Watch this BEFORE you get a freeze dryer!

My reviews of the Harvest Right freeze dryer may surprise you. We've had it for over a year now, so do I love it as much as I used to?

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[JanuaryLisa]

For those wondering, the special circuit is needed ONLY for the Large machine. The vast majority of folks get the Medium size, which requires no special plug or adjustment. It has 4 trays, v. the Large machine having 5 trays.

[TalicMotorsportsMedia]

I started freeze drying (on my second machine now) 4 years ago when beef was $2.24lb and have over 1, 000lb of beef now and 4 years of food stored (by calorie). It's paid for itself in savings in the first year. Freeze drying is FAR superior to all other forms of preservation. The average family has 40% of food waste from their own groceries. I've brought that to almost zero. Expired canned foods, leftovers, and for the garden, the machine is a miracle of science.

[jilladams]

Proper storage is key. Throwing freeze dried food in canning jars and thinking you are good is a recipe for rancid, "off" food. You must vacuum seal and use oxygen absorbers or your hard work becomes inedible or "off" tasting if you eat it. I do love my freeze dryer but have learned the hard way (too many times) about proper storage techniques. I think that the technique of proper storage is often glossed over and those pretty mason jars of food presented (Harvest Right does it too) without the huge caveat that lots of food will go bad in short order if you don't vacuum seal those jars! I've been home freeze drying since 2018.

[Survival_Mindset]

Another use for your freeze dryer is vacuum sealing your jars. You take the rack out and can fit up to 10 jars in a large i believe. You will have to unplug the pump from the machine and directly plug in just the pump. Put the lid on and loosely put the ring on and set in. With the door closed you just plug in the pump for 30-45 seconds and you have vacuum sealed jars. You may know this already and if so im sorry for the long comment.

[greyballer]

I weigh the loaded tray before and after so I know exactly how many grams of water to put back in. Works great for pre-made camping meals...

[Jindychick]

Hi I just wanted to let you know that this is one of the top 10 most informative, honest and legitimate review videos I've ever watched. I was looking into freeze dryers for our lolly shop business and thankfully the YT algorithm got it right by sending your video to me. Thank you for all the time and effort you put in, and looking at the Likes on here, I'm not the only one that has appreciated your honesty. Best of luck and know that you have helped at least one person who had questions that you answered:)

[Thingys-Jill]

For those wondering, it costs (depending on the size) $3, 000 - $5, 000. They charge extra for the automatic oil pump.

[peggyjones]

Like you, I had my reservations about purchasing a FreezeDryer almost 2 years ago, but the more we use it the more I love it. My favorite is having freeze-dried onion, garlic, celery, tomatoes, peppers, carrots, etc. on hand to toss right into whatever I am cooking. It makes it so easy and SO GOOD! I can make an awesome omelet faster than you can pick up from a drive-thru. If our FreezeDryer went out, I would replace it without a second thought. And with all the meals we have preserved, the unit has paid for itself already. After hurricane Rita we went 33 days without power and 10 of those were without water. If we have to face that again, we are so much better off because of our Harvest Right. For Christmas last year we filled an ice chest with homemade MREs as a gift for our son, so he is better prepared too. He has already asked for refills on some favorites that he tried after a long, busy day at work. Thanks for all your great, informative videos. <3 <3 <3

[clw.]

Where I think the machine shines is with dairy. Freeze drying milk, sour cream, yogurt, cottage cheese, cream cheese & various shredded cheeses- cheddar, Parmesan, romano, pepper jack, etc. We drink raw milk & I just discovered that you can freeze dry raw milk too. I hadn't tried it because of the higher fat content but the machine sailed thru the milk like a champ. Some things I think my dehydrator works best & other things I prefer in the Harvest Right machine.

[lynnec.]

With the cost of electricity in the UK I can't afford to run my dehydrator let alone a freeze dryer. I live on a state pension and electricity accounts for a third of it per month, in the autumn it will go up by 50%. I love your videos, and although I have been growing and preserving food for about 60 years, there is always something new to learn.

[spinderellas]

Thank you. I have thought about it, but the expense is what halts me in place. In this day of uncertainty, I need to just do what I know. That type of money is better served actually feeding my family now, there is no saving for much at my home except necessities. Thank you for your input.

[Doc]

Our freeze dryer is running almost 24/7.
We grow almost all of our fruits and vegetables. We eat as what we harvest and freeze dry the rest.
My in laws have a 17 acre ranch in Montana and their growing season is short so they don’t get very much vegetables or fruits.
We barter some of our veggies and fruits for beef and pork. We then keep enough meat in our freezer and you guested it, we freeze dry the meat.

[antoniustheiler]

Dear Homesteading Family, Many years ago my husband built me ​​a professional freeze dryer and we mainly dried fruit and vegetables. The device was monitored for at least 24 hours during operation using a kind of baby monitor. That's why we didn't sleep very well at night. Everyone loved it and couldn't get enough of it. After a long time, we realized that intensive consumption attacked the tooth enamel, since we consumed a lot of fructose in this way. In addition, my sister's oral mucosa became inflamed after eating dried tomatoes. We suspect that the total dehydration has resulted in concentrated fruit sugar and fruit acid. I've started drying normally again and only sometimes, when we have particularly nice fruit, do we freeze-dry them additionally. I know from my own experience how great everything tastes, so I know that Carolyn is not exaggerating, the products are extraordinarily tasty. However, our experience should also be taken into account and freeze-drying should not become the most important part of preservation. All the best! Ursula from Bavaria

[SilentWatcher]

We also value our freeze drier. In well over 1 1/2 years now, I just passed batch 500. I have 125 dozen FD'd eggs from our chickens stored in mylar for long term, countless loads of apples from our orchard, and veggies from our garden. I'm working on a FD meat supply, as well. We also still can our foods for the winter. It was 'Homesteading Family' that got me into canning hamburger and other meats...and for that I heartfully thank them!!

[chrissnyder]

I would love love love to have a freeze dryer, and I'm so happy for everyone who can afford one. I'm not that person. It's completely out of my financial ability. Just like all the $300 per person homesteading conferences. I'll just keep doing what granny did.

[kimramsey]

Not sure if anyone made the corrections in here yet, but the large machine is the only one that requires a dedicated 20 Amp circuit, with a special plug. This is the reason I went with the medium. I have it on a service cart in a guest room. If I have company staying, I can move the machine to another room and still use it. It can get warm in the area, so I keep a fan running on the machine and pump.

She also first stated that she had the premium oil-less pump, she actually has the premium oil pump, same one I have. She also uses the pillow in the door, but in case anyone gets one now, they no longer come with the pillow and harvest right recommends not using it anymore. Both the pump and machine are much quieter than I expected. The one in her video seems abnormally loud for some reason. I have run mine in my work at home office and no one even noticed the sound during a call 🤷‍♀️.

I would recommend that everyone really pay attention when reading the directions and join some of the Facebook groups. There is a learning curve and the groups have displayed a lot of good information, as well as "what not do" experiences.

Lastly, if you eat the freeze-dried food without rehydrating first, drink lots of water. The food will suck up the water in you and could get you pretty stopped up.

[corrineadams]

I love my freeze dryer. Still learning. Have been freeze drying for about 6 months. Had a horrible beginning with a problem that required returning the machine.where several issuses were repaired. Finally! Got the freeze dryer back after another 2 monyhs. Just barely before my garden harvesting. No practice time. No matter how many videos you watch practice is necessary. Watch many different channels, nany good trips out there, some not so good. One tip is that I got 10 small baking pans that fit inside the freeze dryer trays. You can do food ahead, transfer into freezer bags, and when you are needing a quick product to load it just takes 2.5 smaller blocks to fill 1 tray. LOTS OF TIPS OUT THERE.

[jayc]

We love ours, it takes the pressure off of canning so much and it’s great to be able to preserve our extra chicken eggs for long term use. After having one for a year I consider it essential. My only regret is not buying one sooner.

[chrisolson]

You're amazing! I can not imagine feeding that many people every day.

[marciwatterson]

What a wonderful way to introduce someone to freeze drying and a special thank you to creating a way to have one in a family!