I would prefer those fittings to have internal Este rings and knurled thread on ports (similar to R134a vacuum gauge sets) that do not require high torque compression fittings. Finger tight and you are good to go. You spot a leak, change the O ring and you're back in business.
In truth, I was also really worried my son would be cross contaminated and end up being sick for a week. The hostess was insistent on making something he could eat and I finally relented. Needless to say, he ended up being very sick from the food.
What I should have done was just sent a freeze dried meal that would take me 3 minutes to rehydrate and he wouldn’t have to be stuck in the bathroom for days on end. Lesson learned!
Powdered bananas can be used in banana breads. We like using powdered fruits to flavor cakes or frostings.
Obviously things like ice cream and marshmallows you would want to let the freeze cycle run longer. When I'm ready to start the drying cycle, I open the door, remove the insulator, and check the temperature of the food on the trays with an infrared thermometer. As long as it's below -10F I start the dry cycle. A side note for TonyC, have you ever thought about attaching a mirror to each side of the tray rack to reflect the radiant heat back in to the trays? I've looked at some mirror finish stainless on ebay, and it looks like you could do it for about $quarenta. Not sure if it's worth a try or not. I would think it would let you get more water out in a cycle because the radiant heat wouldn't be warming the ice on the chamber walls. Just a thought.... Edited December 16, 2015 by Pipsqueak duplicate post (log)
•The shelf heaters can be set to automatically control the rate of sublimation during the primary drying cycle. Through this process, the unit has control of the attendant vacuum pressure.
The longevity of freeze dried food depends on the what the food is and how it is stored. When stored in a mylar bag with an oxygen absorber, more info many foods can last up to 25 years. If stored in a glass mason jar with an oxygen absorber and a vacuum sealed lid, food can last about 5 years.
Isolated pump by capping the stack (pelo meter to measure pressure, but no bubbling after a very short pumpdown - pump sounded normal for a high vacuum situation)
The evaporator coils that touch the surface of the stainless steel vacuum chamber reach about -42 F. With food in the chamber and because the location of the thermister is on the middle shelf of the four shelves, the temperature it records is going to range from -25 to -30 F in the nove hour default freeze time. This temperature is very adequate for freeze drying the food.
“Astronaut” ice cream is a fun treat to make and is so easy. Just scoop ice cream onto the trays and freeze before processing.
7. Energy Efficiency: Evaluate the energy consumption of different models since this will affect your electricity bills over time.
If you have a high volume lab, it’s usually a good idea to have more than one to be safe. Freeze drying ice water hash is the #1 way to dry it because it increases your production speed, enhances its color, retains more delicate terpenes, and sharply limits microbial activity.
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.
Unfortunately, freeze-dried food can often be very expensive. We’ve seen this first hand as the only company that sells both frozen beef boxes to store in the freezer for up to a year as well as freeze-dried beef cubes to store in the closet for over a decade.