Cleaning and maintaining a dehydrator

A dehydrator is a fan, a heating element and a thermostat in an insulated box. There is not much to go wrong, and most of what does is preventable.

After every batch

Wash the trays in warm water with a little detergent and let them dry completely before they go back in. Stainless trays take a hot wash, which matters after meat — fat left on a tray goes rancid and the next batch will tell you about it.

Wipe the inside of the cabinet with a damp cloth. Sugar from fruit drips and sets hard if it is left for a week.

Monthly

• Check the fan guard for dust and lint. A restricted fan makes the element work harder and the trays dry unevenly.

• Look at the element for baked-on residue and wipe it cold.

• Run an empty cycle at 60 °C for twenty minutes if the cabinet has been standing unused.

Twice a year

Check the door seal. Close the door on a strip of paper and pull — if it slides out with no resistance, the seal is letting warm moist air out and your run times will have been creeping up for months without anybody noticing.

Verify the thermostat against a separate thermometer. A controller drifting by ten degrees is the difference between fruit that keeps its colour and fruit that case-hardens.

What not to do

• Do not put trays in a dishwasher unless the manual says so; the heat can warp them.

• Do not hose down or immerse the cabinet — the element and controller are in there.

• Do not run it in a closed cupboard. It needs somewhere for the moist air to go.