NESCO FD-75A Snackmaster Pro Food Dehydrator, For Snacks, Fruit, Beef Jerky, Gray

My first ever dehydrator. I usually use my electric oven for making beef jerky but I wanted to try a dehydrator after watching instructional you tube videos. I'm confident that the more elaborate stainless steel models work great for active enthusiasts but I didn't want to spend much money as a beginner. I purchased this Nesco unit based on positive Amazon reviews for ease of use and operational satisfaction. I disregarded negative reviews regarding packaging issues or disappointments unrelated to product performance. I knew beforehand that a basic model like this would need to be handled with some consideration for fewer bells and whistles and plastic trays instead of stainless steel.Overall, I am very happy with the performance and finished jerky, especially for the price. It takes a little more time than the oven method but I didn't have to flip the beef pieces during the drying process. I have no issue with the lack of an onboard timer or on/off switch. I can read a clock or set my smartphone timer and I can reach the plug to turn the unit off. It's not rocket science.I would recommend this unit for anyone interested in trying dehydrating without a large monetary investment.

We are enjoying this amazing machine. It's so simple to use. It is helpful to have available counter space upon which to separate the trays while loading and unloading food items. Apples come out great and beef jerky is awesome. It takes a little practice, but once you get the idea it's so great! I'm pleased with my purchase. The size is like two small toaster ovens stacked atop each other in case that helps. ☺️

I was very impressed the moment I opened the box! This food dehydrator looks much nicer than the last one I had (admittedly several years ago.) I love that it's not see-through, so no more having light come through and interfering with the dehydration process. Plus, the "granite" look is really lovely!I love that there are multiple temperatures, and the top of the dehydrator tells you what temperature to use for the most commonly dehydrated items (jerky, meats, fruits & veggies, etc.) There is no on/off switch, so you have to unplug the machine when you want to check on your items, but don't find that to be a problem at all.This machine is very QUIET! My old one could be heard throughout the entire house, but this one can barely be heard in the next room, and that's only if the room is completely quiet (meaning to TV, Wii, computer, kids, etc.) When I'm in the kitchen, I don't have to yell over the sound of the machine in order to be heard in the next room, either.So far, I've only done fruit leathers (or fruit roll-ups, as my kids call them.) Easy recipe, just applesauce and fresh strawberries pureed together! I did have an issue of getting the layer on the special sheet even, but that's my issue, not one caused by the machine. Just need practice!It comes with 4 accessories (not including the 5 drying trays): 2 fine mesh screens for drying things that would/could fall through the openings in the strays (like herbs, fruits, and veggies that get smaller as they are dehydrated.) Also it has 2 tray inserts for making fruit leathers or other things that need a "tray" with no holes. I found when doing the fruit it was helpful to put on of these inserts in the very bottom tray and use the other at the top with my fruit mix on it. The one on the bottom captured the few drips that fell through (my fault) and made cleanup so much easier.Having the motor on the top instead of the bottom is a great idea! That way if anything does fall/drip through, no worrying about it getting into the motor or having difficult places to clean. All of the trays and accessories are dishwasher safe, though if you have a dishwasher that has a washing arm for the top rack (as opposed to just the one underneath all the dishes) I wouldn't recommend it. Because more hot water gets to the top rack in these types, the trays and accessories can warp. But just soaking them in regular dish detergent and water then washing them with a soft bristle brush or soft cleaning pad works just fine. (Note the word "SOFT"! Anything harsh or rough will scratch!)All-in-all, this is a wonderful machine, and I'm looking forward to my next projects with it: dried bananas w/ honey, dried kale and herbs for my bunny's salad, and of course, JERKY!

I imported this Nesco 75PR dehydrator to Brazil, so I can tell you how it behaves in very humid climates like we have here, where we get normally 90% air humidity, specially in the summer. I bought a power consumption measuring device to attach between the dehydrator and my power source to check how much power it drains. I guess this data possibly may interest you. Many people say the power consumption is not high, but how high/low it is? I have done some tests and I think I have the answer for different situations. Energy in Brazil is not cheap so this is an important topic for us to discuss. And, of course, nobody likes to shred money and the environment, regardless of energy taxes.First, lets talk about performance:Only in a few ocasions I could dry something with less than 12 hours using a moderate temperature and thin slices. This is why I give this product a 4 instead of a 5 stars. But a 4,5 or 4,7 stars would be more fair, since this dehydrator has a lot of good points and we live in a very humid area, in the sea coast. And, the manual covers the "worst drying period possible" as being coincident to ours. In other words, they are not lying when they affirm that something can dry between "6 and 18 hours". We sit right in the 18 hours extreme. Be aware that this may be your case. Evaluate this point before buying a unit. Fruits: unsliced bananas can take 24-30 hours to dry to a flexible texture (we call this "banana passa" in Brazil, that are made in an industrial scale using gas dehydrators and constant 70 Celsius). The drying temperature is between 60 and 70 Celsius. Thin apple slices can take between 12 and 18 hours to get a leathery texture. Maybe if you let it more time it can eventually be crunchy, but be very aware that crunchiness is NOT an easy thing to achieve using dehydrators, because commercial fruit chips normally are made using fried fruits in coconut oil. I also had the fantasy of making homemade banana chips. Well, they get to a chewy point and taste quite good, anyway. (If that serves as a solace...). Meat: Didn't try it yet. Peppers: dried Jalapeños got an undesirable brownish color. I think the temperature cicles got some peaks that cooked the pepper instead of only drying its remaining water. I think if you are willing to put some peppers in a dehydrator, you should use very low temperatures, those used to dry herbs and other fragile stuff. I followed the 135F and it was a bit high, possibly.Now, about the sound and physical attributes:This unit is QUIET. VERY quiet. I can not believe some people say this dehydrator makes some undesirable noise to the point that they need to put them in a room far from their bedroom otherwise they couldn't sleep! I am VERY sound sensitive and I can assure you, the sound will not bother you. I can even watch TV close to the dehydrator and I only hear its noise if I mute the TV. Not an exaggeration. A fact.Weight, appearance, height: Very discreet. Very light. Did I say VERY light? The gray and white marble finish fits incredibly well in any room, like it's camouflaged, hard to explain. It just looks like another generic thing or pan or tupperware that you have in the kitchen, not a thing that a boring friend or neighbor will come and say "WOW, WHAT'S THAT THING?" You know how boring is that kind of people, but they won't bother you, I assure you. I bought 4 more trays (9 in total) and it still feels light. I can carry it with 9 trays full of bananas with ease. (if that matters: 67 bananas).Cleaning: easy to clean. Dehydrated fruits leave virtually no residue, they stick very lightly to the trays and can be easily pulled out. Not a single banana or any other fruit like apples got stuck in the trays to the point that they couldnt be removed easily with the fingers, and entire, not in fragments.Power consumption: Ok, here we go. (Room temperature: 28 Celsius) With 9 trays full of fruits: 1st hour: 650 Watts (average). 2nd to 5th hour: 380 watts (average). After 6 hours: 360 Watts (average). Total consumption per run long: 31 hours, 7,16 KWH (average: 231 watts). Temperature set: 145F (63 Celsius). With 5 trays full of fruits and/or fruit rolls, in a temperature set of 135F: 1st hour: 301 Watts (average). After a few hours, it dropped to below 200 watts average. Explanation: the first hours take more power because the machine is heating the trays so the thermostat rarely turns off. After a few hours, the thermostat only activates ocasionally to refresh the temperature, since the trays are already heated and only need a maintenance to keep the warm air flow. When the electric resistance turns off, the measure of wattage reads 28 watts, that's the power consumption of the fan (negligible). Conclusion: the shorter the run, less efficient it will be, because whenever it warms up the trays, you are removing the foods from them. Long runs are more efficient, so I guess its better to make a full charged dehydrator rather than little runs with little quantity of food. Just an opinion without any scientific claim.I can not say anything about durability of this Nesco dehydrator, since I bought it recently. I will update this review if anything unexpected occurs, or if I have any important thing to add, like new food experiences, et cetera.To finish this review, I'd like to apologize for my awful English, I had a hard time writting this because I am not a native speaker, so tell me if something sounds odd or particularly unusual, I can clarify your questions in the comments section. I hope this humble review can be useful for you. Thank you very much for the attention.