I have been working on this video in the background for months, and I barely got it together before no effort november.

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So let's learn about freeze dryers and how bonkers it is to own one (in my opinion, anyway)

Solarbird :flag_cascadia:

@TechConnectify ...there are home freeze-dryers?

I had no idea there were home freeeze-dryers. Neat!

Tobias Klausmann

@TechConnectify One of the things I love about this video is that it illustrates that a purely rational/by-the-numbers approach to matters like food does not work, and enjoyment and mouth-feel and all manners of je-ne-sais-quoi stuff is important about food.

And that you spell that out, and acknowledge that sometimes, "gut feeling" (haaa) ist just as important.

Would I rather starve than eat freeze-dried crunches? Of course not, but that isn't the point, is it?

Martinius

@TechConnectify I wonder how well this maschine works to to dry 3D printer fillament

Darryl Ramm

@TechConnectify

Waiting for the video of trick or treaters trying freeze dried gummies etc.

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@darryl_ramm I'm pretty sure handing those out would get me put on some kind of list

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@Martinius That's a great question! I don't really know the mechanisms by which filament takes on moisture, but I don't know why it would at least reduce it.

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@moira Only on a technicality!

James Holden

@TechConnectify @Martinius People definitely use small domestic dehydrators to dry filament. Damp filament prints badly because the moisture boils as it’s extruded at ~200°C and ruins the finish and integrity of the print. You can tell if you have damp filament because it crackles as it prints.

Lety Does Stuff

@TechConnectify I considered getting one at some point for backpacking reasons but yikes yikes yikes that's wayyy too fiddly and fucky to bring into a hobby I actually enjoy

Also how cold does this thing get, can it freeze dry beer?

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@lety it probably could! I don't know what the result would be like, but the chamber typically gets down to -12 f before it actually starts the vacuum pump, and you can set the initial freeze to be -10. Maybe even -20.

Insipid

@TechConnectify
This reminded me of a thing Binging with Babish did with Futurama's "Bachelor Chow" a few years back.

Apparently it came out pretty good, would be cool to see you try it on Connextras.

olegjose

@TechConnectify You could try to add an emulsifier to the whole milk before adding water. It should help with the mixing. Soy Lecithin Powder for example.

cputecch

@TechConnectify hey I’ve been looking for one of these freeze dryers for a long time. If you’re ever trying to get rid of it, I’ll buy it for what’s fair, but I wanna do a bunch of things like shrimp.

dippar

@TechConnectify I'm using these things regularly in a lab environment and you're absolutely right they're temperamental beasts and maintenance can be a chore. You're probably sick of the freeze drier by now, but I might have an idea what might be going on with the incomplete drying.

TransArachnia

@TechConnectify The primary reason I had considered owning one was for preservation, so I'm grateful you made this video. I was wanting to freeze dry soups and various vegetables and things we make/grow at home, but it sounds like it would be far easier to just freeze them instead and deal with the occasional weird texture aspect that comes from that. Especially since we already have a deep freezer.

J.P. Stewart

@TechConnectify hah. Look what I found at my local Seattle Costco yesterday. Just one unit. Awkwardly stuffed in a shopping cart. It looked like the vacuum box was on the underside of the cart. Only $1600.

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@jpsays I'm kind of annoyed at Costco for selling these tbh.

And funnily enough it looks like the rack assembly is installed upside-down. It's just sitting in there (it was a bit cockeyed in mine when I received it) but I'm pretty certain the trays are not supposed to be sitting on the heating pads.