kalish, Ph.D. : My 2nd one of these :-)
I had ordered a dehydrator last year when the peaches came in. There were so many that I had to "do something." So I ordered this dehydrator. And I was very, very happy with it. I got a little Kindle instruction book, and I and my peaches were happy campers indeed.
Then this year, the apricot tree that produced only one fruit for me and two for the birds last year graced us with a double bumper crop this year. So, desperate, I ordered a 2nd dehydrator. It still took over a week to dry all the apricots but I got it done and I have fruit for my trail mix for over a year.
That said, the dehydrator has a nice temperature control, you can set the hours, it's easy to use and it's predictable. I like knowing that my fruit will be ready to pack just when the time says it's done. Sometimes a little adjustment of time or temperature is necessary but that is dependent more on the fruit I'm drying that on the unit.
Great buy! Give it a try :-).
Then this year, the apricot tree that produced only one fruit for me and two for the birds last year graced us with a double bumper crop this year. So, desperate, I ordered a 2nd dehydrator. It still took over a week to dry all the apricots but I got it done and I have fruit for my trail mix for over a year.
That said, the dehydrator has a nice temperature control, you can set the hours, it's easy to use and it's predictable. I like knowing that my fruit will be ready to pack just when the time says it's done. Sometimes a little adjustment of time or temperature is necessary but that is dependent more on the fruit I'm drying that on the unit.
Great buy! Give it a try :-).
Jordan Swanson : Stops working after a few uses.
After one or two good uses, I tried to use this to make fruit leather. It has been giving me an "Er" message after shutting itself off after an hour or two ever since. Can't figure out why this is happening, and the directions give no indiction of what it means. I got it to start up one other time, but am now back to the same issue. At this point, I wish I had bought something else.
I expected better performance from this dehydrator. When it works it does an okay job, but it seems to break down too easily.
I expected better performance from this dehydrator. When it works it does an okay job, but it seems to break down too easily.
Suzie : Great, great, great.
I bought this to make dog treats. I was disgusted with the warnings about buying them, so I really paid attention to the ingredients. I then spent some guilt ridden hours over what we had been feeding our babies. A downside of making treats without preservatives is that they can get moldy. Add in humid Florida weather, then make room in your freezer. Hence, the dehydrator.
I spent weeks comparing makes & models, going back & forth. From other reviewers I knew that I wanted a timer, the right fan placement, and not too noisy. Price of course, for what I was going to use it for.
This fit the bill. I started just drying the dog treats after baking them but then I got cocky and decided to make jerky. OK so the 1st batch was disgraceful and inedible. Hint: you are warned to not make the meat too thick. Well the opposite is true- don't make it too thin, either!
I had the butcher slice some meat for me, but I also found thin slices of sirloin that I simply had to cut in half with scissors. Perfect. I partially froze a chicken breast to slice it, and that was easy. Flank steak is wonderful. I even sliced a beef heart and wrapped it with sweet potato strips that I steamed for a few minutes to soften.
While I've made some mistakes, they were all mine, the unit performed great. I never have to move items around because one section is drying faster. Keep everything the same size, or at least the same size on each tray where you can pause the unit to remove a tray and keep the rest going.
I have 6 months at this and I couldn't be happier. That includes 3 dogs (one diabetic ) one daughter and one very happy jerky loving son-in-law. Not to mention the money I've saved and why I bought it in the first place. If offered a store bought treat or a homemade one, they immediately go for homemade. Smart dogs!
I spent weeks comparing makes & models, going back & forth. From other reviewers I knew that I wanted a timer, the right fan placement, and not too noisy. Price of course, for what I was going to use it for.
This fit the bill. I started just drying the dog treats after baking them but then I got cocky and decided to make jerky. OK so the 1st batch was disgraceful and inedible. Hint: you are warned to not make the meat too thick. Well the opposite is true- don't make it too thin, either!
I had the butcher slice some meat for me, but I also found thin slices of sirloin that I simply had to cut in half with scissors. Perfect. I partially froze a chicken breast to slice it, and that was easy. Flank steak is wonderful. I even sliced a beef heart and wrapped it with sweet potato strips that I steamed for a few minutes to soften.
While I've made some mistakes, they were all mine, the unit performed great. I never have to move items around because one section is drying faster. Keep everything the same size, or at least the same size on each tray where you can pause the unit to remove a tray and keep the rest going.
I have 6 months at this and I couldn't be happier. That includes 3 dogs (one diabetic ) one daughter and one very happy jerky loving son-in-law. Not to mention the money I've saved and why I bought it in the first place. If offered a store bought treat or a homemade one, they immediately go for homemade. Smart dogs!
Stephen Pirak : love it...but only 1 fruit leather tray included...
First time dehydrator user, and I've loved it from the first time i used it...i like the digital controls, and it is not distractingly noisy, just the sound of a small fan. However, i am VERY disappointed that Hamilton Beach no longer offers fruit leather liners for additional after-purchase sale (one is included with the unit)! Honestly, its one of the reasons i bought a dehydrator in the first place (my bad, i should have read the reviews that pointed this out) and though i really like it, i'd love to be able to do more than one fruit leather tray at a time. For everything else, 5 stars, but give me more fruit leather, lol!!
Val : really good dehydrator!
Good dehydrator. My first dehydrator so maybe I'm being generous with the stars, but it does everything I want it to do & more than likely stuff I have no idea how to do (fruit leather...whaaaat?). Banana chips, kiwi & strawberries turned out fantastic. The little instruction/recipe book included has a list of drying time for various products and a great recipe for Teriyaki Jerky. I followed it to the letter, the flavor was amaaaaazing! But the dry time was apparently a little short, even though it looked like wood chips, there was still a lot of moisture in the jerky (inside the vacuum bag) and it went bad after just a few days. Plus I may have cut the meat a little too thick. I don't blame the dehydrator, just my inexperience.
It holds a LOT of product, 5 trays held 4 bananas, 5 kiwi and a handful of strawberries all sliced thin.
The digital read out is super easy to use & set the temp and drying times.
It holds a LOT of product, 5 trays held 4 bananas, 5 kiwi and a handful of strawberries all sliced thin.
The digital read out is super easy to use & set the temp and drying times.
Trenton Warner : Piece of garbage
This thing is garbage. Received mine on Wednesday and dehydrated some fruit. Now only 4 days later it quits running less than 5 minutes after I set it and gives an error code. Don't even waste your time or money on this.
John G : Top of the trash heap
I got this item given all the great reviews and was hoping this would be a great find amongst the cheap hamilton beach trash pile. Thow this cheap crap at the top of the heap! It cut off after a few minutes of use displaying "Er" and after searching online discovered this is a common fatal error. It is useless. Thankfully amazon sent me a refund. I guess I'll bite the bullet and buy a quality product.
A. Person : 2 years of use and going strong
I have had occasion to have this running days on end when its the right time of year or I get a hankering to do a lot of dehydrating, it has held up just fine. I have used it across the entire temperature range for a variety of different things to good effect. It always works well and I have been very happy with it.
The only problem is I have come to want some extra trays so I can load a bit more at a time - the hamiltonbeach website has extra trays listed for $9 each, but they have been out of stock for quite some time. If you think you might ever want to expand capacity perhaps consider going with one of the popular round models that always has extra trays readily available.
The only problem is I have come to want some extra trays so I can load a bit more at a time - the hamiltonbeach website has extra trays listed for $9 each, but they have been out of stock for quite some time. If you think you might ever want to expand capacity perhaps consider going with one of the popular round models that always has extra trays readily available.
Nicole : Worthless machine, only runs for 15 minutes before turning off
I was excited to start dehydrating my own crackers and fruits and bought this machine. I did not use it right away, so my warranty is worthless at this point. But, today, on the first time out of the box, I discovered it only runs in 15 minute increments and then turns off. When I came online to see if I was doing something wrong, I discovered that this has happened to many people. I'm irritated with myself for not using this sooner and discovering I had wasted my money, but I wanted to share with you NOT to buy this machine. This is absolutely no good to anyone.
Keri : Overall great dehydrator
Found ourselves needing a new dehydrator for making jerky. After much research chose this dehydrator. We've used it for the first time and impressed with it's compact size but capacity to hold a large amount of meat. It is very quiet, so quiet we actually kept it on the kitchen counter which we were happy about since we are subject to wildlife if we had to put it outside. Very easy to use, and be able to control time and temp. The individual shelves were very easy to clean by just tossing them in the dishwasher since the size was small and square. They fit easily into our dishwasher. The only thing to work through current is the bottom unit. Marinated dripped down and it took some careful scrubbing to get it clean without getting water into the unit. Have seen others use silicon mats to catch drippings, so will try that next. Overall very happy with this unit and recommend it for the average home dehydrator enthusiast.
A. Person : 2 years of use and going strong
I have had occasion to have this running days on end when its the right time of year or I get a hankering to do a lot of dehydrating, it has held up just fine. I have used it across the entire temperature range for a variety of different things to good effect. It always works well and I have been very happy with it.
The only problem is I have come to want some extra trays so I can load a bit more at a time - the hamiltonbeach website has extra trays listed for $9 each, but they have been out of stock for quite some time. If you think you might ever want to expand capacity perhaps consider going with one of the popular round models that always has extra trays readily available.
The only problem is I have come to want some extra trays so I can load a bit more at a time - the hamiltonbeach website has extra trays listed for $9 each, but they have been out of stock for quite some time. If you think you might ever want to expand capacity perhaps consider going with one of the popular round models that always has extra trays readily available.
Tom : Buy this if you want your food to smell and taste like burnt plastic.
Even after thoroughly hand washing the trays the smell of burnt plastic/rubber persisted. I realized it was coming from the heating element. I ran the dehydrator on the highest temp setting for 2 hours because I thought the smell was a byproduct of the manufacturing process that would eventually go away but I was wrong. The heating element still pushes out hot air that smells strongly of this burning plastic which could leach smells and bad tastes into food. I plan on returning this, it was a huge waste of time. Don’t buy it.
danigirl : FIRST TIME PRESERVING FOOD WITH DEHYDRATOR
This was my first attempt at dehydrating fruits, vegetables and herbs, so I did not want to invest a lot of money in a dehydrator. This dehydrator was priced well and was easy to operate. The size and shape allowed the dehydrator to fit well on my kitchen counter and store in my cabinet when not in use. The trays were easy to wash with soapy water. I was pleased with how my vegetables and herbs were preserved for use during the winter. The dehydrator is pretty loud when operating, and I found that most things I dehydrated needed to be kept in the dehydrator a lot longer than the recommended times listed in the operating instructions.
Mohamad Kamani : Not too loud, got the job done
I needed a dehydrator to start drying some vegetables I grow and to try my hand at making beef jerky. This has been my first ever food dehydrator and I must say it is failry simple to use and comes with a few accessories for the various things you may need to dry. Also has quite a bit of room to dry. I just could not keep it on at night in my room as it was somewhat loud. Not too loud tho.
jim whitaker : Real Deal but one thing!
I've had this about 2 weeks and logged a good number of hours with it. It's probably the best deal in a dehydrator on Amazon. It has enough power to bring the heat up on even a full load. Good air movement and even drying the fan is quite powerful. The thermostat while not the most accurate is certainly close enough for a dehydrator. Plenty of room and the solid sheet plus the mesh sheet is a nice addition often missing at this price level. Now the down side, it's loud as pointed out by others. I'd say "microwave" loud is about right. Also mine at least has some noticeable vibration caused by an unbalanced fan. None of this is a deal breaker just be aware you probably wont want this in your living or bedroom. I would certainly buy again I just wish they paid a little more attention to the fan balance and have a talk with the supplier of that part.
Jordan Swanson : Stops working after a few uses.
After one or two good uses, I tried to use this to make fruit leather. It has been giving me an "Er" message after shutting itself off after an hour or two ever since. Can't figure out why this is happening, and the directions give no indiction of what it means. I got it to start up one other time, but am now back to the same issue. At this point, I wish I had bought something else.
I expected better performance from this dehydrator. When it works it does an okay job, but it seems to break down too easily.
I expected better performance from this dehydrator. When it works it does an okay job, but it seems to break down too easily.
Rosee : Chicken jerky
Excellent for dehydrating foods. A little noisy, but the machine does the job. Better to have a good fan in the unit than a quiet one that takes twice as long to get the job done.
merlin : Defective!!!
Only works after a few times. After that it reads Er(error). You can reset it but then the air doesn't get hot. Totally 100% defective.
bigcountrybaloo : Good dehydrator for drying hops at only 100º
Works well for drying hops. I was able to load it with almost a pound of wet hops, and it reduced them to the 8-10% moisture level in around 7-8 hours, resulting in just under 4oz of dried hops. I chose this dehydrator for my hops project because of the timer, as well as the important for hops feature that it will operate as low as 100º. I won't go into all of the details for drying hops here, but if you do a quick google search, you can find several excellent university written short papers on methods to dry homegrown hops. The trays aren't super sturdy, but the fine mesh insert was a nice "bonus", I used that to dry a small batch of catnip for our cat.
Monica Baldonado : Make beef jerky at it's highest setting
I read an article that this exact model was off by a few degrees.. that being said comparing to my actual 1st usage of beef jerky I personally feel it's true. At 130 degrees like it says in the booklet it comes with I'm going on like the 15th hour so the last hour I turned it all the way up and it's looking better faster....OH YA I'm also very disappointed that it seems I can't add trays. Of course I didn't look into that before buying or I WOULDN'T HAVE BOUGHT IT.. I may be a beginner but I cook and bake in big quantities.. and I prefer for my appliance's that I paid alot of money for to be as accurate as their book says.. Also in my opinion it's NOT loud... So I'm not a happy customer but I'm stuck with it so I'll keep using it. It's just ok nothing to be excited about because when I looked it up and it was referred as "for beginners" they meant it doesn't work that great. Kinda reminds me of a kids easy bake oven., Lol... I mean it works but not the greatest. There's way better for the price...and I've always loved Hamilton Ibeach products. hope this helps
Maggie Norcross : It works well for drying things...
The adjustable temperature and time settings are great. It absolutely does the job. I have no complaints about the functionality of this as a dehydrator for food.
But it only comes with one solid liner (for e.g. fruit leather) and one crosshatched liner (for drying anything that would fall through the otherwise large holes on the trays themselves). And I can't find any place to buy any additional liners. The Hamilton Beach website is sold out, and has been for at least the month that I've had this.
So, I guess I'm saying, if you want to make fruit leather then either try to source liners for this first, or buy another dehydrator.
But it only comes with one solid liner (for e.g. fruit leather) and one crosshatched liner (for drying anything that would fall through the otherwise large holes on the trays themselves). And I can't find any place to buy any additional liners. The Hamilton Beach website is sold out, and has been for at least the month that I've had this.
So, I guess I'm saying, if you want to make fruit leather then either try to source liners for this first, or buy another dehydrator.
Trenton Warner : Piece of garbage
This thing is garbage. Received mine on Wednesday and dehydrated some fruit. Now only 4 days later it quits running less than 5 minutes after I set it and gives an error code. Don't even waste your time or money on this.
Mydogissupersmart : Sturdy and efficient dehydrator
I have been using this dehydrator for several months now. It has done a great job on everything from fruit to sweet potatoes (which I dry a treats for my dogs). It comes with a brief instruction guide which also includes a few tips on drying times and temperatures for common items as well as basic recipes for jerky. In general it runs about 10 hours or so when I dry sweet potato chunks. The fan is a little noisy, but not horrible - about as loud as one of those little fans people keep on their desks. I like that it has an integrated digital timer so I can turn it on before I go to bed and my items are dried when I get up in the morning.
BobOki : Cheap plastic trays. Took MANY hours longer than the manual said to dry some basic herbs.
VERY cheap plastic feel all around. I got this to dry hops for my brewing, but tested it on some basil. Reading the instructions, this said it would take about 4 hours or so to dry them, it took 2 days to actually dry them. I have not got to use them on any hops yet, my harvest is already past, but I am assuming it will take multiple days to get anything done with them. As long as it works, I am not too worried about the long time, but that does seem really excessive compared to it's time estimates in the book.
Controls are pretty easy to use and it has auto shutoff. It also looks decent, so not some ugly mess on your counter.
Controls are pretty easy to use and it has auto shutoff. It also looks decent, so not some ugly mess on your counter.
Tom : Buy this if you want your food to smell and taste like burnt plastic.
Even after thoroughly hand washing the trays the smell of burnt plastic/rubber persisted. I realized it was coming from the heating element. I ran the dehydrator on the highest temp setting for 2 hours because I thought the smell was a byproduct of the manufacturing process that would eventually go away but I was wrong. The heating element still pushes out hot air that smells strongly of this burning plastic which could leach smells and bad tastes into food. I plan on returning this, it was a huge waste of time. Don’t buy it.
Sindy E. : One attempt and Returned
Used only once.....well tried to use! Would run only temporarily after putting it in the pause mode and then it would flash an error and shut off. Couldn’t restart until it was unplugged and then plugged back in. Liked the name brand, size and design but not something I would even consider leaving the room while it was in use. Very disappointing and it was promptly returned.
Amazon Customer : Controls SUCK!
It works well, but it really is not very quiet. The control panel has been terrible since we received it an is just getting worse. It switches from temp to time and back again while you're trying to set each setting.
Nonna : Just Not What I Expected
I was expecting some great things from this dehydrator, but haven’t found those great things yet. I bought this to dry chili peppers but have not tried that yet. I decided to dry some fruits first and none came out as expected. I dried bananas, looking for some banana chips like I can buy at the organic store (for way too high a price), but the bananas never got dried. I ran them for the length of time specified in the booklet and they were still sticky, like banana slices left out overnight. So I put them back in for longer - about twice as long as the book stated. Still sticky. Same thing with fresh pineapples. Fresh apples just turned rubbery and strawberries turned chewy. So it is sitting in the closet waiting to get an opportunity to redeem itself with chili peppers that I will grow next year. Until then this review will be a 3 Star.
Cathie P : I love the HB Hydrator's sleek design
Dry a little, dry a lot. The stackable trays allow you to chose the number of trays you want to use at any time. I like the size and flexibility of this dehydrator. It is easy to store and doesn't take up much space. I use it primarily for herbs. During the winter months, I purchase small, pricey, packages of fresh herbs. Now I can use what I want and preserve the remaining portion for a later use. I also grow my own fresh herbs. The garden and dehydrate allow me greater control over the quality of my food.
J. Steed : Wouldn't buy again
I'm disappointed in this purchase. It takes twice as long (at least) to dehydrate items as it says in the manual. So far I've tried herbs and fruits. No overcrowding, herbs were dry. Going on hour 15 to dry sage leaves as I type. I wanted to try doing jerky but it may take DAYS...
It's also a little noisy - noisier than my microwave.
Pros: temp and time are easy to adjust and it's easy to clean.
It's also a little noisy - noisier than my microwave.
Pros: temp and time are easy to adjust and it's easy to clean.
Deserts miss the Rain : Perfect for easy jerky dog treats.
I have been using this for over a month, now. I use it for fruit for myself and for making liver, steak and chicken jerky treats for my dog. Works great and very easy to clean.
Kat : Ehh ?
I was under the impression that I can make CHIPS with this. As in CRUNCHY. I’ve attempted beats once, and strawberries twice. Followed instructions to a T and have gotten dried soft maybe a little crunch on the edges results every time.
I even tried letting them sit longer. I did this with the beats and instead got burnt tasting beats that were just void of life.
I really want this thing to work. If I can’t even make my favorite chips ( beat chips ) I see no point .
On top of all this it’s noisy, and I got a lot of complaints from the other people in the house. You have to have a spare room for this thing to give it privacy to make all its noise by itself lol.
It’s also pretty small. I was very unsatisfied with the fact that I have to wait so long to make something I can eat in one quick sitting.
It had me considering to just buy a really expensive commercial one. At that point it’s like .... yeah no.
Returning this.
I even tried letting them sit longer. I did this with the beats and instead got burnt tasting beats that were just void of life.
I really want this thing to work. If I can’t even make my favorite chips ( beat chips ) I see no point .
On top of all this it’s noisy, and I got a lot of complaints from the other people in the house. You have to have a spare room for this thing to give it privacy to make all its noise by itself lol.
It’s also pretty small. I was very unsatisfied with the fact that I have to wait so long to make something I can eat in one quick sitting.
It had me considering to just buy a really expensive commercial one. At that point it’s like .... yeah no.
Returning this.
Ringo5000 : Great unit, blows air sideways and up and down
Does an EXCELLENT job for the money. Id put it up againt dehydrators costing 2 to 3 times the price. Its a bit loud, but liveable. The air circulation is what makes it stand out. Its a stacking unit that behaves much like a slide-in tray unit. Ive run it for pretty much 3 days... almost non stop. No problems.
V_household : Great compact dehydrator
This is an excellent product that fits neatly on a counter (as compared to round dehydrators) and is easy to clean. I debated between giving it 4 stars or 5, and I opted for the slightly lower rating, because the food in the corners doesn’t dry as quickly as the rest of the areas. Now I know why so many dehydrators are round! However, I would still buy this again, because a rectangular shape is so much easier to use and store, and it is otherwise a really nice design.
Don : The trays are its downfall
UPDATE: After using the dehydrator for two weeks -- running nearly continuously for a week dehydrating 12 quarts of backpacking food and 2 quarts of jerky -- I've found that it works well. So I gave it an additional star. My only gripe is the trays, detailed below.
PROS
1. The digital temperature and time control is a real plus at this price point.
2. Low-cost entry into dehydrating.
3. The squarish design makes cutting roll ups less of a geometry problem than round dehydrator.
CONS: The trays.
1. The openings in the grid work are way too large. The gridwork is so large that anything but the largest vegetable and fruit slices falls through. It's probably fine if you're making jerky from sliced meat or doing sliced fruit and veggies. But forget about doing diced veggies unless you want to do one tray at a time, or spend time cutting out parchment paper.
2. Good luck finding additional trays. Only one "leather"/ fruit roll-up tray and one fine mesh screen are included. That's understandable at this price point, BUT I've found it impossible to buy additional trays. Amazon, Sears, Walmart, Wayfair, and other sell the unit, but nada on the trays.
3. Don't plan on doing a lot of fruit leather or veggie bark at a time. The manual says can only use two "leather"/ fruit roll-up trays at a time, but since buying additional trays seems impossible, you're looking at one tray per drying cycle.
If you're planning on doing a lot of roll ups or diced veggies, consider the NESCO or another brand with better trays and liner options.
PROS
1. The digital temperature and time control is a real plus at this price point.
2. Low-cost entry into dehydrating.
3. The squarish design makes cutting roll ups less of a geometry problem than round dehydrator.
CONS: The trays.
1. The openings in the grid work are way too large. The gridwork is so large that anything but the largest vegetable and fruit slices falls through. It's probably fine if you're making jerky from sliced meat or doing sliced fruit and veggies. But forget about doing diced veggies unless you want to do one tray at a time, or spend time cutting out parchment paper.
2. Good luck finding additional trays. Only one "leather"/ fruit roll-up tray and one fine mesh screen are included. That's understandable at this price point, BUT I've found it impossible to buy additional trays. Amazon, Sears, Walmart, Wayfair, and other sell the unit, but nada on the trays.
3. Don't plan on doing a lot of fruit leather or veggie bark at a time. The manual says can only use two "leather"/ fruit roll-up trays at a time, but since buying additional trays seems impossible, you're looking at one tray per drying cycle.
If you're planning on doing a lot of roll ups or diced veggies, consider the NESCO or another brand with better trays and liner options.
Nonna : Just Not What I Expected
I was expecting some great things from this dehydrator, but haven’t found those great things yet. I bought this to dry chili peppers but have not tried that yet. I decided to dry some fruits first and none came out as expected. I dried bananas, looking for some banana chips like I can buy at the organic store (for way too high a price), but the bananas never got dried. I ran them for the length of time specified in the booklet and they were still sticky, like banana slices left out overnight. So I put them back in for longer - about twice as long as the book stated. Still sticky. Same thing with fresh pineapples. Fresh apples just turned rubbery and strawberries turned chewy. So it is sitting in the closet waiting to get an opportunity to redeem itself with chili peppers that I will grow next year. Until then this review will be a 3 Star.
Sindy E. : One attempt and Returned
Used only once.....well tried to use! Would run only temporarily after putting it in the pause mode and then it would flash an error and shut off. Couldn’t restart until it was unplugged and then plugged back in. Liked the name brand, size and design but not something I would even consider leaving the room while it was in use. Very disappointing and it was promptly returned.
Lisa Johnson : What a Great ITEM TO USE
Hi We purchased this Dehydrator and then I went to an ASIAN market and bought lots of different fruits, WOW it works wonderful and I put it on just before calling it anite and when I got up around 7am IT was done and the house smelled good and the fruit was dry and we put it into several different size ZIP bags and are enjoying it
Dimitri Lopez : One button not working properly.
The overall materials seem durable and so far I have used it a lot to make chicken jerky for my doggies. They are happy, I am happy. However the problem is that one of the buttons, the up arrow button, is not working properly. It was a minor enough imperfection that I decided not to mess with returns or replacements. If I press the down arrow to put the cooking time then I have to cycle from 48 hours to get to the number I really want, usually 6 hours or less. That is 42 clicks because the stupid up button will not working; it is acting like it is old and worn out.
you can compare the product price from Costco, wayfair, bestbuy, lowes, target, homedepot, Walmart, ebay, amazon to find the best price for you
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