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preservation Dehydrator in the cold garage

Hathron

Hathron

So my garage is very cold right now as it is winter here in Wisconsin, and its not insulated the best. My question is would my dehydrator be able to work in the garage if its really cold in there, below freezeing at times? Also inside the house is not the best option for me, as the wife hates the smell of it and I have a 2 year old that I do not want to get fumed. Thanks much for any input
 
i usually wait until the weather has a warm spell less than -10C and haven't had a problem. the weather network will give you a 14 day forecast.
i don't dehydrate if i know temps are going to hit -20C.
 
I haven't tried doing so myself, as I dehydrate inside my house, but I'm thinking a little experimenting with the temperature dial will help you find something that works. Keep in mind that temperature is only one element in the drying process - air flow is the other. As long as you can keep the temp inside the dehydrator above freezing and the dehydrator has a good fan, the pods will probably be fine.
 
should work just fine. 
to expand on geeme's comments- you may have to adjust the heat (if you have a heat adjustment knob on your dehydrator) and run it at a higher temp than normal.  Most people try to dry between 95-105F for best color retention.  You may have to turn the knob up to 120-150F to compensate for the freezing cold air the dehydrator is pulling in (as opposed to room temp air in a house). 
 
I live in Colorado and dry peppers all the time when it is below freezing in the garage. It takes 2-3 days for 6 trays packed but I am in no hurry. Yep my wife and 4 kids don't allow any pepper drying in the house. Something about them sneezing and coughing they don't like.
 
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