vacumn sealers

[white eagle]

anybody use them?
Got any reviews and recommend a good one ?

[kingstrider]

I have a Food Saver model that I purchased after losing deer meat to freezer burn over the years. Can't remember the model offhand but it is a nice one and well worth the cost. My meat always keeps a long time when packed correctly and is much easier to use than any of my previous methods.

[Powder Burn]

+1 on the Food Saver. Use it for my fish filets.

[XDROB]

Ok, I'll bite. One for food sealing? If yes, then yes. How good do they work? Took some chicken out of freezer, made dinner, was throwing wrapper away and saw that had be sealed and frozen 3 1/2 years before the day we ate it. Found in bottom of freezer. Did not see or sense anything wrong, flavor was all there. Texture was no different than a new from the store piece of chicken.
Would I recommend that, No.
So I quess I have to say they work. Brand was Food Saver.

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[DerekP Houston]

I have the foodsaver mini, only difference is it uses only the 8" role size. Going on 8 years now I think, still runs like a champ. I also use the accessory port to seal my Mason jars.

[Boaz]

Like the rest ....food saver . We use it a LOT . Good deal !

[Meatpuppet]

I had several Food Savers, but they kept burning out when sealing up a dressed out deer. They were replaced under warranty but I grew tired of it breaking during the "processing party". I moved on to a LEM MaxVac and I have no regrets (although pricey, it has never failed).

http://www.lemproducts.com/product/maxvac-vacuum-sealer-new-improved/vacuum-sealers-bags

I am not a fan of the LEM factory bags. They are thick, but I would get punctures all the time once the meat was frozen and then lose the vacume. I have been using "Weston" brand bags of various sizes and I am happy. They seal up nicely and can go from freezer to simmering pot for sous vide cooking as they are BPA free and designed to handle high temps.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001BAE0A4/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00D2DPNBI/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[edler7]

I've had a food saver about 10 years. It works well on anything I have used it on. My wife puts up a couple flats of peaches every year, and they are as good in April as they were when we packed them. Just used it today to pack 2 chuck roasts I had coarse ground for chili meat.

In 10 years I have had to replace 1 gasket- a 2 minute job.

The pint sized bags seal 100 rounds of pistol ammo nicely.

[tomme boy]

Bags are $$$$$$$$$$$

[Omega]

I have a Foodsaver (http://www.foodsaver.com/vacuum-sealers/remanufactured-vacuum-sealers/the-foodsaver-v4445-2-in-1-vacuum-sealing-system--remanufactured/RT-FSFSSL4445.html?gclid=Cj0KEQiAx7XBBRCdyNOw6PLHrYAB EiQAJtyEQwj9MTUeZ3mbgmNYFBvIC5lHTMTtL3Zt8trdYu83iZ kaAkCT8P8HAQ&kwid=productads-adid^149966336093-device^t-plaid^262845367640-sku^RT@ADL4FSFSSL4445-adType^PLA), the only issue is that it uses too much bag material. But you can work around that once you get used to it. I have had venison frozen for years, 5 max so far, and it had no noticeable freezer burn or change in taste. I have used other brands, and they work ok, but for the price it's hard to beat foodsaver brand.

[paul h]

Depends on how much sealing you're going to do in a year or in a session. If you're going to be sealing 100's to over 1000 pounds of meat and fish a year, then it's worth investing in a Vacmaster VP215 chamber sealer. They cycle about twice as fast as a foodsaver, the bags are less expensive, you don't suck juices into the pump and ruin them and it's a buy once, cry once investment. You can also use them for vacuum canning using retort bags, but you still need a pressure canner.

After several years with a foodsaver I finally broke down and invested in a vacmaster a couple years back. Wished I hadn't waited so long.

[dragon813gt]

I've had a few Foodsavers. They eventually burn out. If your sealing a lot, relative, at once they need to periodically cool down. This is my biggest pet peeve w/ them. Seal three bags and let it cool down gets annoying rather quickly.

As mentioned you end up wasting a lot of bag material. This is intentional and causes to you buy bags more often. If you don't have enough bag material you run the risk of not being able to seal it. When sealed properly they work well and the bags aren't prone to puncturing.

My next one will be a chamber type sealer. I should have bought one years ago.

[snowwolfe]

I know I will get **** for this but foodsavers are junk. We went through 3 or 4 in 5 years. Plus the bags are expensive and the design of the units make you use more bag material than you have to.
4 years ago bought a Weston and its still running perfect. Bags are relatively inexpensive and you can seal right on the edge.
Pay once cry once.

[jmort]

For the average person, a Food Saver unit is just fine in my opinion. Heavy users will gravitate towards more expensive units. As average users, we are well pleased with our Food Saver. Makes sense.

[CastingFool]

We have two foodsavers, one large one and the mini. We also have the attachements to vacuum pack using canning jars. Great for stuff like dehydrated apples, onions, potato chips. even use it to vacuum pack bulk peanut butter we buy in 9 lb tubs. Just repack it in pint mason jars. We also use it to reseal spices that we buy in bulk. We just take out enough to fill a small jar, then reseal the bag.

[jrdztech]

+1 on the food saver. Works great.


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[MaryB]

Food Saver is okay, I fight mine after doing 4 bags because the sealing bar gets to hot and starts melting bags shut before they pull a vacuum. The pre-made bags from here are a lot cheaper than Food saver brand and work just as well http://www.goodmans.net/d/204/tilia-foodsaver-bags-rolls.htm sealed these tonight for the freezer! Buckboard bacon!

All were a nice pink color, it was my lighting graying out the sides...

http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/dd248/maryalanab/IMG_20161117_1947090631_zps3mzigluf.jpg

[crowbuster]

foodsaver as well. Many many deer have been done. Never had the cheap models. also found the food saver bags to be worth the extra dough. not the no names.

[44man]

The food saver I had would seal the bag too fast before all the air was out. No amount of adjustment corrected it.
I bought a Cabela's unit and it is better but I need to hold it shut or the lid will pop up.

[cheese1566]

I have an old food saver in the kitchen for long term storage of good meats. I also have a second hand one under the loading bench for long term storage of cleaned factory jacketed bullets.

Bags can be spendy so I don't use it for everything. I did find and off brand bag that works ok as well.

[Mica_Hiebert]

I have an older seal-a-meal... its junk... Im assuming the newer sealers work better

[44man]

I have an older seal-a-meal... its junk... Im assuming the newer sealers work better
You know mine might have been one of those. Vacuum pump was a ***.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

My neighbor was cleaning out his basement many years ago. I helped him, as he was throwing out a "Foodsaver", I asked what was wrong with it, he said nothing, we almost never use it, bags are expensive, it's gotta go. So I brought it home.

I've found that moisture on the bag, where it would need to seal cause problematic sealing...hitting it again, so to get a double seal helps. Keeping the bag dry, is the real answer, but isn't always possible. So, when I do fish, as I love salmon and buy it on sale once a year. I pre-freeze the salmon fillets, then seal'em frozen in a dry bag...they seal great that way. ...THEN I realized those salmon fillets come frozen in vac sealed bags to my Minnesota grocer ...so now, I just request them frozen "in the bag" when they have a sale.

[paul h]

If you're sealing fish and want to keep the slime and moisture off of the bag use a 2 liter bottle with the top and bottom cut off as a funnel. Slide the fillet(s) through the funnel and walla, no slime on the part of the bag that is being sealed.

There is a commercially available version

http://www.mikesweldingak.com/food-funnels

Kinda spendy, but it works slick.

I often have mass quantities of fish to vac pack in a session and don't have time to freeze before vac packing. It's usually an assembly line of filleting, vac packing and freezing.

[Springfield]

I have two FoodSaver sealers, one in the kitchen and one in the shop. i rarely seal more than 4 bags in a row so i haven't experienced the over heating but both have done hundreds of seals and still work fine. I don't buy bags, though, I buy rolls, so that I use only what I need.
http://www.bcuplastics.com/bags-packaging-supplies/channel-bags.html

[Moonie]

I cook Sous Vide and I use a food saver a lot, works great. I've found that if you fold down the top of the bag it will keep that area dry and will seal better.

[wingspar]

I’ve watched a bunch of videos on the Foodsaver and they all show several inches between the contents and the seal. Is this necessary? Why not seal closer to the contents?

[paul h]

If you don't leave a few inches between the contents and the seal the bag will bunch up as it sucks down, create folds and it won't seal.

[wingspar]

If you don't leave a few inches between the contents and the seal the bag will bunch up as it sucks down, create folds and it won't seal.

Thank you. I used a friends Foodsaver once a long time ago, and I don’t remember that. Seems like a waste, but it does give one a place to write the contents weight and date.

[wingspar]

Have not seen anyone mention the Cabela’s vacuum sealer yet, or did I miss that?

[jmort]

^^^
You missed it Post #19

[wingspar]

^^^
You missed it Post #19

I should never post from memory. Never! I remember reading that, but dismissed it cause the lid needed to be held down by hand.

[Boaz]

I quit buying the rolls to 'make' bags . Easier and no difference in price to buy ready to fill bags . Weston bags are good , example one quart bag is 22 cents , had good luck with em .

http://www.ebay.com/itm/100-Weston-8X12-QUART-Food-Storage-Vacuum-Sealer-Bags-100-Bags-FOOD-SAVER-/380626602699?hash=item589f1d0acb:g:uMgAAOSwr7ZW4KY 2

[white eagle]

my wife bought a food saver vacuum sealer
we used it today on deer and had no issues other than
getting used to using it
we used both bags and roll, bags are easier but roll get
exact size you need,makes no diff to me either will do

[Lloyd Smale]

I shoot between 20 and 50 deer a year and got tired of replacing the cheap ones. I went with one of these 5 years ago and it still works as good as new and had packed a couple tons of meat by now. http://www.lemproducts.com/product/maxvac-vacuum-sealer-new-improved/vacuum-sealers-bags

[Elkins45]

I’ve watched a bunch of videos on the Foodsaver and they all show several inches between the contents and the seal. Is this necessary? Why not seal closer to the contents?

Those bags are reusable if you wash them out, but you lose about an inch every time you melt them shut. If you just barely fit a bag to something of a known size (like 1/2 of a tenderloin) then it will be too short to use for the same purpose next year. I always make my bags longer so I can get a couple of extra uses out of them and then write the contents and year on the part that gets cut off when they are opened.

I'm on my second Food Saver. The first lasted about 15 years. I do 2-3 deer a year so it serves my needs well. I've eaten deer that has been in the freezer for 5 years with no loss of flavor or freezer burn. Imagine what a 5 year old piece of meat in freezer paper would be like :(

I wrapped one in freezer paper this week because I'm giving it away to someone and likely wouldn't get my bags back. That made me appreciate the Food Saver all over again. Interestingly, the closest Walmart didn't even have freezer paper in stock.


I shoot between 20 and 50 deer a year

How many freezers do you own?

[Omega]

I’ve watched a bunch of videos on the Foodsaver and they all show several inches between the contents and the seal. Is this necessary? Why not seal closer to the contents?On mine I seal as close to the bottom as I can, on the top, depending or what unit you have, it needs to be inserted deep enough to start the vacuum so it to requires at least an inch above the seal. That is where my cheaper sealer has an edge, the cover starts the process so you can seal where you want, but the pump is better on the foodsaver. But once you get to the top seal, you already cut the bag so as long a you can get it to start it doesn't make a difference where it seals.

[wingspar]

Elkins45 & Omega... Thanks for the replies. My other half has been using a food saver for years with zero problems. I don’t really have a need for one, but threads like this have me wanting. It would be nice to vacuum seal a few thousand rounds of ammo I have so I could get it out of the house and off to a building that has no insulation and is about 1500 feet from the Pacific ocean, get some space back in my house. Vacuum sealing the ammo would be the only safe way to store ammo in that building. Cold damp salt air would otherwise ruin the ammo.

[rondog]

I shoot between 20 and 50 deer a year and got tired of replacing the cheap ones. I went with one of these 5 years ago and it still works as good as new and had packed a couple tons of meat by now. http://www.lemproducts.com/product/maxvac-vacuum-sealer-new-improved/vacuum-sealers-bags

Whaaaaat??? How the he!! do you shoot 20-50 deer a year, legally? Not to mention processing that many? And just how many people do you have to feed???

Color me ASTOUNDED! I've killed exactly TWO deer in my life, and IMO processing a deer myself is a helluva lot of work. Going again in December though.....

[Rick Hodges]

Whaaaaat??? How the he!! do you shoot 20-50 deer a year, legally? Not to mention processing that many? And just how many people do you have to feed???

Color me ASTOUNDED! I've killed exactly TWO deer in my life, and IMO processing a deer myself is a helluva lot of work. Going again in December though.....

Let me take a stab at this. Michigan gives crop damage permits to area farmers who are experiencing problems ...One can easily and legally kill that many deer.

[dragon813gt]

Let me take a stab at this. Michigan gives crop damage permits to area farmers who are experiencing problems ...One can easily and legally kill that many deer.

Beat me to it. I don't live in MI but crop damage permits are normal. In PA they are Red Tags. The one orchard by me was issued 80 this year. Another local farmer was issued 20. Every farmer applies for them yearly. Even w/ the culling they still lose some crops to damage.

[Elkins45]

Where I live in KY (zone 1) there is no limit on the number of antlerless deer you can take. One antlered deer is the limit statewide, but shoot as many does as you want. 50 does seem like a lot, which is why I asked how many freezers Lloyd has, but if you just shoot them and then drop the carcass off at someone's house that's easy. Processing and storing 50 deer is another thing entirely. Still, 50 smallish deer completely deboned probably wouldn't take up all that much room. I'm always amazed how little space a deer takes up when you get rid of all the extra parts.

[rondog]

Well, damn..... Anybody need any help? A "hired gun"?

[MaryB]

Could drop off a couple at my house...

I called the sheriff and got put on the phone list for car hit deer in my area. They go down the list, you get one deer. Unless they run out of names then they start again at the top. Car deer collisions are COMMON here.

Next year I plan on crossbow hunting. Being disabled I can get a permit for it during archery season. Working on a design for a power cart to walk a deer out of the woods to my truck.... so I can solo hunt.

[white eagle]

Whaaaaat??? How the he!! do you shoot 20-50 deer a year, legally? Not to mention processing that many? And just how many people do you have to feed???

Color me ASTOUNDED! I've killed exactly TWO deer in my life, and IMO processing a deer myself is a helluva lot of work. Going again in December though.....

I have shot that many as well
yes its called crop damage and its perfectly legal
there is also a designated shooter for a specific property
here where I reside,but the property has to be in the CWD
eradication area so lots of deer can be had by a single hunter

[Down South]

Getting back on topic. I've been in the market for a new vacuum sealer. My old Food Saver had the handle where you could place the bag where you wanted it then close it. I loved it. It finally went south as most Food Saver brands do and I purchased a new one, "Food Saver". It doesn't have the handle, you stick the bag in and it senses the bag when it is inserted about 1-1/2" further than you actually need it. It does waste a lot of bag material and I hate it.

After reading some of the replies that actually dealt with vacuum sealers instead of hunting deer and how many we can actually legally kill, I came across some knowledge that I had ran across before but had forgot.
The LEM. I Need something that will work and will last. I do kill several deer a year and a vacuum sealer is a must. Plus, I vacuum seal all kinds of stuff. So, I went to Google and started doing the research all over again. Seems that LEM is the real deal so I broke down and ordered one. I ordered the LEM MAXVAC 1088A. They still had their Black Friday sale going on so I got a better deal.

Now, A topic changer for many of you:
We have two lap dogs. My wife has always bought her special high brand dog food in 5-8 lb bags. I see the same stuff at Sam's in 40-50 lb bags for a much better price per lb. I asked her why we don't buy the big bags of dog food at Sam's? She tells me it won't stay fresh and will go stale before we use it all. The light bulb goes on in my head. Heck, I'll buy the big bag and vacuum seal it in 5 lb bags. That's what I've been doing and it works like a charm, plus I'm not burdened all the time to have to stop off at a store and buy a bag of dog food all the time......... Just a thought.

Now, To all of you guys that Posted to the OP, Thanks for all the info. Plus to let you know, You just cost me several hundred dollars today so you owe me, Ha.............

[Lloyd Smale]

I have 3 freezers. one freezer will hold MANY boned out deer. Figure you get between 30 and 40 lbs of meat at most off a deer. Its not unless we have a few years like we did 5 years ago that we were shooting near a 100 that you even need 3. Keep in mind too that that meat is split between two of us and we do give some away to charitys.
Those bags are reusable if you wash them out, but you lose about an inch every time you melt them shut. If you just barely fit a bag to something of a known size (like 1/2 of a tenderloin) then it will be too short to use for the same purpose next year. I always make my bags longer so I can get a couple of extra uses out of them and then write the contents and year on the part that gets cut off when they are opened.

I'm on my second Food Saver. The first lasted about 15 years. I do 2-3 deer a year so it serves my needs well. I've eaten deer that has been in the freezer for 5 years with no loss of flavor or freezer burn. Imagine what a 5 year old piece of meat in freezer paper would be like :(

I wrapped one in freezer paper this week because I'm giving it away to someone and likely wouldn't get my bags back. That made me appreciate the Food Saver all over again. Interestingly, the closest Walmart didn't even have freezer paper in stock.



How many freezers do you own?

[Lloyd Smale]

we don't shoot 50 a night. Most times one or two and rarely 3 or 4. All are cut up the next day before we leave to shoot more. my buddy has a worse back then mine so I will do the first two and after that he does half of them.
Where I live in KY (zone 1) there is no limit on the number of antlerless deer you can take. One antlered deer is the limit statewide, but shoot as many does as you want. 50 does seem like a lot, which is why I asked how many freezers Lloyd has, but if you just shoot them and then drop the carcass off at someone's house that's easy. Processing and storing 50 deer is another thing entirely. Still, 50 smallish deer completely deboned probably wouldn't take up all that much room. I'm always amazed how little space a deer takes up when you get rid of all the extra parts.

[Lloyd Smale]

yes its crop damage deer shooting. The farms here are allowed to have a number of shooters dictated by how many acres they farm. We have two right now but can have 3. Surprisingly its tough to find someone who is deditcated enough to go 4 or 5 times a week. Most guys weve thought would work out shoot 4 or 5 deer and then loose interest either because they have enough venison or find out how much work it is. On a bad year you can actually loose money. It cost us 25 bucks a night in gas to go back and forth so if we get skunked two or three days in a row it adds up. We figure we have to at least get one deer every other night or were loosing money. Factor in wear and tear on the vehicles and the fact we have hit deer 6 times driving back and forth and not to many want to get up at 5 in the morning and start butchering deer so they can leave again at 3pm and get home at 10pm take a shower crawl in bed and start all over 5am the next day.
I have shot that many as well
yes its called crop damage and its perfectly legal
there is also a designated shooter for a specific property
here where I reside,but the property has to be in the CWD
eradication area so lots of deer can be had by a single hunter

[MaryB]

Small deer! Last doe I shot I ended with 80 pounds of meat...

[Lloyd Smale]

wow that's either a HUGE doe or you leave bone in your cuts. heres a article by butcher packer that shows how much meat you should yield from a deer and this is a professional butcher http://www.butcher-packer.com/index.php?main_page=document_general_info&products_id=331 that would put your doe at about a 190lbs. A VERY rare doe up here and our deer usually run bigger then they do down farther south. Rule of thumb I was taught by the old timers at camp was boned and trimmed meat yield=40% of gutted weight of the deer. It works out supprisingly close give or take 5 lbs. Typical doe we shoot goes 90-120lbs field dressed and meat yield is 35-45lbs. Like ive said these numbers come from butchering ALOT of deer. Ive never shot a doe that even came close to 80lbs of meat. Ive shot a couple huge bucks that did but they were around 200lbs dressed.
Small deer! Last doe I shot I ended with 80 pounds of meat...

[rondog]

To ease the butthurt about straying off topic (heaven forbid!), I use a Food Saver from Costco. Works OK, ain't broke yet, but wouldn't mind a better one. The LEM sounds like the winner, if/when my FS goes tango uniform, that'll probably be its replacement.

[jonas302]

I love vacuum sealers you can buy better bags for cheaper than food saver brand, rolls that you cut to size tend not to be the best deal Foodsavers are low quality but also quite affordable if your doing a lot run 2 or 3 while they cool off you can get one for $10 used if your looking around I always wanted a better one but these haven't quit yet
I sealed up some spare gun barrels last night wrapped in vci paper and vacuum sealed no longer have to worry about rust. Make sure to look into the jar lid sealers too wonderful for sealing mason jars of dry goods

[Down South]

Sorry about the off topic comments, I should have typed them in purple I guess because I wasn't trying to stir up a stink... I do have a very dry sense of humor and have been told so many times.

I'm hoping Food Saver bags will work with the LEM. I read somewhere they didn't work as well but I'll see. Actually, I purchase commercial grade rolls but they look just like Food Saver to me just a bit thicker.

Lloyd, you are correct about the average size deer especially does but I see some that would go close to 190 lbs in my neck of the woods. "Swamp Deer" I killed one buck that weighed in at 242 lbs. My buddy killed one the same day that weighed in around 230 lbs. But both of those were not dressed when we weighed them.

Anywho, the Food Savers of old served me pretty well. They lasted long enough that I figure that I got my money out of them.
I just literally hate the newer models that doesn't have the mouth or lid raise so you can position the bag where you want it.
I have a brand new Food Saver at my house and I have my doubts about it and it does waste bag material.

[MaryB]

Field dressed at 185 pounds... we get big corn fed deer here... plus the occasional mule deer mix that gets really huge. I am only 65 miles from SD on the MN prairie. Last buck a friend got went 225 field dressed. Neither weights included the heart and liver that we keep. Deer heart is good eating! Liver I don't like but friends loved it.


wow that's either a HUGE doe or you leave bone in your cuts. heres a article by butcher packer that shows how much meat you should yield from a deer and this is a professional butcher http://www.butcher-packer.com/index.php?main_page=document_general_info&products_id=331 that would put your doe at about a 190lbs. A VERY rare doe up here and our deer usually run bigger then they do down farther south. Rule of thumb I was taught by the old timers at camp was boned and trimmed meat yield=40% of gutted weight of the deer. It works out supprisingly close give or take 5 lbs. Typical doe we shoot goes 90-120lbs field dressed and meat yield is 35-45lbs. Like ive said these numbers come from butchering ALOT of deer. Ive never shot a doe that even came close to 80lbs of meat. Ive shot a couple huge bucks that did but they were around 200lbs dressed.

[Lloyd Smale]

That's one big doe! As to deer heart I don't eat internals but dad loves heart and he also will keep any liver out of a deer a 100lbs of or less. No livers out of the big ones though. I do use my hearts though. I grind them up with the burger and sasauge meat.
Field dressed at 185 pounds... we get big corn fed deer here... plus the occasional mule deer mix that gets really huge. I am only 65 miles from SD on the MN prairie. Last buck a friend got went 225 field dressed. Neither weights included the heart and liver that we keep. Deer heart is good eating! Liver I don't like but friends loved it.

[Tenbender]

FoodSaver

[MaryB]

Thin slice deer heart into fingers, pound with a mallet to tenderize, dredge in seasoned flour and fry in butter or bacon fat. Make a white pepper gravy with the pan drippings for dipping. Good eats!

[Baja_Traveler]

Being in San Diego we do more fish than game - and when the boat gets back to the dock with 300+ pounds of tuna, a cheap vacuum sealer will not do. The problem is not that they don't give a nice seal - its cycle time. After about the 10-12th bag the seal bar will over heat and a long wait is needed for it to cool down. Thats why the standard sealer for those here is the Vacmaster VP215 chamber unit. It can go all day without stopping, and as a side benefit will vacuum seal liquids in pouches. A chamber vacuum will also seal metalized retort bags for pressure canning that cost 1/10th of what Foodsaver bags cost (think of the tuna that comes in the pouches at the grocery store).

[MaryB]

I fold 8 wet paper towels and toss them in the freezer, when the seal bar gets to hot pull one out and lay it on the bar and close the lid on it. In 30 seconds you are back to work with the foodsaver. Make them to fit the bar.