Perfect product. Fits trays perfectly no trimming no gaps Absolutely perfect.Thanks
Having purchase a FD 7 years ago in Hawaii I have to say we have some experience with FD machine. I just retired to Alabama about 2 years ago and we brought the machine with us but about 2 months ago the machine started to have problems. I was able to fix it but like an old car you can omly do so much before other things start happening so I started looking to buying another machine and after watch a lot of you tube videos it was easy to see that the stay fresh machine was more up to date with technology. It arrived it perfect condition, everything unpack easily. Thanks to all the you tube video I had a good idea on how to setup it up and run it . This machine runs great right out of the box no problems. I know the one thing people say is it must cost a lot in electric believe it or not it doesn't even when I lived in Hawaii which has the highest cost of electric (48 cent Kw) it only cost me an extra $150 a month to run 24/7 here in Alabama I would say maybe an extra $60 running 24/ 7. I love the machine only thing I wish we could have is some kind of Wi-Fi system to monitor the unit. I did hook up a Wi-Fi camera to monitor with my phone but an app would be great.
This clamping system was a major factor for my purchase of StayFresh over the other guys.
I purchased this clamp to attach the 90 degree elbow to reduce stress on the hose between vacuum pump and freeze dryer.
The clamp is an easy to use super easy way to attach and seal hose multiple times during routine maintenance.
I did alot of research on different brands before making this investment and decided on Stay Fresh. I absolutely made the right decision. Stay Fresh FDs are very competitively priced & the quality of its parts & overall setup is substantial reassuring your return on your investment will be many years - a principle lacking in today's "disposable" world. It is logically set up for your own maintenance and problem-shooting with clear instructions. Tim, the creator of this system, is personally available for questions via email, calls and text, what company does that any more! He responded immediately to my important questions & to my not-important questions w/i 24 hrs. (Just remember he's on CA time.) For me a recent sr widow whose husband did everything, it was simple to set up & use out of the box with pre-programmed settings. For those technically minded, there is the capability for fine-tuning to personal specifications, another big benefit. I greatly recommend purchasing the industrial pump. It is exactly as it implies, heavy duty, easy to maintain & oil stays cleaner longer. I also recommend purchasing the longer stainless steel hose as it provides more flexibility in placing the pump. I did not order originally, but after, I switched up & I would've saved some $ and time if I had included in my original order. I was really apprehensive about buying a freeze dryer & it took a month for me to decide. I don't regret buying a Stay Fresh FD & like my title says, I didn't know I needed one. Now I can't live without it.
We have used our new Stay Fresh freeze dryer for a few months now and I can say with confidence that we made a great decision! We know quite a few people that own Harvest Right freeze dryers and they have had soooo many problems. This heavily influenced our determination to do research into alternative brands, which led us to the small dryer with the industrial pump. So easy to use, no hiccups or unexpected issues or setup complications - just exactly as expected with easy to use controls and consistent results. Thank you!
I bought the standard model with KF25 and industrial pump upgrades. I had a small issue with a sensor upon arrival. I sent a DM, got an instant response, and had an appointment for the next day for tech support. The owner of the company called me right on time for our appointment. Within 10 minutes the machine was running like a top. This level of customer service is very hard to find these days. Super impressed with this company.
The machine itself has exceeded my expectations. It just works. The user interface is very intuitive and allows for as little or as much control as i want over the run cycle.
Im super glad i bought this unit and super glad that i chose the StayFresh over another brand.
I am now in the middle of my third batch. No problems whatsoever. This is everything I expected it to be and more. Very happy and pleased with my new Mega. I wasn't able to use it for the first two and a half months after I got it, but it is now in full time operation and I am happy to say that this is one of the best investments I've made. Thanks to Mr. Tim for a very good freeze dryer. Top Of The Line. It don't get any better than this.
I wish I had purchased the elbow when I first bought my machine. I have the stainless steel hose and this elbow allows for a better stress free connection. It is a quality product and seals very well.
Works as it should. I definitely thought these would be whole solid sheets like a baking sheet, but between the grid patteren, there are holes. For solid foods, that's fine, but for liquids, it would go straight through, and youd loose alot of products that sticks to the mat.
Product arrived as expected. Perfect condition . Delivery was painless and within an hour of the expected arrival. Set up was painless.
’ve been using the StayFresh Mega Freeze Dryer for several months now, and I’m beyond impressed with its performance! It’s easy to use, and the setup was straightforward. The freeze dryer is incredibly efficient, handling large batches of food with ease. I love how it preserves the taste and nutrients of fruits, vegetables, and other foods. The product is well-built and runs quietly, making the whole process enjoyable. It’s the perfect tool for anyone serious about freeze-drying at home, and I highly recommend it to anyone looking to invest in a top-quality freeze dryer!
I have had the machine for 2 months and have run quite a bit through it. The unit has performed flawlessly. I am happy with how quiet the unit is. I am new at this but learning every load i do, product has been turning great.
this new pump was so much better.
we bring our unit into our laundry room at certain times during the year, and this new pump gave off no smoke into the air. such a game changer for us.
Took me a couple runs and quite a few videos to learn the basics. But this thing has been running pretty steady the first month.
The options on this machine make Harvest Right seem basic. And the build quality is superb.
Stay Fresh allows you to make all kinds of tweaks to their machine. Change preset curves, change default values, and the function screen will allow you to do each step manual or u can use auto mode.
The electric bill definitely noticed the new toy. Seems like about $3 - $5 worth of electricity per food run. Candy runs are much quicker. But it is what it is.
The industrial pumps are about indestructible as long as you keep oil in them, AND always run them under load. Don't ever run the pump with any valves (or door) open with free flowing air going into pump. It will blow all the oil right out into the baffle. (Which will mostly run back into the pump after the pump shuts off) I work with these pumps everyday at my job. They like to work.
The ONLY thing that stuck out to me as odd with this purchase was their instructions to keep the pump as far away from dryer as possible. But they only included about 30 inches of vacuum hose. I ended up buying a 10' section (1/2" ID) vacuum hose from Amazon to move my pump further away from the machine. Be nice if they included 6' of hose.
The Freeze Dried Candy sellers at the local fairs all advised me "if your going to buy one, don't buy Harvest Right, unless you like to wait for parts to fix the machine yourself".
I'm glad I took their advice and bought quality. Haven't had to contact Stay Fresh for any customer service. But from what I have read their Customer Service is hands down the best. And that alone is huge.
Happy freeze drying.
We are very pleased with our new Stayfresh freeze dryer. We started to freeze dry various foods and it works as it should. Very good quality equipment.
We have been very happy so far with our freeze dryer. The seven trays hold a substantial amount of food, which we hope to put to good use next year from our large garden. Very quiet too!!
I LOVE MY STAY FRESH FREEZE DRYER! It is amazing! The personal service, quick response to questions, fulfilling my needs and orders has been fantastic. I would highly recommend Stay Fresh for all of your food processing and storage needs. Well worth the investment!
I had 2 freeze dryers from harvest , a medium , then large. Medium to small for me. Gave to my brother. Got a large one that didn’t make a year ( I think 7 months) started last September with freezing issue. We start with service paying for a service call (hmmmm) then we have to package and return($$$$) and I received it back last friday(a week today) I’m out of town during the week. So yesterday , I had to determine if I was happy with repair. So obviously , I didn’t get it tested — in the mean time my brother who lives 5 hours from me returns the one I gave him. It failed after 3 batches spent about a month trying to solve ( which I never did) instead I ordered a large stay fresh and have been freeze drying for better than a month ( kinda fun using 2 different brands ) I love everything about stay fresh except I wish the trays were Beveled for easier removal
Hands down better built , it seems to dry food faster with much more consistency
Maybe now would be a the time to say
THANK YOU
So far we have freeze dried 64 cases (764 cans) of canned vegetable's without one problem. We do one run a day on our four tray machine. We haven't used the Parchment paper yet.
The stainless steel hose was very easy to install and i have a piece of mind that it will last for many years. I also could not ask for a better dryer! The operation was very easy. Emailed questions are replied to very promptly.