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One of the oldest forms of preserving fruit and vegetables, but one that is still very up-to-date today, is drying or drying. Modern ovens or a special dehydrator ensure a quick and almost guaranteed success. But there is also an easier way and without electricity. With our assembly instructions, you can build your own dehydrator step by step without electricity.
Build your own dehydrator
We want to build a device in which fruit and vegetables can be dried with the help of heat. The aim is to completely dispense with the use of electricity, motors, fans, etc. in order to obtain an ecologically sensible device that can also be used anywhere.
In the field of without electricity There are numerous different models of working dehydrators, some of which differ slightly, some of them significantly. Our assembly instructions result in a dehydrator with several levels and removable drying drawers. The supply air is guided and heated via a separate supply air duct, so that drying can take place even without direct sunlight. In this way, optimal results are achieved and you don't have to accept any compromises when building the machine yourself.
Before we start building, we create good conditions for the construction. This includes a suitable work area and the right tools. Don't forget to choose the right material. It can make building your own much easier and ultimately gives a satisfactory and lasting result:
tool
With the right tool, the work is only half as difficult. Therefore, the following things should be at hand:
- Cordless screwdriver with wood drill set and countersink
- screwdriver
- hammer
- Hand saw, e.g. fox tail
- meter stick
- Square measure or protractor
- pencil
- Sandpaper, about 100 grit
tip: If you use a Japanese pull saw instead of a classic hand saw, you can achieve very precise and fine cuts with little effort. Due to the reverse sawing direction, pull instead of push, the blade can be made much finer and there are no distortions of the blade that would disturb the cut.
material
wood
- 3 pieces glued spruce, d=18mm, 0.40×0.50m (A - walls)
- 1 piece glued spruce, d=18mm, 0.44×0.45m (B - door)
- 1 piece glued spruce, d=18mm, 0.40×0.22m (C - floor)
- 1 piece glued spruce, d=18mm, 0.50×0.50m (D - roof)
- 1 piece glued spruce, d=18mm, 0.40×0.86m (E - floor shaft)
- 2 pieces glued spruce, d=18mm, 0.10×0.86m (F - side shaft)
- 4 squared timber spruce 3x3cm, l=0.80m (G - legs)
- 2 battens 2x3cm, l=0.50m (H - holder shaft)
- 8 strips 10x20mm, l= 0.39 (I - frame across)
- 16 pcs. strips 10x20mm, l=0.37 (J - frame lengthways + supports)
tip: Today, every hardware store offers cutting of wood. Have the individual parts sawn to the desired dimensions directly in the store, so that your subsequent cutting effort is minimal! Although we want to build the machine ourselves, you are welcome to use the amenities of our time. After all, we don't build the device completely without electricity!
Others
- Deep black paint, alternatively deep black adhesive film, approx. 0.60×1.00m
- 1 acrylic sheet, 0.40×0.76
- Screws 4x40mm with countersunk head
- Screws 3x20mm with countersunk head
- 1 ribbon hinge, length 0.45m
- Fly screen or other plastic screen
- 1 piece of roofing felt approx. 55x55cm, or alternatively UV-resistant foil
- Tacks, e.g. so-called roofing felt nails
- 1 magnetic door closer for furniture doors
- 1 simple drawer or furniture handle
Build a dehydrator yourself - instructions
Preliminary remarks: For a nicer look and a lower risk of flaking, all edges of the wooden parts should be smoothed with fine sandpaper. In addition, all screw holes should be pre-drilled and countersunk prior to screwing in the screw, as softwood tends to chip or crack with undrilled and countersunk holes. A 1.5mm or 2.0mm drill bit is suitable for pre-drilling 4mm screws. However, these work steps are no longer listed in detail below, but are understood to be a matter of course as an advance or ancillary service.
1. Supply air duct
We start with the creation of the supply air duct. In it, the incoming air is heated without electricity. Therefore, it is a sine qua non for drying without not exposing the fruit directly to the sun:
- Bevel parts F at one end at a 45-degree angle, measuring 10 cm on one edge and sawing from the point to the end of the opposite edge
- Place the side parts F flush with the longer edge on the shelf E
- Screw the base E to the side parts F four times evenly over the entire length
- Paint the inside of the resulting U-shape opaque black
- Alternatively: line the bottom and sides of the U with black adhesive film
- Place the acrylic glass pane on the shorter, free edges of the side parts
- Screw the pane evenly four times into the side parts over the entire length
danger: Acrylic glass tends to warp when heated. The holes should therefore only be pre-drilled carefully at low speed!
2. Casing/cutting
After the supply air duct is ready, we start creating the housing. There is space for drying fruit or vegetables in it. Before building, the walls are cut to size in order to give the future roof a slight incline:
- Bevel 2 walls A each at a 40cm edge
- measure 2cm inwards from the corner on a 50cm edge
- Saw diagonally from this point to the opposite corner
3. Housing/ Mounting
- Lay base C flat on the floor or table
- Place 2 walls A on the remaining 40cm edge, place flush on the 22cm sides of the floor at one end and screw into the 22cm edge from the side (twice screw on each side)
- 3. Place wall A at the end without a base vertically between the walls that have already been screwed on and also screw on 3 times evenly over the entire height
- Lay the roof with the same overhang on all sides on the sloping upper side and screw in two evenly spaced screws on each wall
A U of 3 walls is formed, with the bottom lying flush at the open end of the U, but with a "hole" on the inside.
4. Legs and supply air duct
So that the created box can become a dehydrator, we now connect the air supply duct to the body and set the entire construction on safe feet:
- Screw the legs G to the walls that are slanted at the top with 4 screws evenly distributed over the contact surface
- Caution: Either pre-drill holes in the squared timber half the depth of the screw head, or use 4×45 or 3x50mm screws!
- Overlap legs and body 25cm, free leg overhang 55cm below
- On the sides of the supply air duct, draw a line parallel to the sloping front side with a distance of 5 cm
- Push the air duct into the body up to the line through the hole in the floor and screw in twice on each side from the outside
- Place slats H at about half the height of the legs on the inside of the legs and on the outside of the shaft and simply screw them to the legs and twice to the shaft
notice: The holder H is not absolutely necessary. However, it stabilizes the shaft in the body so that when the dehydrator is moved it does not pull its screw connections on the body out of the wood under its own weight.
5. Dehydrator drawers
So that the dehydrator is not only without electricity, but also efficient works, the interior space created should be used as well as possible. This is achieved by using several drawer-like levels for the dried food:
- Join two strips I and two strips J to a square frame 37x39cm
- Place slats on top of each other at corner joints and connect through both slats with 3x20mm screws
- Make sure the corners are right with a square or set square
- Place frame with 37cm slats up
- Pull the fly screen or netting over the frame and down the sides and fasten it in the frame with tacks, a tack every 3 to 4 centimetres
- Turn the frame over so that the net and 37cm slats are on the bottom
- Repeat the process three more times, creating four drawers in total.
notice: It is also possible to use a fine wire mesh, or even rabbit lattice, as a supporting element for the drawers. However, metal tends to rust over time from the liquid from drying the fruit. In addition, galvanized wire, for example, can taint the taste of the dried food and thus have a negative effect. Therefore, if possible, build your slide-in compartments with food-safe plastic nets or fabrics!
6. Installation of drawers and door
Now the dehydrator is provided with a door and we install the drawers:
- Mount 4 strips J on both side walls inside the housing as follows:
- Mounted parallel to the floor, with the flat (2cm wide) side on the side wall
- Bottom strip 7 cm above the floor (lower edge of strip equal to upper edge of inserted ventilation shaft)
- All the following strips with a distance of 10 cm between each other (top edge to top edge)
- Screw all strips evenly three times over the entire length
- Use 3x20mm screws
- Door B has a strap hinge along a 45cm edge
- Lay the door on the open cabinet side, making sure the bottom edge is flush
- Screw the strap hinge to the body
- Attach magnetic closer and door handle approx. in the middle of the door
7. Rework
The actual dehydrator is now complete. Only a few minor touch-ups are left before drying can begin:
- Cover the roof with roofing felt
- Fold the cardboard all around the edge of the roof and fix it with tacks every 3 to 5 centimeters
- If necessary, cover the bottom of the dehydrator with adhesive film to make it easier to remove dripping juice
- Alternatively: Apply black paint from the supply air duct in several layers
- Pull the remainder of the fly screen or net over the lower inlet of the supply air duct and also tack it in place
notice: The lower end of the supply air duct does not have to be. But just when most of the fruit comes fresh from the garden to be dried, there are many insects out and about who also want to use the concentrated accumulation of sweets. The grille helps to safely protect the machine parked in the sun from wasps, bugs and other unwanted visitors.
Now it's done. The dehydrator without electricity is ready. After building, you can now fill the drawers with fruit or vegetables and slide them into the housing. Align the machine so that the supply air duct points towards the sun. The black color provides the desired warming. The warm air rises in the duct up to the housing with the fruit. New air can flow in from below for heating. The now damp, still warm air can escape through the gap above the door. It may take a little longer, but with the help of the sun and the chimney effect, dried fruit and vegetables can be made in no time at all without electricity.
