Jake Syma: September 2014

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Food Dehydrators

Nesco FD-39P Food Dehydrator, 500-watt
Powerful 500 Watt Motor
Food Releases Easily From Trays
No Tray Rotation
Easy Operation and Clean-Up
Includes 4 Trays
Includes 4 Dishwasher Safe and Break Resistant Trays
The FD-39P Food Dehydrator features Nesco/American Harvest's innovative Top Mounted Powerhead that dries food quickly and evenly with superior results. Detaches to make dehydrator dishwasher safe for easy clean up. Fan-Flow Technology means faster, more even drying with no tray rotation necessary. Make great tasting beef jerky or venison jerky! Also makes delicious turkey jerky, fish jerky, homemade trail mix, apple snacks, banana chips, dried soup mixes. Dry tomatoes, watermelon, cantaloupes, papaya and many other fruits. Use for crafts like making potpourri or dried flowers for any occasion. Comes with 4 clear trays that are break resistant and dishwasher safe; expandable to 7 trays. 500 watts.
review: Good product, but the trays are wide and it is noisy.

By garkin on September 14, 2014
A good item, but a bit noisy (like a hair drier on low) and the trays won't easily fit in a dishwasher.

Four-tray system for dehydrating foods at a fraction of the cost of commercially dehydrated foods with no additives or preservatives
See-through cover to monitor drying progress on top tray; Bottom-mounted fan and heating element provide consistent air flow for optimum drying
Drying trays and cover are fully immiscible and dishwasher safe; Fruit roll sheets, nonstick mesh screens, jerky gun and jerky spice kits available
Easy to store; Drying trays nest for compact storage; Cord stores in base
Four drying trays included; Expands up to eight trays for added capacity
The noise is not an issue...it's not hair dryer loud, but it's not ceiling fan quiet. It takes far less time to dry things than the manual shows.
review: Good construction... two BIG flaws.

By Home Brew on July 24, 2014
Color Name: White Verified Purchase
The construction and quality of the parts on this dehydrator are excellent. I think it is probably sturdy enough to last for several years and hundreds of uses. However, it does have two very big flaws... no timer and no ability to set the dehydrating temperature. After researching several websites on proper dehydrating techniques, I have discovered that temperature is very important. If set too high, the dehydrator could ruin some of your foods. This dehydrator has only one temperature. And since it does not have a timer to turn the apparatus off, you will have to monitor the dehydrator yourself.
I returned the one I purchased to Amazon after discovering this flaw and am upgrading to Presto model 06301 ($58)... it has both a timer and a thermostat ranging from 90F to 160F. The cost of 06301 is $23.00 more but well worth the extra dollars spent.
If money is a factor, your personal time (to monitor the dehydrator) does not matter, and making jerky is your only interest, then this might work for you. However, if you want to dry beer hops cones and other herbs as I do, you need something with a temperature setting around 95F.

By RM on April 22, 2013
I'm happy with this machine. Already I've dried almonds after blanching, salmon, beef and buffalo jerky. The temp runs around 140 f. There are no settings to fuss with, not even an On switch, you just plug it in.

terrible reviews (trays break or melt, takes forever to make jerky @ only 125W)
125-watt food dehydrator with 5 interchangeable trays
Electrical heating coils produce convection air flow for evenly dried food
Internal operating temperature of up to 133 degrees F; quiet operation
Instructional booklet with recipes included; made in the USA
Measures 13 by 13 by 12-1/2 inches; 1-year limited warranty
Save money and time by creating your own healthy or low carb snacks quickly and easily at home with the Ronco FD1005WHGEN 5-tray food dehydrator. It's a snap to whip up a batch of beef or turkey jerky, banana, pineapple or apple snacks, dried vegetables or herbs, homemade yogurt - or so much more. The included instructional booklet tells you how.
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Six-tray system for dehydrating foods at a fraction of the cost of commercially dried foods with no additives or preservatives.
Makes jerky from meat, poultry, and seafood includes sample packets of jerky spice and cure
Digital thermostat and timer for precise drying time and temperature choose drying temperatures from 90 to 165 degree f
The bottom-mounted fan and heating element provide consistant air flow for optimum drying No rotation needed
Includes six drying trays (expands up to 12 trays), two fruit roll sheets, two nonstick mesh screens trays and cover are dishwasher safe

arf thread
recommendation: if this experiment doesn't work, next time pony up and purchase a unit with a temperature control unit, and a timer.

Cat Litter Boxes

The trays can be reused multiple times, I just use petsafe antibact spray to clean down between litter changes (get the 15 lb bags of crystals to refill).

You should check out http://www.catgenie.com you don't have to scoop anything, it cleans "re-useable litter" and it flushes waste down your toilet.

If you have room, and money is no object or you don't mind purchasing refurbished, the Litter Robot is truly the way to go...

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