Favorite Vacuum Sealer???

[Buff Hooligans]

PS Miss_Jayne, it's true, liberal use of lip products does enhance mind-reading capabilities.

 

[miss_jayne]

Quote:
i am glad to see the messages i am telepathically sending you are working.

going out to work in the coop...hope i don't get shavings and poop in my goop....

 

[CarolMinnesota]

I have an 8-inch Food Saver unit which has worked well for over 4 years now. This summer I found a package of lean burger in the bottom of the freezer that was four years old. It had no freezer burn on it and tasted just fine.

I have sealed 8-pound geese using the 11-inch rolls and sizing them to the bird. To seal an 11-inch bag in an 8-inch sealer, I seal the open end halfway WITHOUT VACUUM, then the other half without vacuum. Then I clip a triangle off one corner and vacuum seal the whole thing.

If I were to do it again, I would buy the 11-inch size sealer. It would save me a bit of time.

I have tried the cheaper "universal" brand bags that are supposed to work in all sealers, but have found them to be very stiff and do not mold well around poultry shapes. They are just fine for burger though.

I have also tried that Glad green wrap stuff that is supposed to stick to itself and form an airless seal. Total waste of money!

I dehydrate lots of veges and use the Food Saver to seal them in canning jars. It works very well for that also.

Carol in Minnesota

 

[adoptedbyachicken]

Don't buy the cheep bags. A girlfriend of mine did, put a Costco load of meat in the freezer (the bags I think were from Walmart) and in about 4 months found that some of the bags, if they got bent at all in the way they were packed in the freezer, had shattered. How is it that a bag for the purpose can be brittle in cold temperature?

She is happy with the sealer though, and got it at Walmart, but these bags were not the name brand of the sealer like she got previously, they were a no-name.

 

[PurpleChicken]

Quote:
i am glad to see the messages i am telepathically sending you are working.

going out to work in the coop...hope i don't get shavings and poop in my goop....

I don't get it.

No fair!!! You women are using your superior abilities to go over the
head of us dumb guys.

 

[NurseNettie]

Quote:
I've got a seal a meal and a foodsaver. I like both, but love the foodsaver. The foodsaver has a much better suction system-- has a "canal" where it suctions air from the entire bag, not just one little spot. I've never had any problems with it.

Just remember-- if you're doing a lot at once, you'll have to take a break after 4 or 5 bags, and let it cool done- it won't work when it gets too hot.

All that being said--- I also have a HandiVac "system"-- Just the hand held vac and the special HandiVac bags you buy (they're like ziplocs, but have a little hole you suck air out of). There are 2 brands out with a hand held unit-- I use the handivac-- it runs on batteries-- the other one is just a pump suction with no batteries- I've never tried that one.

I use the HandiVac more than anything else, because It's much easier to pull out a box of bags, and the little hand held doo-hickey. Takes a bit of figuring out how much pressure to use, and exactly where to place the suction cup--but I have found absolutely no appreciable difference between their seals and bags than the foodsaver or seal a meal. So, that's another option for you.

 

[MandyH]

I have a Food Saver brand sealer. I LOVE it, it's simple to use but really does a good job. The only suggestions I have is to buy one with the built in cutter and one that holds your roll of bags also. My first one didn't and I was always having to find the roll and some dang scissors to cut with. The vacuum sealer bowls that you can buy will make fruits like strawberries last 3-4 weeks compared to one week in the strawberry container. Great investment all around.

 

[NurseNettie]

Quote:
i am glad to see the messages i am telepathically sending you are working.

going out to work in the coop...hope i don't get shavings and poop in my goop....

I don't get it.

No fair!!! You women are using your superior abilities to go over the
head of us dumb guys.

Don't worry-- I don't get it either and I'm a girl. I don't wear makeup of any kind tho-- and I think that's what they're referring to!

 

[AllChookUp]

"Us dumb guys" Just what are you inferring, PC?

 

[NC chicken man]

If you dont have a vacuum sealer you can get a two or two and a half lb ziplock bag and a 5 gallon bucket of water about 3/4 full and seal the bag most of the way shut then put the chicken or what ever is in your bag all the way in the water ,and the water will push most all of the air out.Almost as good as vacuum sealer.
Aaron