Food Dehydrator Selecting
There are many things to consider before making your final selection when purchasing a Food Dehydrator.
Most food dehydrators will do the job it's intended to do. However, some are better suited for certain applications much better than others.
There are two main types of food dehydrators. One type of food dehydrator has vertical air flow. The other type of food dehydrator has horizontal air flow. Of the vertical air flow food dehydrators, there are also two types - one with the fan on the top, and the other with the fan on the bottom. Horizontal food dehydrators are preferred by some due to the fact that you don't get as much flavor mixing between the trays when dehydrating different types of foods at the same time, and you also get pretty even heating between trays. Of the vertical types, the food dehydrator with fan on the bottom probably provides the best heat distribution between trays of all kinds of food dehydrators, including horizontal, as heat rises. However, the drawback to this type of food dehydrator is the fact that you can get drippings on the fan making it harder to clean. The vertical food dehydrator with fan on top eliminates drippings from going down onto the fan, but doesn't provide quite as even heat distribution as heat rises, and when the heat is coming from the top, the top tray will dry more quickly.
Size is also important depending on how much you will be drying at a time. Some types of dehydrators have outside walls with trays that slip in and out. These types are perfect if you are going to be drying about the same amount of food each time you dry. However, some food dehydrators offer stackable trays. The nice thing about these food dehydrators is you can usually purchase additional trays if you want to expand your size, or, when you only need to dry a few trays at a time, you can remove the unused trays for a more compact fit on your countertop.
Most food dehydrators will do the job it's intended to do. However, some are better suited for certain applications much better than others.
There are two main types of food dehydrators. One type of food dehydrator has vertical air flow. The other type of food dehydrator has horizontal air flow. Of the vertical air flow food dehydrators, there are also two types - one with the fan on the top, and the other with the fan on the bottom. Horizontal food dehydrators are preferred by some due to the fact that you don't get as much flavor mixing between the trays when dehydrating different types of foods at the same time, and you also get pretty even heating between trays. Of the vertical types, the food dehydrator with fan on the bottom probably provides the best heat distribution between trays of all kinds of food dehydrators, including horizontal, as heat rises. However, the drawback to this type of food dehydrator is the fact that you can get drippings on the fan making it harder to clean. The vertical food dehydrator with fan on top eliminates drippings from going down onto the fan, but doesn't provide quite as even heat distribution as heat rises, and when the heat is coming from the top, the top tray will dry more quickly.
Size is also important depending on how much you will be drying at a time. Some types of dehydrators have outside walls with trays that slip in and out. These types are perfect if you are going to be drying about the same amount of food each time you dry. However, some food dehydrators offer stackable trays. The nice thing about these food dehydrators is you can usually purchase additional trays if you want to expand your size, or, when you only need to dry a few trays at a time, you can remove the unused trays for a more compact fit on your countertop.