Nesco dehydrator

[oshnlovr]

Can anyone give me the pluses or minuses on the Nesco Dehydrators? I can buy one here in my little town instead of having to buy online and pay shipping. Okay, I'm cheap, but I have never heard anyone say a word about Nesco. Everyone seems to want a square Excalibur or L'equip or Good4U. Anyway, I am just curious. Thanks for any feedback

[raweater]

If it's the one I think it is I think you need to rotate the trays every few hours because the one closest to the heat source gets hotter while the one furthest from it stays cooler, so it dried unevenly and requires regular tray rotation. If it doesn't have a thermostat forget about it, it is likely to cook the food.

[Rawkinlocs]

Oh Nesco used to get a LOT of play around here!

That was my first-ever dehydrator before I got an Excalibur and I still own the Nesco and use it from time-to-time when I need to.

But there is one very important thing you want to make sure of before purchasing it and that is that it has a temperature control dial on it. If it doesn't then that means the temp is preset and usually set to a temp higher than "raw standard".

Now, the pros and cons...

Pros:

1. It's less expensive

2. It's not as large to take up as much space

3. It serves it's purpose

Cons:
1. You're "somewhat" limited because you can't put tall things in there (like a loaf of some kind, etc.) UNLESS...you go to the nesco.com site and order their Convert-a-Trays (http://nesco.com/products/?category=300&subcat=200&id=33).

2. Some seem to find the hole in the middle a problem when making things like the pizza but I've always said, "So what!...the hole in the center won't make it TASTE any different!" But it can pose a "problem" when making like the crepes, etc. but it's only aesthetic...if you don't mind certain things not looking perfectly like whatever it's supposed to look like, then no problem!

3. It may take longer for foods to dry evenly since the fan is at the top.

4. If you do not order quite a few fruit roll trays (http://nesco.com/products/?category=300&subcat=200&id=29) which are like their "teflex sheets" (the dehydrator only comes with ONE) it's not as easy to use things like parchment paper in place of them. I just purchased like 3 or 4 packs and they come 2 in a pack.

But all in all, I used it...many here have used it and it did what it needed to do. If I had to choose between the two? I'd definitely choose my Excalibur but to get started, the Nesco is just fine!

So, I say go for it...try it out and later on if you want you can get a larger model.

[rawnhealthy]

I have one. I'm not a big fan of dehydrating so it works for me. If you plan to dehydrate a lot and/or play around with different dishes, you'll probably want a better one than Nesco. But like Rawkinlocs said its good on a budget and you can always upgrade later.:)

[bellamausi]

How funny, I am just thinking about replacing my Nesco, which I have used for years! And it has done a wonderful job! I don't even rotate trays, it does pretty well. If I have more than a couple of trays, then I do rotate, but otherwise not.

Rawkinlocs, what interests me, is, why do you choose the Excalibur over Nesco?
Does it really dehydrate that much faster? Does the food taste any different? I'm not worried about the hole or other cosmetic things, just the actual dehydrating factor. Or any other reason I can't think of that the excalibur is superior.

[oshnlovr]

Thanks for the information. Maybe for now I will start with the Nesco and if I find myself using it a lot I can upgrade. Ill keep everyone posted how it works.