Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

My sister-in-law has had a Nesco dehyrator and has used it successfully for years. As a gift, my sister-in-law bought me a new Nesco FD-75PR 700-Watt Food Dehydrator from Amazon on June 1, 2011. I used it about ten times last summer during tomato season to dehyrate cherry tomatoes. It worked well then for that purpose except I had to rotate the trays and turn the tomatoes over once to insure even drying. I also successfully dehyrated extra overripe bananas twice. After our tomato plants died in fall 2011, I cleaned and put my new dehydrator away in its orginal box to store for the next summer use. Then mid-July 2012, I took my Nesco FD-75PR out of its box and used it twice to dehyrate our homegrown cherry tomatoes. The third time I tried to use it, the electrical plug sparked the electrical outlet and triggered the GFI electrical outlet on the same circuit. I reset the GFI, and tried again with the same result. Then, I tried to plug my dehyrator into a battery backup UPS (APC Back-UPS ES 350), and the UPS alarm sounded and the light on the UPS turned blinking red. As a test, I tried some of our other appliances such as our electric teapot and food processor into the same electrical outlet without tripping the GFI and then tried the UPS, but these appliances did not send the UPS into an alarm. Commonsense and a few searches about appliance saftey tell me that my 14-month old Nesco FD-75PR has an electrical problem and is now a fire danger and is thus unusable. I discovered online that Nesco Model number FD-1020 has been recalled by Nesco due to an electrical problem. Details are below. I called Nesco customer service about my defective Nesco FD-75PR and they informed me that my 14-month old dehydrator is out of warranty. They said that I could pay to send it back to them and pay out-of-pocket for a repair (if they found a problem that they could repair) and then pay for return shipping. I declined this inconvenient and expense offer. Therefore, I am extremely unhappy with Nesco. Here are a few other cons with this unit: 1) cheap two prong electrical plug (not a grounded plug) and thin, flimsy electrical cord; 2) No "on" or "off" switch; 3) Poor product warranty. 4) Poor safety design and unhelpful customer service. Below is the recall information on Nesco Model number FD-1020: Safety Recall - Food Dehydrator Please enter your Nesco American Harvest dehydrator's serial number to determine if it is affected by this recall. Enter Serial Number: News from CPSC U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission Office of Information and Public Affairs Washington, D.C. 20207 For Immediate Release Firm's Recall Hotline: (800) 726-4457 January 20, 2011 CPSC Recall Hotline: (800) 638-2772 Release #11-DRAFT CPSC Media Contact: (301) 504-7908 Food Dehydrator Recalled by NESCO American Harvest Due to Fire Hazard WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, today announced a voluntary recall of the following consumer product. Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed. It is illegal to resell or attempt to resell a recalled consumer product. Name of Product: NESCO American Harvest Gardenmaster Food Dehydrator Units: About 4,800 Manufacturer: The Metal Ware Corporation, of Two Rivers, Wisc. Hazard: A defective capacitor in the electronic control module can overheat, posing a smoke and fire hazard. Incidents/Injuries: NESCO received three reports of overheating resulting in smoke or fire. No injuries have been reported. Description: The recalled product includes a base with stackable trays to place food. The top of the unit houses the electronic control module. Model number FD-1020 and production date codes: 09E 0610; 09E 0624; and 09E 0903 are molded into the underside of the dehydrator's electronic control module. Sold at: National mass merchandisers and retailers and online at [...]and other websites from July 2009 to January 2011 for about $140. Manufactured in: China Remedy: Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled product and contact NESCO for instructions on how to receive a free electronic control module. Consumer Contact: For more information, contact NESCO at (800) 726-4457 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. CT Monday through Friday or visit the firm's website at [...]