Solar Food Dehydrator

[Arborius]

I plan on making a solar food dehydrator this summer and wanted to get some feed back from you guys. I plan on making a solar collector box black on the inside and covered with an old window pane. At the top I'm going to run a vent up to my food box and at the bottom will be an air intake to replenish the solar collector so as the air in the solar collector is heated and rises into the food box new fresh air accumulates in the solar collector to be heated. I got this idea online but can't remember were so I was hoping someone on this forum would have idea some advice or maybe a link to help me out. Theres a few things I'm not sure about like does my food box need an exhaust and what should I use as food trays to dry food will the same trays I use to dry meat work for fruit and vegetables?

[crashdive123]

Arborius.- Here are a few site with some info.

http://www.thefarm.org/charities/i4at/surv/soldehyd.htm

http://www.motherearthnews.com/Do-It-Yourself/2006-08-01/Build-a-Solar-Food-Dehydrator.aspx

http://www.pathtofreedom.com/pathproject/offthegrid/solarfooddryer.shtml

http://www.tuffydog.com/solardryer.html

[Arborius]

Thanks those sites look like they'll help a lot. Has anyone on this site made or used a solar dehydrator before?

[Oddmott]

Going to revive this one as I'm looking to build a solar dehydrator of my own.

Only problem is, I have no idea really which style is most efficient. Also, can one get creative with the measurements, or will spacing drying racks too close/too far apart cause major problems?

[Rick]

I have not built or used a solar unit but just remember that in general air flow is the key to dehydrating foods. As long as you have air movement around the food then you'll be fine. Dad told me they used to dehydrate food by placing it on the roof and laying screens over it to keep the flies off. That was a bit before my time.

[hunter63]

I have a stacked screen dehydrator, about 16" square....kinda a square rack that has about 6 screen racks about 2" apart.
It is not enclosed...as some are.

Would have to dig it out for pic's.....

Works pretty well, but needs cheese cloth to keep flies off and a good breeze.

Have had mold on the tomatoes in the past, haven't tried meat.....but I would think you would need higher temps, or even smoking to keep from spoiling....?

[Rick]

Oddmott - Here are a bunch of different designs. Enjoy!

http://www.builditsolar.com/Projects/Cooking/cooking.htm#Drying

[Oddmott]

Sheesh... researching these solar dehydrators has actually ended up being quite frustrating. Often enough, it seems like the thrown together, patchwork, jury-rigged units work better with less fuss and bother than the really "intelligently" designed, and built with quality construction materials, versions.

The pressure is on me now, as my aunt & uncle who grow 20-30 acres each year for farmers' market sales have told me they want a couple big, efficient solar dehydrators that they can use to dry all their seconds, instead of just canning or tossing them out. They want to get into value-added sales for things like their own garlic powders and sun dried tomatoes, etc.

So, I've got to get to work. My problem is confidently selecting a model/style and running with it.

[finallyME]

As with everything DIY, sometimes you just have to make one, then see what needs modifying, then make another.

[kylemorenatural]

hi
That looks interesting come see all or solar from electric vehicles being charged by thr sun to cutting or timber from the sun