And therein lies the cons to buying a freeze dryer. It takes time to make them cost effective. Depending on humidity in your area, a single run can take up to two days to complete.
Never allowing the unit to heat up to ambient temps - Quickly removing the ice from the chamber and starting the next cycle while the chamber unit is still very cold.
Be wary of buying freeze-dryers that come from locations where the unit could have been tampered with or damaged, even by accident.
Do you have any vacuum gauges at all to test the pump? ( Though I doubt that is the problem based upon your tests )
Removing the ice from between the chamber wall and the insulation (hopefully will never have to do this again)
It's awesome! I don't have a freeze dryer yet but am planning to place an order tomorrow. I am super curious how Kerry's scroll pump is holding up... eliminating the oil from the equation would make this whole thing SO much easier.
Freeze drying is also simple to do – much easier than canning or dehydrating. If you care about having an emergency food supply, a Harvest Right Freeze Dryer is the best and most affordable way to do it.
It appears that the ice build up inside the chamber sublimates as well as the ice in the food. Eliminate the ice and the process is faster, and less water ends up in your oil.
The two sub-processes, freezing and vacuum drying are done correctly: The freezing process must be quick and the vacuum process should leave only residual moisture.
Freezing a given number of meals means that you’ll only need to pop them in the microwave to defrost, once you’re ready to eat them. On top of that, they won’t go bad for months on end.
Since 2000, Extension has been warning consumers about canning cakes and breads. While this process has much appeal, it does not destroy the organism that causes botulism.
and this piece was placed on the vacuum hose fitting. I can still remove the panel without removing the hose to clean the coils. Simply remove the screws and slide the panel down the more info vacuum hose a few inches.
Tony, if you see this, I went ahead and purchased the catch can. Do you think it's okay to just purchase a reducer to go from the size of the exhaust to the size of the hose that came with the can?
Is it as cheap as buying at the store? No. But properly freeze-dried and stored meats can last ten years or more without refrigeration. The freeze-drying process can be challenging, but those who have the time and patience should consider doing it.