There are 3 ports on the chamber that I made slits in the plastic to get around and taped them up once around them. Do not tape to the insulation. Tape only to the vapor barrier plastic. It doesn't take long, just be careful. After the plastic is in place and secure around the chamber I sealed the plastic to the back of the front and back panels using the packing tape. All the way around the front and back of the chamber to completely seal the chamber from outside air and humidity.
Raw eggs freeze dry very well. I like to crack them into a bowl, whisk them, and then freeze them solid before freeze drying. To reconstitute, use 2 tablespoons of egg powder and 2 tablespoons water to equal one egg. Use them in an recipe or scramble them up. They taste delicious.
Suitable placement of food around the freeze drying trays is much more than simply an aesthetic option—it’s a science. Making sure an excellent distribution, without the need of overpacking, is essential for reaching a dependable freeze drying end result.
What type of oil does the vacuum pump use? Harvest Right freeze dryers use food-grade vacuum pump oil, which is available for purchase. One gallon typically lasts several months with proper filtering and maintenance.
I removed the side covers and found the water dripping from the chamber insulation. I called up HarvestRight to ask for ideas on how to avoid this in the future.
Of course the bags were frozen right in to the mass of berries so it was quite a painful struggle to get the mess to the point where I could hack off slices of the berries to put on the trays.
I did wonder though, since this is gravity flow and not pressure driven as on a car, if having the filter mounted horizontally might result in using only "half" the filter, as the oil would tend to travel through the low side of the filter -- although in practice, I suppose, as the filter material gets plugged it would force the fluid level higher.
Once we got into the groove of freeze-drying food, we have been extremely pleased with the purchase. But know this going in if you’re thinking this is an “easy button.” It’s not. In fact, in many ways it has changed our lifestyle. For example, we now often cook for a family of oito even though it’s just us and the two kids.
Another reason to buy a freeze dryer instead of already freeze dried food is that you can choose to freeze dry whatever you want.
The alternative was to simpIy cut a small section from the guard at the lowest point and allow the water to run down the front of the panel in a single stream. I am not crazy about the look, but it is absolutely necessary to protect my investment and the electronics. If you look carefully you can see the hole in the gutter beneath the center screw.
Posted January 21, 2016 (edited) On 12/1/2015 at 0:16 PM, Jenipher said: Tony, if you see this, I went ahead and purchased the catch can. Do you think it's okay to just purchase a reducer to go from the size of the exhaust to the size of the hose that came with the can? Hopefully I said that in a way that makes sense! As well, does it matter which port is used as "in" and which as "out"? Thanks so much, Jen Hi Jen, Sorry to be gone so long. I did exactly as you proposed. I purchased a brass reducer and pushed the blue hose over it.
4 trays of corn takes only 16 hours, I would estimate that we have cut our FD times more info by 30% or more! Condensation has been decreased by 90% - no more dripping down the interior front panel and collecting on the aluminum base. There is still condensation around the front door seal, but it no longer drips down the front onto the floor.
Harvest Right’s lyophilizer/freeze dryer is the perfect addition to any laboratory. The scientific freeze dryer can be completely customized with your preferred processes.
The food options we had there were extremely limited and full of preservatives. To counter that, my buddy Lance went in with family members on the purchase of a freeze dryer for home use.