TSM Harvest Food Dehydrator

After seeing so many positive reviews on the Excalibur, the favored dehydrator of raw foodies, I had originally planned to purchase one of their models. Not having quite enough money to spend on one I did more research on the TSM. Being that TSM's main product is commercial dehydrators I figured I couldn't go wrong with theirs. Besides being more than $50 cheaper than a comparable Excalibur it also has one more tray than the Excalibur. I have had great experiences with it. It makes very little noise and does an excellent job on everything from dried tomatoes to kale chips. Love it and would recommend it to anyone who is considering the Excalibur. Save yourself some money and get an extra tray to boot. Great investment and great product~!

i have not had this long but already works like a champ. To date i have dried probably well over a hundred pounds of fresh fruits and vegetables and almost 50 pounds of beef jerky. Trays are super easy to clean tho for some dishwashers a bit big. for smaller dishwashers i just lay them flat and stack them. hand washing them can be difficult with anything that might stain the trays, but if you have a dishwasher problem solved. I really like the temperature adjust feature. something i would have liked to see on this dehydrator would also be a fan speed adjustment. Edit:.... um I did not write any of the above... not sure why use reviews are being made up on this product. Not my words, but the dehydrator isn't half bad. Still works after two years just as it did when I bought it. Really don't appreciate the review being submitted as my own.... You can see from my original post I submitted on March 21, 2015, I still have this product October 2022 and it still is running and working great. I've made many a gallon bag of beef jerky with this

I bought this on October 3, 2014. At first I didn't use it often, but this summer and fall I have used it a bunch. I have tried different meal for hiking, I have dried a bunch of food that I normally would have composted because it was starting to go bad. It really has saved us some money. Literally (and I don't use that word lightly) it stopped heating on my very last batch of jalapenos from the garden... just blows cool air. I'm not saying that all the dehydrating went perfectly, it dehydrates a little unevenly. The edges would dehydrate before the center of the trays would, but it was ok for me. But after a year, and barely using it the first 9 months, I expect appliances to last more than a year, and more than 3-4 month of use. It is no longer eligible for a return or replacement so I won't buy this again. I will save up for the more expensive Excalibur line. I am very disappointed!

So far so good. This unit came in earlier than expected and immediately put it to use. Granted I have only used it a few times, it has done a wonderful job on fruit leather and making some chicken jerky. Being a newbie I did realize from my first try not to start a process late in the day since it seems most everything takes 4 hours or more to complete. Is this worth the money? At this time I would say yes. Update: After having this unit for over a year now I have to say I am very satisfied with it. I do a batch of meat several times a month and this product has not disappointed me once. Not only do my kids look forward to what's coming out of the dehydrator but my co-workers keep asking when I'm making more.

I purchased this TSM model after mulling over the purchase of a dehydrator for a few months and reading many, many reviews. I liked the reviews elsewhere on TSM stainless steel models, but wanted to test the waters with dehydrating foods before taking that kind of plunge. I've been putting it through it's paces for the last week and despite a few quibbles, I'm pretty happy with this machine. On the plus side, this thing packs a lot of drying space into its footprint: a little over 10 sq. ft. for something that's the size of a small microwave. I can dry up to three pineapples' worth of thinly cut slices overnight, and in the morning, rinse off the trays for some beef jerky that will be finished by that evening. Second, this model is relatively quiet. I have an open floor plan downstairs, and the ambient noise level for the kitchen/living area is about 48 dB. With the dehydrator running, it's about 56 dB from across the room and 66 dB standing right in front of it. The volume on the TV has to be kicked up a bit when something's drying, but it's not too bad. I also really appreciate that the trays are dishwasher safe. After a batch of jerky, I just pop them into the lower rack and run the dishwasher (no heat on the drying cycle). Finally, the machine is pretty efficient in terms of heat loss; I haven't noticed the ambient temperature in my kitchen rising when I run the dehydrator. Now the negatives: I'm really disappointed that this machine doesn't come with at least a couple mesh screens or non-stick sheets. Comparably priced models (such as the L'equip) give you at least a couple of these nifty accessories. The holes on these trays are large enough that a blueberry or small grape could (and do!) fall through them as they dry. I'm not totally averse to buying extra accessories, but I think it would be nice if one or two screens/sheets could have been included. Also, while I'm glad my model has a front-to-back airflow design at a good price, I wish it came with a door. The trays have raised lips that form a fourth "wall" that keeps air in, but there are times when all but one tray is free and I want to wash them and can't because of the design. I guess I could put some foil or plastic wrap over the space, but why bother? Overall, this dehydrator seems like a good value proposition for someone looking to dip their toe in dehydrating: quiet, efficient, and economical, with the punch of a front-to-back airflow design.

I love this dehydrator! It can make beef jerky, perserve bananas, strawberries, and just about any other thing you can think of. It performs well, there is no timer, I don't use one. If you decide you need a timer you can always buy an electronic timer and plug it in to this tool (it would still be a lot cheaper than some of the name brand items). Dehydrators of this type are a bit noisy, but I don't mind. My only *small* complaint is the sliders can kind of stick a bit, so you have to jiggle them sometimes to get them out. All in all, this is a fantastic tool for the price!

and this thing is horrible. So if I can help others save their hard earned money, please save up for an Excalibur. They are worth what they cost and I'll tell you why. I got my TSM Harvest Dehydrator today and I was very excited. I have a lot that I need to get dehydrated before it goes bad. I already have a 9 tray Excalibur and needed another. So I started shopping around and found this. It is a thing of beauty. It takes up less counter space because the trays are not as wide as the Excalibur, but they give you a tenth tray. The trays do not come with mesh sheets, and therefore, things that are smaller can fall through the trays. The trays could also break because of the kind of plastic they're made of, whereas, the Excaliburs trays flex. I would not worry about them breaking. There is not front door, but the trays are designed in such a way that when they are all in the unit, it doesn't need a door. The proof is in the pudding, though and this is the most important thing I can say about this product. I put in a load of 1/8 inch sliced zucchini in the TSM Harvest at 3 pm today. I put exactly the same thing in my Excalibur at 6 pm this evening. It is now 11:00 pm and the zucchini in the Excalibur are ready to come out. I didn't have to rotate the trays, turn them . . .nothing. The zucchini in the TSM Harvest might be dehydrated by in the morning and they might not. It doesn't dehydrate evenly. The zucchini in the back and around the edges of some (not all) of the trays are dry. The zucchini in the middles of the trays and the front are about as dry as if they would have been in my Excalibur an hour. So if you're not familiar with dehydrators, let me tell you, I have used the round ones and the Excalibur. With the round ones, you have to rotate the trays because the heating unit/fan is at the bottom, therefore, the trays on the bottom get done faster. I would use a round dehydrator before I would use the TSM Harvest. Please don't waste your hard earned money on this. BUY AN EXCALIBUR!!! It is worth the extra money!!

I love this thing! We got it to try and make beef jerky, the one thing we hadn's tried yet. But it's so easy to operate, never imagined we'd get so much use out of this gadget - kids are eating the dried fruits up by the pounds, when before the apples just stayed in the vase for days and days. I've tried rising the dough and making croutons. Works wonderfully, cleans up in a second. Highly recommend.