Dehydrator death! Any good ones out there under 100 bucks

96strat · Oct 27, 2013

Any ideas on a dehydrator under 100 bucks anyone? Thanks Andrew

PepperLover · Oct 27, 2013

for a good small scale one i will say Excalibur, but they are pricey over $300. but they worth every penny

DevilsEyes · Oct 27, 2013

All the ones under 100 bucks will keep on getting killed!

Whitewookie · Oct 27, 2013

Nesco has several for under/around $100. I don't know what you mean by good, but I've had decent luck with them. Like most things they don't last forever. The FD75 I just replace lasted a couple years under pretty heavy use. I replaced it with a model FD1010 that I found on ebay for around $100 with eight trays. So far I'm happy with it.

VR,
Harold

HopsNBarley · Oct 27, 2013

I'm with Judy here. The Excalibur is a great machine. It does cost a little more than some of the others but is built to last.
I have the 9 tray with timer and couldn't be happier.
Pay me now or pay me later....

PepperDaddler · Oct 27, 2013

How long do the cheaper ones usually last for you guys?

cone9 · Oct 27, 2013

I am not really answering your question, but FWIW I have had an Excalibur for over 335 years that is still going strong.

cone9 said:
I am not really answering your question, but FWIW I have had an Excalibur for over 335 years that is still going strong.

WOW - I've gotten good service out of my unit, but that good!

Sawyer · Oct 27, 2013

People love to rag on Harbor Freight stuff (and some of it really is crap), but I've had good luck with this dehydrator. If you're looking for something quick and dirty, and inexpensive, it can't be beat. I had one going 24/7 for a week or so a couple of weeks ago and will be cranking it up again soon. It's really just a heating element, a housing and some plastic trays so I don't see what can go wrong with it. Just be sure to wash it according to directions and plug it in for a couple of hours before loading the trays. It's just on or off, but if you want adjustability, you can splice a dimmer switch into the power cord.

96strat · Oct 27, 2013

Thanks Judy I will check out the excalibur on line. Any option is better than the oven!

dragon49 · Oct 27, 2013

PepperDaddler said:
How long do the cheaper ones usually last for you guys?

I'm very happy with my inexpensive ($59.98) Nesco - http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000FFVJ3C/

I'm probably not what you'd call a "heavy user," - my best guess is that one of my units has run for approximately three months of time. It is running now and I've not had any problems with it.

PepperDaddler · Oct 28, 2013

Thank you. My cheap Dehydro works well still though I have not used it too often. I like it and it does not burn up the peps. Holds color very well.