I got the Nesco square dehydrator and a few extra trays for it. It came with one of these "Clean Screens" and after the first time I used it I had to order a few more of them.
I use these to make "Vegetable Chips" by shredding Zucchini, Kale, and other veg, mixing in a touch of Olive Oil, Lemon Juice and Zest, Salt and Ground Flax seeds. It makes a sort of wet mixture from all the water in the Zucchinis, this turns the flax seed meal a bit gooey like eggs and this holds it all together.
The pieces or shredded veg are too small to go onto the main trays, but the mix spreads perfectly onto these Clean Screens. The next morning I have delicious crispy vegetable chips. They come off clean and the trays are easy to wash.
These screens are also great for anything too small to put on the normal trays, or anything wet and messy because they are so much easier to clean.
The price is good and Amazon shipping rocks.
Thought about getting by without these, but made the decision to give them a try. Without them it would be impossible to dry most herbs, some fruit and vegetables. The only thing I would like to see is for the original NESCO unit to ship with 2 clean-a-screens instead of 1. Clean up is much easier with the screens.
Update 5/25/2013
Have had these for over a year now.
When I purchased the 8 that I needed the price was $9.99 for 2. Maybe Amazon changed the description, but I checked my order and for 4 X 2 clean-a-screens it was $39.96
They were used through last years growing season to dry apples, peaches, bananas, tomatoes, strawberries, herbs, some pasta and over 30 pounds of jerky.
They perform the task I expected them to perform and consistently meet my expectations. They are an invaluable aid especially when drying fruit, fruit leather and herbs,.
I'm just not sure why some folks complain that these screens are difficult to clean. Yes, some things stick more than others and yes, they do need to be cleaned after each use.
If what you want or need is non-stick, no clean, then skip the dehydrator, skip the screens and go purchase your dried fruit and veggies at the store.
You need a bit of patience with anything that is home made. That's why folks purchase goods instead of making them. To make them requires patience. Patience that too many folks just don't have today.
I tried living without these screens for over a year and still dehydrated enormous amounts of bananas, strawberries, and pineapples. But getting the freshly dried fruit off of the trays was always something I dreaded — food bits would get stuck and the trays tended to need a good amount of scrubbing.
With these screens, peeling the fruit off after dehydration is a piece of cake. They're also easy to wash/rinse and will probably mean that I will be running my dehydrator even more.
However, there are a couple of cons. You'll end up with an uneven number of screens compared to the trays you got with your dehydrator. Also, I believe that the screens have actually extended the dehydration process. Mind you, I've been putting the same amount of fruit and actually using more trays to spread it out — it still takes longer than just putting the fruit directly on the trays. But I will gladly take an extra hour or two of running the dehydrator than having to deal with scrubbing those trays.
I've never used a dehydrator before and only bought it to do chicken jerky for my dog. It's one of the only things she will ever eat. I've been buying them in pet stores but with all the controversy over chicken jerky made in China, I decided to try doing my own. It's a lot more expensive as I buy chicken with no antibiotics, but at least it gives me more peace of mind about how much of the jerky she is eating. I give her the pet store high quality brand as well, but less of it now. This Nesco works really well. I put mine in my basement when operating as it's a bit noisy to keep in your kitchen. It tried the chicken jerky perfectly in about 5-6 hours depending on how much I put in there. I'm very pleased with my purchase.
Easy to clean and works great for drying even small herbs like dill that slips through the basic racks.
Feature Product
- Screen flexes for easy removal of sticky fruits
- Perfect for dying small items
- Dishwasher safe
- Only fits Nesco FD-80 and FD-80A Square Dehydrator (sold separately; not compatible with other brand dehydrators)
- 2 screens included
Description
Flexible square screens make drying sticky foods easier to remove. Screen flexes for easy removal of sticky fruits such as pineapple. Perfect for drying small items like spices and herbs that would normally fall through the spokes of the tray. 2 Screen included. Only fits Nesco FD-80 and FD-80A Square Dehydrator (not compatible with other dehydrators). Colder ambient temperatures may cause the bend to temporarily hold in that position. Consequently, warmer ambient temperature would flatten it out. Please run the item under hot water to flatten.
I have been cleaning out my produce freezer and dehydrating last years harvest. Most everything I needed to dehydrate was chopped fairly fine. These screens kept the corn out of the peas, and okra, onions, peppers and mushrooms and kept all of it from falling through to the bottom of the racks. They are easy to scrub out in the sink and the whole procedure is more pleasant.
Fits perfectly, exactly like the ones my dehydrator came with. They're big and bulky to clean, but not much you can do about that.
I have one of these for each tray in my dehydrator and use them all the time. Easy to clean and makes it much easier to remove the dried food.
Especially foods that tend to stick to the trays. Just lift the loaded screen, bend and quickly pour the dehydrated foods directly into their jars.
Easy to wash and quick to dry.
Love my Nesco dehydrator and these screens make for easy clean up of sticky items and prevents small items from falling through. I've used many times, they are sturdy.
Bought these for a Nesco dehydrator so I could make my own chicken dog treats after all the dire warnings about Chinese sourced chicken treats. Making my own was surprisingly easy to accomplish, little cleanup, cost less than store-bought, no stinking Chinese toxins, worked like a charm, dogs are ecstatic.
