Ahhh....Silicon,

I didn't even think of that.  I have some tupperware silicon baking sheets that I could cut to size.

Thanks for the info about that, and the other post about using plates, I had no idea you could use plates in the excalibur.

Cheers,

Steve.

Oh Violet! I'm sorry about the noise levels. I don't even hear mine anymore. I have mine in the laundry. At night I shut my bedroom and laundry doors and don't notice it. Rodents and other critters won't go in them when they are turned on generally so you could have it outside or in a garage perhaps? I don't know about the baking paper. I haven't used it. Funny that it sticks though. Maybe try dusting it with some dessicated coconut or buckwheat flour? Or give it a wipe with some coconut oil? I don't know!

xxxxo

How to use the gladbake - peel it off before it is totally dry, this speeds up the drying time anyway.  I tend to peel the baking paper off pretty much as soon as it is dry enough to sit on the mesh sheet without dripping.  Cuts down on the drying time dramatically with the air circulating on both sides. Baking paper left on overnight tends to be stuck the next moring, so I only put a wet mix on when I can be around 4hr later to peel the paper off, the surface that has been drying is usually solid enough by then to rest on the mesh sheet.  If you stick your finger in something and it comes out wet it will be too wet to turn over, slightly firm crust you probably can turn it over.  (I usually keep the bottom tray empty, turning it over, I pull the bottom tray out, put it on top of what I am turning, turn the 2 trays over, with the thing in the middle, them peel off the baking paper, usually comes off in one piece, occassionally soggy bits might stick to it)

The noise is a bit noisey.  Are you sure you have the door on properly?  The difference between the noise with the door slightly off and on properly is HUGE.   I wouldn't worry about rodents if you put it out in the laundry, it's going to be too hot at the back, it's going to be vibrating, it's noisey; regardless of how good it smells, I think everything else about it would keep an animal away.  Not sure about *roaches that seem to be happy about running around inside microwave ovens, but rodents should find it off putting.

I wouldn't try running a dehydrator in a laundry with a clothes dryer on, it would probably be very difficult to dehydrate stuff under those circumstances.

I've been without my non stick sheets for a few months (they are in transit from Australia in our container) and have been using parchement paper with coconut oil on it. It works fairly well but does stick more (and really dried out my hands). I cut it to fit, oil it flat on the counter with coconut oil (melted in my hands), then use in the dehydrator.

I'd say it works for me about 50% as well as the non stick sheets you can buy at RP with the Excalibur, I'll be switching back ot my sheets when they arrive very happily. I miss them.

Be careful though to only get parchement paper (plain white paper for baking). Many of the 'papers' sold by companies like Glad are plastic covered (or worse chemicals) and I would trust the teflex non stick sheets over the chemical coated papers anyday.

Just as an FYI Excalibur officially sells both the teflex non stick sheets, and the silicon, and states that the silicon ones do not work as well. I understand your concerns though.. I personally would not cook with non stick surfaces (ie a frying pan), but am comfortable with the teflex sheets. I'd love to see details on the silicon though, as the different colours, textures of it I'm seeing say that it's NOT all silicon. What exactly is it? Just something to think about. I would be curious to try the new sheets though and will probably order one when they become available in Canada to compare them.

Cheers,
Sheryl

I've sent you a pm Karen.

xoxoxo