When selecting freeze dryer accessories, it's crucial to ensure compatibility with the specific make and model of the freeze-drying unit. Many manufacturers such as Harvest Right offer accessories designed to work seamlessly with their equipment, optimizing performance and ease of use.
Most freeze dryers have a powder-coated steel exterior with a food-grade stainless steel vacuum chamber. A few brands or options have aluminum and stainless exteriors.
Vacuum pump quality significantly impacts both performance and maintenance requirements. Look for systems with oil-free or easy-maintenance vacuum pumps that achieve the deep vacuum necessary for efficient sublimation while requiring minimal intervention.
We talked about the payback period for freeze driers above because capacity affects the price. If you plan on freeze-drying as a hobby or to stock less than a few hundred pounds of food, the small will probably do.
Freeze drying removes all but 2% of the water in food through a two-stage process that begins with flash freezing (1). If you think a dehydrator would be a better option for you, check out our article on best dehydrators.
Freeze dryers utilize a sophisticated preservation method called sublimation, where frozen water in food transforms directly into water vapor without passing through the liquid phase.
Refrigerated, frozen, and canned food just don’t last very long. Freeze dried food will last up to 25 years and does not need to be to be rotated like other foods. Freeze dried food is perfect for home storage.
So, the answer depends on what you are trying to do. My opinion is that dehydrators are better for snacks- like jerky and dried fruit, whereas freeze-dryers are better for pretty much any long-term food storage. Both are pretty good Buy Now at making candy as well.
Although you should not store meat in a plastic bag because the bag will allow a tiny bit of oxygen through. And that could cause safety problems with the meat.
Harvest Right’s Pharmaceutical Freeze Dryer removes water from plants and organic compounds while they are in a frozen state. This locks in the freshness of herbs and plants. Their appearance, nutritional content, and potency remain the same as when they were fresh.
Even canned foods do not retain their original texture and flavor. In each case their water content is to blame. Freeze dried food retains only 2% of its water. When stored properly, it should retain its taste for decades and will probably taste better than plain MRE’s.
For us, the advantages such as preserving surplus garden produce and taking our emergency food stores to a whole new level, vastly outweigh any inconveniences.
It also doesn’t take very much time if the freeze dryer has ‘candy mode’ like our picks. Ranging between 30 minutes to 2 hours per batch makes it easy to process a lot of batches at once.
Can I use a freeze dryer for non-food items? While primarily used for food, freeze dryers can also be used to preserve certain non-food items like flowers or documents.