Excalibur 3948CDB Review

If you’ve been in the market for a food dehydrator and have felt yourself overwhelmed with options, then perhaps it’s time for you to skip the rest and embrace the best. There’s only one dehydrator on the market named after the greatest sword of Arthurian legend. Thankfully, bringing home your own legendary Excalibur won’t require some sort of impossible quest through the foggy English moors. Nope, all it will take is a quick internet surf over to Amazon for you to possess a true legend of food dehydration.

As you might have gathered, Excalibur is among the most renowned manufacturers of food dehydrators and they have a legendary reputation for quality products. The Excalibur 3948CDB is unique and includes all of the best traditional features and so much more, including a 48-hour timer, a transparent door, and a digital two-time and two-temperature controller.

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Key Features

This box-style dehydrator features 9 removable trays and a whopping 15 square feet of drying space. While it is not expandable, it allows you more drying space in comparison to round food dehydrators. The dehydrator also allows for the removal of its plates to create extra space for large items or rising dough.

This Excalibur dehydrator features the patented Parallex Horizontal Air Flow plus Hyperwave Fluctuation Technology. What’s that mean? Well, since the fan set is mounted at the back of the device, you’re provided with an additional horizontal drying capability that eliminates the chance of pesky drops or crumbs falling onto the motor and blade. Beyond that, the heat and airflow is distributed more evenly than with a conventional design. This will help ensure that your food dries faster, retains more nutrients, tastes better, and even looks better. You’ll never want to go back to a traditional dehydrator again once you’ve sampled the Excalibur.

The advanced 7-inch fan and Parallex Drying system combined with the adjustable temperature-controlling thermostat (ranging from 95°-165° F) provides users even more convenient versatility. New users might experience slight adjustment difficulties with regards to their personal preferences for factors such as humidity. Thankfully a helpful processing chart is included in the Excalibur’s delivery bundle to make things a little easier. This chart can be found in the owner’s manual.

This model also features a transparent polycarbonate door, which offers the ability to see food as it dries. This is quite handy for proofing dough or monitoring your dehydrating items to make sure that you get the perfect texture and moisture level. The door is also removable to facilitate easy cleaning and loading.

Its two-time, two-temperature digital controller gives you the ability to set the timer for up to 48 hours in addition to the dual settings. As a result, the dehydrator operates at the first set temperature for the specified time length and then changes to the second set temperature and time. The machine will then automatically shut down, offering you ultimate functionality, control, and convenience. You might be asking yourself why this multifaceted, multi-temperature dehydration process is such an important feature. With Excalibur’s heat fluctuation technology your dehydrating food will have a chance to let moisture rise to the surface in the middle of a session. Then it can also be dehydrated when the temperature rises again to allow for a more consistent texture that is less susceptible to mold, yeast, or bacterial growth.

Like all of the other Excalibur dehydrators, the Excalibur 3948CDB is backed by an impressive 10-year limited warranty (applicable even on Amazon). It’s rare for any food dehydrator manufacturer to offer a warranty that lasts a decade, and speaks to the remarkable quality and longevity you can except from this machine. If you’re someone who dehydrates regularly, that added level of security is an incredible bonus that should not be ignored or taken for granted.

It is also strongly recommended that users read the owner’s manual and adhere to the instructions to ensure that they do not void their warranty. For example, online registration of the unit with the manufacturer is required.

The Excalibur 3948CDB is designed to produce excellent results on all types of produce, whether it be poultry, fish, or game meat. It can additionally be utilized for craft projects like simple sculptures or Christmas ornaments. In some cases, the use of tray liners might be a requirement to protect the machine. It’s amazing how many things can be accomplished with a food dehydrator once you put your mind to it.

It has a drying capacity of 600 watts and a voltage of 110-120V. Because the maximum temperature setting for the Excalibur 3948CDB is 165° F, safety could have been an issue. Thankfully the manufacturers made this unit with polycarbonate plastic, ensuring that it is BPA-free and will not emit any harmful fumes that might leech into your food.

For optimal operations, this unit does not need you to use all 9 trays at once. This is a major advantage over previous dehydrator models that featured stacking shelves. Now users can more easily process bulky foodstuffs, cake decorations, or even foods in tall containers. The 39348CDB permits the removal of a few trays to create space for the numerous items, plus the removal of all but 1 or 2 of the trays to provide enough height accommodation for jars and bulky craft items. The exterior dimensions of this dehydrator are 19 inches in depth, 17 inches in width, and 12 inches in height.

Also included in the delivery is the Preserve It Naturally book. This will come in handy quite often since it provides users with over 250 pages of information about dehydration. The information includes diagrams, color photos, and detailed instructions for the dehydration of all types of foods, the making of cheese or yogurt, plus how to work with craft items. If you’ve been dreaming about diving into the exciting world of food dehydration but weren’t sure how to get started, this book is the answer to your prayers. By the time that you’re finished reading, you’ll be so anxious to experiment with dehydration that you may never leave your kitchen for weeks!

Optional Accessories

The featured trays are mesh, making them unsuitable for processing semi-liquids, fruit leathers, liquid foods (such as sauces, soups), pureéd items, or tiny ingredients that can easily fall through the mesh. A simple solution for this irritating limitation would be lining the trays with parchment paper.

Non-stick and flexible dehydrator sheets are best for the processing of foods that require tray liners (especially in large quantities) and these are available separately for competitive prices.