3D Plans - Solar Food Dehydrator with Rocket Boost

Do these plans include how to build the rocket part?? I need a lego-like schematic that shows, course by course, if the bricks are on which side, and flush or not flush with surrounding bricks. I've bought other resources that do not show this. If these plans have it, I would totally buy them!

Rebekah Harmon wrote:Do these plans include how to build the rocket part?? I need a lego-like schematic that shows, course by course, if the bricks are on which side, and flush or not flush with surrounding bricks. I've bought other resources that do not show this. If these plans have it, I would totally buy them!

Hi Rebekah, the plans include a step by step guide including the rockety build. It showcases all the parts of the rocket build with measurements and various angles of visualization and details zooms but not to the extend of brick by brick or nail by nail.

I am very curious: what inspired the design of this dehydrator model?  In what circumstances or environments is it intended to be used?  At first glance, it seems counter-intuitive to me.  I understand the basic design of the solar dehydrator, but what is the benefit of adding a rocket... stove? heater?  Seems like there would be great potential to end up cooking what you are trying to dehydrate.

Would love it if someone could provide a quick breakdown of the concept.  Thnx!

Matthew Nistico wrote:I am very curious: what inspired the design of this dehydrator model?  In what circumstances or environments is it intended to be used?  At first glance, it seems counter-intuitive to me.  I understand the basic design of the solar dehydrator, but what is the benefit of adding a rocket... stove? heater?  Seems like there would be great potential to end up cooking what you are trying to dehydrate.

Would love it if someone could provide a quick breakdown of the concept.  Thnx!

Hi  Matthew,

The rocket stove is separated from the dehydration chamber, its function is to heat air and stimulate airflow that dries the food, the food is separate from the heating chamber and will not get cooked. A suction effect is also created by the bell at the top chamber, also powered by the rocket stove,  optimizing the design.

This contraption can work during times of the year when the sun is not as available or during cloudy days and extend its functionality.

Paul Wheaton and Uncle Mud discuss this in detail in the movie, and even more so in the extended full event.

I guess I can never see a plan for something and just see what's there. There's always the what else would this work for question. I'm wondering, could a similar design, without the trays by used to keep a well above freezing over the winter in a cold northeastern Wisconsin winter? Assuming of course that you kept the rocket heater fires burning. I would add insulation but I like the idea of the augmented passive air flow.

This looks incredibly useful and like a great idea, but I'm not currently at a place where I need it or actually have the free cashflow to throw the money at these plans right now vs something else. Is there an easy way to flag this thread as one I want to remember for later?

John Warren wrote:This looks incredibly useful and like a great idea, but I'm not currently at a place where I need it or actually have the free cashflow to throw the money at these plans right now vs something else. Is there an easy way to flag this thread as one I want to remember for later?

I don't know if there's a fancy Permies way but you could copy the URL and put it in someplace you keep like a spreadsheet or notes and/or make an event in your calendar app with notifications. A very useful feature of Gmail if you use that is the Snooze function. Email yourself and when it pops up you can Snooze it to the date you'd like to be reminded of the thread.

John Warren wrote:This looks incredibly useful and like a great idea, but I'm not currently at a place where I need it or actually have the free cashflow to throw the money at these plans right now vs something else. Is there an easy way to flag this thread as one I want to remember for later?

Hi John! You can bookmark this page by pressing the bookmark topic at the top left.

Then you can find your bookmark under your profile icon in

My bookmarks and watches

Here is a pic of the button

what about just using the browser bookmark function?

Yes, please!

questions that a new carpenter might have when trying to read these plans (reposting these from the thread I started):

It says the "roof" part of the frame is 85", but that would make the glass side be pretty much vertical.  In laying it out with a 60 degree angle for the glass front, it looks closer to 40".  Is the 85 supposed to be overhang for the roof so you can store wood there? ("You put your wood in there, man.")?  


Also, it seems that the frame dimensions are including the width of the wood, but it's not clear to a newby if that's the case.  121 1/2" for the front--is that a 10' piece of wood plus the 1 1/2" of the 2x?  is that piece of 2x supposed to be horizontal rather than vertical?  These are the things a novice carpenter wonders.  Thanks, team!

interested   please inform

Robert Chenier wrote:interested   please inform

Hello Robert!

Welcome to the forum!  

Rocket Technology is a safe way to burn wood and store the heat.  This allows us to keep a home, or this case a food dehydrator, evenly warm with very little wood.


This design is a step by step set of plans to build your own non electric food dehydrator.  When the sun is shining, warm dry air circulates through the food chamber.  On cloudy days or at night, you can start a small fire in the burn chamber.   The exhaust from the fire goes through the silver tubes you see in the animation above.   Heat from the fire moves through the system the same way the heat from the sun does.  There is no smoke or wood gas in contact with your food.  


The rocket technology is a very clean burning system.  When the fire is running you will see only heat waves exiting the stove pipe.  There is no smoke.

check out how the rocket assist solar food dehydrator compares to the solar food dehydrator without assist

We have an idea to make an eBook called something like "Permaculture bits and bobs".  Each page would feature a card and we would add a bunch more info.  

So here is the card for the solar food dehydrator with rocket assist.  For the page for this card ...




  - should we add five or six more points?

  - maybe expand on some of the points already made?

Ideas?  Words?  Prose?  

link to the kickstarter

i should find the script from this!

Paul, I love the card!  Since I am most likely ADD, I would like the bottom photo and line stating that both sun and rocket can run the system to be at the top, more in order with What, why, how, when.  Maybe that only makes sense to me.  I'd like the card to be able to stand alone, so if the reader has no knowledge of what a "rocket" is, maybe add rocket stove/heater/chamber or describe it or show sticks going into the fire box, or something?  Very cool idea and graphics though! For me, I will memorize up to 4 or 5 things from each card so more info is not needed, just putting the info in order would help.  Just a thought.  Thanks!  

Re' Burton wrote:Paul, I love the card!  ...What, why, how, when.  Maybe that only makes sense to me.  I'd like the card to be able to stand alone, so if the reader has no knowledge of what a "rocket" is, maybe add rocket stove/heater/chamber or describe it or show sticks going into the fire box, or something?  Very cool idea and graphics though!  ... Thanks!  

I'd like to see more information on the car too but the type can't be so small that it can't be read conveniently, so I would ask you to consider bullet points rather than trying to write out full sentences. Thanks!

Some thoughts for the slightly larger eBook version:

True 24/7 food preservation independence! (eliminating reliance on electrical grid and expensive electric dehydrators - guaranteed harvest preservation no matter the time or weather)

From a response above: Clean Burning Technology! The heat channeled into the dehydrator is clean and smokeless; the RMH wood exhaust (which is routed away) is virtually pollution-free making this powered by truly 'green' heat sources.

The thermal mass in this guy is a Heat Battery! It helps bridge the gap between sun and fire energy sources; by absorbing solar heat during the day and wood heat from a brief evening or early morning burn, heat is slowly released to maintain stable drying temperatures throughout the cool hours.

Now...we get someone to monster garage a solar panel to power a fan & thermostat that kicks on when the temperature goes over 140 degrees...and we get to say we're maximizing the nutrient and enzyme content of our goodies too!

I echo the benefit of including a little more information about the rocket part.  If I didn’t know anything about it, seeing the picture and reading that it is (may be) fueled by wood, I would probably imagine fireplace wood or woodburning stove wood. Pretty big pieces that have to be tended, and added to.  So something more about the characteristics of “the wood” and how easy it is to get it (you don’t need a woodshed) and how little tending is necessary —- all the stuff that makes the system economical and efficient in terms of time, effort, $$, and environmental protection.