Confused about temperature for dehydrating

[Framboise]

I am planning on buying a dehydrator (too many yummy recipes out there not to!). There seems to be only one model I can buy in Switzerland. It's a Stockli: http://www.detoxyourworld.com/acatalog/stockli_timer.html It's Swiss made and it's not too expensive and there's a shop which is having a sale right now, so it's even cheaper than normal.

Enough rambling. Here is my question:

I understand that Raw Food must not be heated more than 48 degrees Celsius. The recipes I have say "dehydrate the food for an X number of hours" but don't give the exact temperature at which the dehydrator must be set. Does this mean that as long as it's below 48 degrees Celsius, it doesn't matter? In other words, I can set the dehydrator at 20, or 30, or 40? Or does one set it as close to 48 as possible) (The Stockli's regulator doesn't seem to be THAT precise so I'd rather set it near 40 rather than 45.)

[rawpriestess]

It depends on what you are making, if you are making bread, or muffins or crackers, I would set it higher -- way higher-- like 60 for a couple of hours first, then bring it down to your 48 or so, this keeps it from fermenting and spoiling, but it still keeps your enzymes in tact, Excalibur--the dehydrator people and Gabriel Cousins both tested this and found it to work.

I also do this, and I find it workds great.

[sport]

I suggest that you buy an additional thermometer. Mine has a probe that sits inside the unit and a digital readout outside the unit so I check on the reading periodically.
I have set 46 in my head as my top temperature but usually aim for around 44. This allows for slight mistakes but I do not dehydrate anything dense or thick.

[Framboise]

Thank you to both of you for your help.

I wish I could find a dehydrator that is precise. If I buy one from another country, I'm worried I will have problems with the voltage, or the plug or something. (Although I suppose a plug is not a problem - I can just buy a universal plug.) I would really prefer to buy the Excalibur one, but what if I spend all that money and can't use it. :(

[sport]

what is your voltage.
I have an excaliber and haveno problem here. I thought that our voltage was the same as yours

[madmel]

Hello Framboise,

check out this thread:

http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/forum/showthread.php?p=176212#post176212

cheers,
mel

[raven]

The owner of the Excalibur company also told me what Raw Priestess said and Vicktoras Kulvinskas confirmed with his own studies that if the dehydrator is initially set higher than 118 degrees the temperature of the food doesn't reach that temperature but the growth of mold and microorganisms will be reduced. I also think that the enzymes are deactivated in different foods at varying temperatures. For instance, coconut has a higher deactivation temperature.

Suzy