Harvest Right Freeze Dryer Reviews

Do not buy this if you do not have mechanical abilities. I have multiple freeze dryers from Harvest Right.

The pumps routinely have to be taken apart and cleaned. There is no in home service. When something breaks, I have to send them logs, they ship me the part and I have to install it. Or I have to ship the entire thing back (and pay for shipping if it is out of warranty). Customer service is via scheduled phone calls or emails, and they will close tickets within 24 hours if you do not respon

Captain Chill’s review of my large Harvest Right Freeze Dryer purchased on 07/30/2025:

On 8 of 2025, it started to take excessively long to get below freezing despite trays being pre-frozen (6 to 9 hour). The appliance dealer I bought it from was absolutely wonderful. They had me try 5 or 6 home tests after consulting with Harvest Right, even contacting the factory for a replacement since harvest was in full swing. This took 3 to 5 weeks to complete.

On 10/24/2025, I contacted Harvest Right to let them know I was getting a message that my freeze dryer was not cooling and that I should contact customer support.

After a week or two of home testing/diagnosing, they wanted me to go out and buy a flash drive and do some more testing and send them the flash drive. When I balked at this, since I had been repeating these tests since August, they agreed to ship it back to the factory where it remained for two months. They forgot to send me a shipping label and it was an ordeal to get one printed.

Upon it’s return, it has been functioning properly for the last 15 or 16 batches. Other than the noise factor, it performs flawlessly now.

My support tech was very patient, professional, and courteous despite being evasive with her answers. When I asked her for a replacement, she said it was denied by her supervisor. When I asked where they got the units that were factory reconditioned, she told me from customers who were having issues with theirs. When I asked why I couldn’t be afforded the same courtesy of cross shipping a used unit so I would not miss harvest, she was very evasive and refused to answer.

While my support tech was great, the service itself from the factory was substandard.

Just leaving a review on my experience...

Just leaving a review on my experience with harvest right to get my $100 store credit.

I own 3 machines all 3 have broken down and needed serviced.

Purchased a couple of weeks ago and was impressed right from the start. Shipping was fast, and the machine plus all accessories arrived in excellent condition. I assembled everything immediately and ran a test batch of bread. The vacuum wouldn’t turn on, so I contacted Customer Support and was connected with Caleb.

Caleb walked me through a thorough troubleshooting process and shared excellent tips along the way. He was patient, understanding, knowledgeable, and genuinely pleasant to work with. The issue turned out to be a wire to the vacuum pump that had loosened during shipping. Once reconnected, the machine performed perfectly.

After completing the test batch, I moved on to a full load: chicken gizzards, beef liver, beef kidneys for my dog, plus a tray of cilantro for myself. The results were outstanding. I was impressed by how evenly everything dried, especially considering the wide range of textures and thicknesses.

Highly recommended product. The machine performs exceptionally well, and the customer support experience was top‑notch.

We have the Harvest Right medium freeze dryer with the premier pump and have been using it consistently for about three years. I also just setup another medium at our place to run for a neighbor.

I love our machine! Most of the issues I have had have been user error, and not very noteworthy. Recently I had an issue with the pump leaking after it was taken apart for cleaning, though it seems to be a gasket issue.

In the few times I have called their customer support, including recently, they were helpfu, polite, and prompt. Even though my machine is out of warranty (around three years old), I was not charged for the support time.

I have freeze dried so much food! It has been great for our excess chicken eggs and garden produce. I was also able to do enough candy to sell at markets to be able to pay off the machine.

I would highly recommend the Harvest Right machines!

I purchased the Harvest Right Medium 6.0 (five-tray freeze dryer) in December 2025, and after completing 10 successful runs—a mix of both food and candy—I’ve been extremely pleased with the performance and overall experience.

The app has been very useful, making it easy to monitor runs and adjust settings as needed. Just as impressive has been Harvest Right’s online chat support, which has been quick to respond and incredibly helpful when I’ve had questions about processing times, temperatures, or general operation. Their support team clearly wants customers to succeed and stay on track with their food processing.

Customer service has truly stood out. I’ve spoken directly with Christopher Joseffy and Rachel Schwab, and both provided excellent support and followed up after our initial conversations to make sure everything was working properly. That level of follow-through is rare and very much appreciated.

Overall, Harvest Right has been responsive, knowledgeable, and committed to customer success. Based on my experience so far, I’m very happy with my Medium 6.0 freeze dryer and confident continuing to use it for both food preservation and candy processing.

I purchased the small Harvest Right freeze dryer back in Feb 2025 and I've been very please with how well it works. I use it mainly for making camping food and to be able to have normally perishable ingredients on hand, allowing me to buy in bulk. This has really helped me to save money.

(And it makes yummy healthy snack type food - who knew that freeze dried asparagus could be a crunchy treat?)

I didn't have any problems until I tried to update to a new operating system via their wifi dongle...

No company/product is perfect, so I tend to judge a company by how they handle issues...

I gave Harvest Right a call, and spoke with a tech rep named Taiya. She was extremely helpful and acknowledged that there were sometimes issues with the update. We did a bit of troubleshooting to make sure, and she arranged to have a replacement part sent to me and scheduled a follow-up phone call. The part arrived, she helped me install it and I'm back up and running!

So bottom line - I love my freeze dryer and have been very happy with customer service.

I recently purchased the small freeze dryer directly from Harvest Right, and it was delivered in excellent condition with all accessories included. I initially experienced an issue with the vacuum system, but a Harvest Right representative quickly helped me identify the problem—it turned out to be related to the door seal.

The representative sent clear, easy-to-follow videos showing how to adjust the hinge screws and door latch. Both adjustments were simple to make and completely resolved the issue.

I’ve since completed the initial freeze-drying batch using bread, as recommended in the start-up guide, and have now started my next batch using produce from my garden. I’m very excited to have another effective way to preserve my harvest.

Harvest Right provided very clear, step-by-step instructions for operating the machine from start to finish. Based on my recent experience, I feel confident that if I have any future questions or need assistance, their support team will be there to help.

I bought my Harvest Right 17.4 in. Black Home Pro Small Freeze Dryer with 4 Stainless Steel Trays about 3 years ago and I've run 279 batches without issues. I have a nice stock pile of fruits, vegies, eggs and meals that I use while camping, for gifts, and for every day use. It is great to have my backup products when my frig is bare or I'm out of specific items. I take good care of it because it is important to me.

I garden, so there are many items all at once. If I get behind in freeze drying I can just freeze the fruit and dry it when there is time in the winter. I have no food waste. All left-overs and abundance is saved and used when its time.

I’ve been running the Harvest Right Pro freeze dryer regularly, and it’s been a solid workhorse. Once you learn how it behaves, it’s very much a load-it-and-walk-away machine. It handles everything I throw at it — meats, meals, eggs, produce, and even odd test batches — and the results are consistently excellent.

I did run into one small issue right after unboxing, but customer service was top-notch. They resolved it in a single call and even followed up the next day to make sure everything was running smoothly and that I didn’t have any other issues.

Yes, it’s slightly loud and yes, it’s an investment, but if you’re serious about long-term food storage, homesteading, or small-batch production, it’s absolutely worth it.

I've had my Harvest Right freeze dryer for almost a month now and it has been running steady ever since--aside from the quick defrost times! In that short period, l've already freeze-dried a huge variety of foods: diced peppers, chicken, ground beef, Skittles, green onions, ice cream sandwiches, and a bunch of different fruits. Everything has turned out amazing.

The learning curve has been super smooth thanks to the Harvest Right app and all the tips shared in the Facebook groups. I felt confident right from the start, and every batch has gotten easier and more fun. I'm honestly so impressed with how much food l've been able to preserve already.

If you're on the fence about getting one, I can't recommend it enough--it's been one of the best additions to my kitchen!

I got a large freeze dryer about 8 years ago and it still works great. I have had to do a couple of repairs that I was able to complete myself with help from tech support; I am fairly handy, but the tech support was great in diagnosing the problem.

I really enjoy freeze drying. It is an involved process, and you have to be prepared to store the food you freeze dry, but sometimes I take leftovers that will be going bad and put them in the freeze dryer, which saves a lot of waste.

I was having trouble with the screen needing recalibration. I scheduled a meeting with tech support and within 15 minutes, the freeze dryer screen was recalibrated and I was up and running again.

I have waited to post a review about the Harvest Right Freeze dryer until I had a chance to actually USE it. I’ve wanted and researched freeze dryers for YEARS but I never could afford one. Until Costco had a great deal. My friend VISA and I went shopping!

Here’s what I have learned.

This machine is HEAVY. It’s well built and is a work horse. Directions DO NOT say – to take the door gasket OFF (easy) to remove the inside shelving to remove the plastic, then replace the shelving back inside the unit – making sure the cords are beneath the trays and level. * Note – my gasket pushes on too far so the door doesn’t seal unless I pull the top of the gasket out just ¼ inch each time. I can do that – customer support was fantastic to work with. I’m not strong enough to tighten the star or Allen wrench screws that hold the door in place to adjust it. I used a 4-drawer file cabinet – perfect to support the weight and drawers for storage.

Mine is in the kitchen. That is convenient for me but it could go almost anywhere. It is “noisy enough” we close the bedroom door at night. The noise is more like white noise, a motor running, but loud enough the TV has to be louder and conversations need to be in closer proximity. It would be more difficult if it was in the garage, for filling and retrieving trays.

I have the small machine. 4 trays. I soon learned the large freeze dryer would have been better for my needs but I purchased 3 additional sets of trays (Freeze Dryer Trays - Harvest Right™ | Home Freeze Dryers | Freeze Dried Food Storage) and 4 sets of silicone tray mats (essential -Silicone Mats - Harvest Right™ | Home Freeze Dryers | Freeze Dried Food Storage) because my machine runs 6 days a week. I also purchased tray covers for pre-freezing (not essential unless items are left in freezer for several days - Tray Lids - Harvest Right™ | Home Freeze Dryers | Freeze Dried Food Storage), tray stackers (essential – Amazon Amazon.com: Silicone Tray Stackers for Harvest Right Freeze Dryer Trays – 16 pcs Freeze Dryer Stacks for Harvest Right Freeze Dryer Accessories: Home & Kitchen), door pillow (essential – Amazon Amazon.com: Door Pad for Medium Harvest Right Freeze Dryer Door Pillow for Seal Freeze Dryer Accessories : Appliances.) BE SURE TO GET ITEMS for your size of freeze dryer! These items I found very helpful. I also purchased a book (essential - Amazon - Freeze-Drying the Harvest: Preserving Food the Modern Way: Carolyn Thomas: 9781963008999: Amazon.com: Books) It is in constant use for reference and all things related to use and care of my machine. MOST of these items, can be purchased direct from HARVEST RIGHT and some are less expensive than Amazon. Shipping time is about the same.

Lets talk batches – I’ve had great successes and failures! Candy – Very fun but can be quite messy and stick to the shelf above. Taking the machine apart to clean isn’t difficult but cleaning it IS. The shelves are close together and my hand (small) doesn’t fit between the shelves to wash off the sticky mess. You need a bottle brush or sponge on a stick to get the corners – being CAREFUL to not get the electrical end wet. Harvest Right needs to include a cleaning tool and directions.

I’ve freeze dried milk, whey, cheese, mushrooms, apples, bananas, yogurt, various vegetables, meats, left over dinners, cottage cheese, eggs, ice cream sandwiches, cooked hamburgers, shrimp, noodles, rice and more. What I did NOT know is, freeze dried food is fragile – with no water to support the cellular structure, foods crumble into powder so be cautious in packaging. With some foods, the taste, color and/or texture is different when rehydrated.

Storing – I don’t care for mylar bags. For me, they are hard to work with, fill, and store but sealing was easy. I DO use oxygen absorbers in each package or jar. I do use a jar vacuum sealer (Amazon.com: LOVE MOMENT Electric Mason Jar Vacuum Sealer Kit for Wide Mouth and Regular Mouth Mason Jars: Home & Kitchen.)

Would I purchase a Harvest Right freeze dryer again – In. A. Heartbeat! Worth every penny. The foods from the garden alone have saved us hundreds of dollars over store bought.

This is my honest feedback/review.

We have had our Freeze Dryer for 7 months now. We started out with candy of all kinds. Best was Big Hunks and Bit-O-Honey. We've done chicken, home-made refried beans (reconstitutes awesome and tastes Great) and milk. It's great being able to freeze dry the milk instead of pouring it down the drain when it is about to expire. We have done peaches, apples, bananas, broccoli and beets. Chili, spaghetti sauce with meat, egg whites and even peanut butter, which was quite the process, but it worked.

Recently, I had an issue with the vacuum system. It would not achieve enough vacuum pressure to work and gave me an error code. I called Support and was directed to Helena. She had me run some tests and adjust some things. We found that the drain hose had a small leak and the door gasket had a very small tear. Within 3 or 4 days I received the replacement parts and put them on today, 11/13/2025. It completely fixed the issue and the machine is back to full working order. Helena was fantastic and followed up with emails and phone calls. Great customer service.

I would definitely recommend purchasing a Harvest Right Freeze Dryer.