Vacuum Sealers

[dale2242]

My old faithful $80 Food savers vacuum sealer finally gave up.
I am in the market for a new one and the choices are unlimited.
What do you recommend for a new one.
I don`t need top of the line by any means but would like to get a decent one.

[Omega]

I found a gamesaver machine on sale, it is a no frills machine but it saves me a bunch of bag material because it is all manual and you don't need to push a bunch in to trigger the auto feature my other machine has. It doesn't overheat either, at least it hasn't on me yet, and I do a few seals in a row.
https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fimages-na.ssl-images-amazon.com%2Fimages%2FI%2F71tVMSuwnPL.jpg&fhttps://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fimages-na.ssl-images-amazon.com%2Fimages%2FI%2F71tVMSuwnPL.jpg

The new ones are almost $200, but I think they also have a better vacuum, at least they advertise it so.
https://smile.amazon.com/FoodSaver-GameSaver-Wingman-Vacuum-Sealer/dp/B01N76D1N7 (https://smile.amazon.com/FoodSaver-GameSaver-Wingman-Vacuum-Sealer/dp/B01N76D1N7/ref=sr_1_5?crid=1Q154F2IJS5C4&keywords=gamesaver&qid=1644337972&sprefix=gamesaver%2Caps%2C374&sr=8-5)
https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fi.ebayimg.com%2Fimages%2Fg%2FXI0A AOSwRl1eNFoU%2Fs-l640.jpg

[MaryB]

I do a LOT of vacuum sealing when garden harvest starts, plus bulk meat packaging... I was killing a Foodsaver in 9 months or less, vacuum pumps usually burned up or the seal bars went and parts availability is pretty much zero now.

So I went to a chamber style sealer. Yes they are expensive! Draws double the vacuum of the best Foodsaver, I can seal cold liquids like soup or stew... And bags are around 5 cents versus 25 cents for a Foodaver bag! And it is user repairable, mine came with a spare lid gasket and seal bar, the vacuum pump can be repaired or replaced by the owner...

Downside is it is 3 times the price of a Foodsaver. But it is light commercial grade so is going to last MANY years of hard use!

https://avidarmor.com/avid-armor-ultra-series-usv32-chamber-vacuum-sealer-system/ available from Amazon... and other retailers but you won't save much, might get some bags thrown in for free or cheap...

[gmsharps]

The cost of the vacu bags were a factor. Recently a lot of folks are making vacu bags that work on most machines. I found this site https://foodvacbags.com/ to be pretty reasonable. I personally like the rolls not only are they cheaper, but you can fit the size you need.

gmsharps

[wildwilly501]

I’ve had a Weston 2300 around 12 years.Went thru 5 or 6 Foodsavers,Black & Deckers and Rivals before it.Should have bought it sooner.But if I was buying now I’d get a chamber vacuum the prices are a lot lower than when I bought the Weston

[Winger Ed.]

After I'd worn out a couple of the bargain price ones way sooner than I thought they should die,
it dawned on me that these things might be like so many other things: It's a get what you pay for sort of deal.

[farmbif]

ive seen those chamber type with the lid work. fantastic stuff. if I was still growing acres of herbs I would definitely invest the money into one of those.
if you do a lot of packaging they are definitely worth a look.

[GhostHawk]

Our Nesco is 4 years old and still going strong. I apparently had a bad seal in a bag, it was not sucking down at all. So I ordered the same thing again.
Next day I tried it again with a new bag and it worked fine. Backup is stashed on the porch. It also reminded me it was time to stock up on bags.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07RKRK7FD/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
50 foot rolls, they seem to work with almost any machine. You can get an 8"x50 and a 11"x50 for 19$. Seems fairly reasonable for me. Although I sure there are cheaper out there.

[GhostHawk]

Foodvacbags was same price as Amazon for what appears to be the same bag.

[762 shooter]

I converted to chamber vacuums 3 years ago.

Will never be without one.

762

[Lloyd Smale]

Ive been using an lem for quite a few years. With these chamber vac is there a dispensor that allows you to put a roll of bulk in them and cut bags as you go or do you have to cut them with scissors or a razor knife. Not much interested unless they can dispense and cut bulk. I somtimes do up to a 100lbs of breakfast links or bratts and some days pack over a 100lbs of venison and cutting bags would just slow me down to much.

[dverna]

I went through two Food Savers. Bought a Weston Pro-1100 last year and so far do good. It comes with spare gasket and seal heater. It uses rolls that mount at the rear. The seal is twice as wide as the Foodsaver seal so more robust.

[Shawlerbrook]

Great advice above. I think the key takeaway is that the main factor is how much use the machine is going to get. For occasional use you can get away with the Foodsaver type but if you are going to process a lot of vegetables, meat, etc. go the chamber “ professional” grade .

[MaryB]

The game changer with the chamber sealer is liquids. I made a batch of spaghetti sauce a couple weeks ago, if I had to use freezer containers it would have taken twice the space as a bag laid flat so the sauce forms a layer. They stack well once frozen(I freeze them on a sheet tray to make sure they stay flat). After Xmas I made turkey wild rice soup(just ate the last of that!) and same, froze flat in bags.

When I have end of season tomatoes that are coming in spurts I use a quart bag and just halve them, drop in the bag, into the chamber sealer and when the bag seals it squishes them into a flat easy to store bag.

None of the above can be done with a Foodsaver under full vacuum. Sure you can pull a partial and hit seal quick as the liquid starts to head for the seal, be fast! You don't have a vacuum so storage life is a lot less.

And a Foodsaver draws about 15(cheap models)-20 inches(in the expensive models) of vacuum, chamber sealer draws 29. Less O2 longer the food life! A Foodsaver bagged steak will float when I drop it in water to thaw, a chamber sealed steak sinks.

[Lloyd Smale]

wow thats amazing if its true and not just advertising hype. A perfect vaccuum is like 29.5. Id think it would crush anything you put in it and it would destroy plastic bags.

[G W Wade]

wow thats amazing if its true and not just advertising hype. A perfect vaccuum is like 29.5. Id think it would crush anything you put in it and it would destroy plastic bags.

My son sent me a video of a chamber sealer they borrowed. They put 4 or 5 empty beer cans in the bag. A few seconds later it looked like moisture boiling out of the cans, BANG, they cans just crushed like a #15 boot attacked. Impressive looking GW

[MaryB]

wow thats amazing if its true and not just advertising hype. A perfect vaccuum is like 29.5. Id think it would crush anything you put in it and it would destroy plastic bags.

It does compress the food. It fluffs back up once air enters the bag. Like a steak or pork chop will flatten maybe 10%, I always let them come to room temp on a plate so they return to normal. Water can't compress(not easily anyway!) so anything that is high in H2O doesn't compress much, something like my Thanksgiving stuffing loses half its volume. Saves space in the freezer!

[M-Tecs]

My vacuum sealer is starting to act up. When it gets replaced, it will be with a chamber sealer. I used a buddies and I am sold. The bags are cheaper and the chamber sealers do a better job.

[Lloyd Smale]

My vacuum sealer is starting to act up. When it gets replaced, it will be with a chamber sealer. I used a buddies and I am sold. The bags are cheaper and the chamber sealers do a better job.

I used to get about 2 years out of a foodsaver. I stepped up to an lem and its been going strong for 7 years now.

[Fishman]

The game changer with the chamber sealer is liquids. I made a batch of spaghetti sauce a couple weeks ago, if I had to use freezer containers it would have taken twice the space as a bag laid flat so the sauce forms a layer. They stack well once frozen(I freeze them on a sheet tray to make sure they stay flat). After Xmas I made turkey wild rice soup(just ate the last of that!) and same, froze flat in bags.

When I have end of season tomatoes that are coming in spurts I use a quart bag and just halve them, drop in the bag, into the chamber sealer and when the bag seals it squishes them into a flat easy to store bag.

None of the above can be done with a Foodsaver under full vacuum. Sure you can pull a partial and hit seal quick as the liquid starts to head for the seal, be fast! You don't have a vacuum so storage life is a lot less.

And a Foodsaver draws about 15(cheap models)-20 inches(in the expensive models) of vacuum, chamber sealer draws 29. Less O2 longer the food life! A Foodsaver bagged steak will float when I drop it in water to thaw, a chamber sealed steak sinks.

Mary thanks for posting this info up. I checked out the website and they have a newer smaller version for a lower price that has an accessory port as an additional feature. The price for it is about twice what a good vacuum sealer would run, and the advantages are obvious. The bags are pre-made and way cheaper so with much use at all, one would start saving money pretty quickly and producing a superior product.

So thanks again.