Dehydrators: Teflon and Plastic problems

[Isabelle]

Hi guys,
I'm fairly new to the raw food diet and I intend to purchase a food dehydrator very soon to make things easier... The problem I've encountered is that, from what I've heard, the Excalibur dehydrator everyone always talks about seems to have its shelves/sheets made of Teflon. Also, many other dehydrators are made of plastic. As we know, these materials are highly toxic, which is my main concern. Once I've come to the point of adopting a diet 100% raw as a way of improving my health, I certainly don't want any of these toxics leeched into my body...
Is it true about the Excalibur and are there any healthier alternatives?
Thanks!

[Raw Jewelrylady]

Hi Isabelle & welcome. I do not like even storing food in plastic & try & use glass whenever possible. That being said-I have the 9 tray excalibur dehydrator & I keep it at 105 degrees & I really do not feel it gets hot enough to be a problem.

I honestly do not know what the 'teflex" sheets are made of-but I'm not a big fan of teflon either. I guess in a "perfect" world-we would use something other than teflon-but not everything is perfect. It is better than cooking at high temps where the teflon can "leach" in. Actually I think I remember hearing about particles of the teflon "breaking" off & into the food. Well, that makes sense in SAD cooking-stirring the pots-etc.

I adore my excalibur. The removable drawers are great so when I am warming something up-I can put a glass plate in & warm. I hope this helps..
Lana

PS. the teflex sheets are fantastic-easy to clean & I just put them in the dehydrator after washing & run it to dry them. :D

[Isabelle]

Hey Lana,
Thanks a lot for the insight on the subject! Guess I'll be getting myself the Excalibur too, afterall... Boy, I just can't wait to try some of Alissa's recipes out! :p

[Raw Jewelrylady]

Isabelle, You will love the "hum" of the Excalibur as you know that somthing wonderfully tasty is just around the corner. You'll find that many of us around here "taste" as we go with all our Raw goodies. ;) Plus-many things get "nibbled" before they are even done with the dehydrating process. :D Keep it Fun..be creative & don't be afraid to experiemnt.

You've come the best Raw site. There are a ton of recipes & info. You can order the dehydrator right here at this site..upper left hand corner.. ;)

Lana

[Indi]

I have the 9 tray, its brilliant!
I found some teflon sheets in a local store, which were half the price of texflex, i cut them to size.
I know its not ideal, but like lanasq, I keep the temp low

when i first got it I thought it would be too big, but I soon fill it!

I only need to put it on once or twice a week, so its quite economical.

Stuffed mushrooms,flax crackers, veggie chips .........Oh you will love it!

Is such fun to experiment, especiall if you have been used to cooking. :)

[Shivananda]

The problem I've encountered is that, from what I've heard, the Excalibur dehydrator everyone always talks about seems to have its shelves/sheets made of Teflon. Also, many other dehydrators are made of plastic. These are no ordinary plastics in the Excalibur. The racks and housing are made of a high grade high temp polycarbonate that was specially selected for the purpose and is widely used in the food service industry because of its safety. And the Teflex sheets are a food grade acid proof high temperature material (safe to 600 degrees F). With their 4 coatings, the sheets are thicker, tougher, are easier to work, and last longer than the bargain priced 2 layer sheets available elsewhere. You can use them over and over and over.

The Excalibur system passed the scrutiny of such raw food notables as Anne Wigmore and Viktoras Kulvinskas, so I feel comfortable using it.

Check Excalibur's website for more info, and lots of handy reference material.

http://www.excaliburdehydrator.com

[Linda1970]

Hi Isabelle,

I had the same fear as you with plastic when I first got interested in raw food just a few months ago. I finally found a stainless steel dehydrator, and I really love it. It also has removable trays (stainless steel) and the fan is also in the back (better circulation). The brand name is sausagemaker, and you can check it out at sausagemaker.com

[Isabelle]

Thanks for all your input, guys! I guess I'll be following Linda's footsteps and getting the stainless steel one, which seems to be safer to me. :)

[faith4u]

Are the plastic trays that you dehydrate stuff on dishwasher safe? I am assuming they aren't because I don't know if they would melt when the dry cycle comes on.

Mine are not coming very clean after I dehydrated potato chips on them.

[rawpriestess]

Since Alissa the owner of this website, sells the Excalibur, I figure it is the best, so I have 3, well, actually I now have 4, but one is destined to go to my son, if he EVER comes to pick it up. LOL-----Kids(well, he is 38)

[Shivananda]

Are the plastic trays that you dehydrate stuff on dishwasher safe? I am assuming they aren't because I don't know if they would melt when the dry cycle comes on.Dishwasher is fine, just turn OFF the dry cycle and let them air dry.

[faith4u]

Dishwasher is fine, just turn OFF the dry cycle and let them air dry.

Thanks for the tip. We have a new dishwasher and I can't figure out how to get the darned dry cycle turned off.
:(

There are just too many buttons and options on the thing. I will keep trying though.

[Isabelle]

Good points, guys... Ahhh, i better get the Excalibur too! Thanks for helping me make this decision. ;)

[aravis]

On ebay they are selling the Teflex sheets at a discount. The listing claims to be from Excalibur itself and it says they are phasing out Teflex and have something else coming out soon. I'm not sure what it is.

[exurb]

I personally despise Teflon, mainly for environmental reasons, if anyone wants to know why, you can google Teflon PFOA and you will get a load of info. Teflex sheets are in fact Teflon, more extra coatings of it is not a selling feature for me.

I buy nice quality silicon type baking sheets, and cut them to fit the dehydrator. I get them at a bakers supply place or gourmet kitchen store, they are similar to a silpat type sheet, but generic and less costly.

I think teflon is an environmental disaster and I am glad to stay away from all products including teflon, which many people don't know is also in all those stain resistant/wrinkle free clothing. So I check labels too when buying clothing.