Nspeth, I have the Norwalk dehydrator, which is the original to the Excaliber (Norwalk sold their design to Excaliber YEARS ago.) It looks just like the 9 tray, only its so old, it doesn't have the thermostat. I LOVE IT. This thing was purchased in the mid 70's and still works great. The fan is at the back and evenly dries your items, unlike many that have a fan at the bottom or top. This gives you consistency and helps prevent spoilage. I like the 9 tray because when I do use it, I am usually drying huge amounts of produce that I buy on sale. We don't use it often, but when we do, it is fun.
The teflex sheets can be used over and over again for years.