VACUM SEALER MACHINE

[jps]

Would like some recommendation on a sealer

[Leaky]

Just last week I picked up a new FoodSaver Model 4980 at Costco.  Regular priced @‌149.00, they had it marked down to $119.  It's an automatic, so all you do is slide the bag in and the machine just starts working.  I've only used it a few times and so far so good.  Amazon has them listed right now @‌ $159.00 -you can check it out there.  Very nice looking Stainless as well.

[delcecchi]

I notice while reading a book on Sous Vide cooking, that the author recommended a machine that uses a pressure chamber.  Allegedly it lets you package stuff with more liquid than the vacuum pump type. 

Anyone ever use one of those?  They seem to be more expensive than the vacuum ones. 

[Getanet]

I notice while reading a book on Sous Vide cooking, that the author recommended a machine that uses a pressure chamber.  Allegedly it lets you package stuff with more liquid than the vacuum pump type. 

Anyone ever use one of those?  They seem to be more expensive than the vacuum ones. 

I have not used one with a pressure chamber, but I have an older Food Saver brand sealer and I can attest to the fact that liquid is a problem. I basically have to partially freeze everything before trying to seal it, otherwise it starts pulling the juices out of the meat, leaving it between the two plastic layers. Once I freeze it, the juices crystallize and ruins the air tight seal.  Basically I'm left with what looks like a zip lock bag that's sealed on both ends.

It's not a huge problem to have, but it does make the vacuum sealer process take a lot longer.  I'll buy a 6 lb tray of hamburger at Costco, separate into 1 lb chunks and put them in the bag. Then I have to put those in the freezer for about 2 hours before I can attempt to vacuum seal them without it pulling the juice out of the meat.

[eyeguy 54]

quart size bags on amazon are working great for me if you need bags.  great deal on them.  I have cut some in half as pint size also and dandy.  I like them better than food saver

[ThunderLund78]

I've had the same experience with the vacuum pump not sealing properly with liquids - if you can't afford the pressure chamber model or it's not suited for your application, one hack-solve I've found with my vac-sealer is to take a piece of paper towel and cut or rip it so it's roughly as long as the bag is wide, fold it over a couple of times so it's about 1/2" - 1" wide and place it in the bag equal distance between the food and the top of the bag. When the vac pulls the air out, virtually all the liquid will be absorbed by the towel (or it at least creates a barrier) and the bag will seal properly.

Downside: You go through a little more bag material if you're doing custom bags, or you might not be able to fit as much food in a pre-sized bag in order to make room for the towel.  Also it takes a little longer, overall.

Upside: it works MOST of the time

[fivebucks]

Chamber sealers are far and away much better than suction machines but you cannot touch them for close to $2000.  If I lived in AK and sealed lots of fish I would have one as you don't have to worry about the machine overheating the sealing bar and they work great.  Probably for most of us here a suction machine works fine for the limited sealing we do.  My old machine from 25 years ago was an old Foodsaver still made by an Italian company named Flaem I think.  This machine is still working but I wanted an upgrade so I finally found one still made by this Italian company and the only place that has them is a place in Anchorage.  They run $350 so not cheap but they are good.  As with any suction machine if you run it continuously your seal element will overheat and you will have to shut it down for 20 minutes or so.  To overcome the liquid I freeze items on cookie sheets and then seal the frozen item - works great.  I can also reduce the suction on my machine or hit the seal but once the fluid is about to reach the sealer.  Either that or I turn up the heat on my seal element to account for the liquid.

[Getanet]

I've had the same experience with the vacuum pump not sealing properly with liquids - if you can't afford the pressure chamber model or it's not suited for your application, one hack-solve I've found with my vac-sealer is to take a piece of paper towel and cut or rip it so it's roughly as long as the bag is wide, fold it over a couple of times so it's about 1/2" - 1" wide and place it in the bag equal distance between the food and the top of the bag. When the vac pulls the air out, virtually all the liquid will be absorbed by the towel (or it at least creates a barrier) and the bag will seal properly.

Downside: You go through a little more bag material if you're doing custom bags, or you might not be able to fit as much food in a pre-sized bag in order to make room for the towel.  Also it takes a little longer, overall.

Upside: it works MOST of the time

I've heard of that technique but haven't tried it. The other thing I've thought about trying, but haven't gotten around to, is wrapping the meat in Saran wrap first, then putting it in the bag to seal. I would think that would trap a lot of juices from seeping out. 

Back to the original OP's question, I know the Food Saver brand has a model called the GameSaver.  I don't know if that's just a fancy name to get outdoor enthusiasts to spend extra money on vacuum sealer, but it might be worth looking into (I think it's made a little wider to accommodate larger fish fillets or chunks of meat).

And to what others have said, Amazon is the place to go for bags.  Way cheaper than anywhere in the store. I remember when Ron Popeil had his vacuum saver infomercials and talked about all the money a family can save when buying in bulk.  That's technically true, but the cost of those bags can eliminate any savings you might have had in a hurry!

[castmaster]

I would recommend the Cabelas Professional series vacuum sealers. We burned out several of the foodsaver brand, including the game saver model. They just dont seem to hold up as well. Going on 4 years with the one from Cabelas, and still works like new.

Cabelas also seems to have some decent prices on Chamber models, but still a lot more $$ than a vacuum model.

[rustysetter]

I would recommend the Cabelas Professional series vacuum sealers. We burned out several of the foodsaver brand, including the game saver model. They just dont seem to hold up as well. Going on 4 years with the one from Cabelas, and still works like new.

Cabelas also seems to have some decent prices on Chamber models, but still a lot more $$ than a vacuum model.

I have had the same experience with this brand, very happy with it after 4 years as well.

[Dusty]

I have had 2 food saver machines over the past 15 years, the last being a game saver model I have used for the last 6. One trick I use is to wrap my moist items in food wrap prior to sealing. It will keep the juice or blood from going into the sealing area. I do this on all my venison and fish. Seldom have a problem not sealing properly. The game saver also has a moist  setting feature. I have found that reusing bags sometimes causes the bags not to seal properly.  So if I do things like Venison, that I know I will keep frozen a while, I use unused bags.

Edited December 7, 2015 by Dusty
add a sentence

[pikestabber]

One trick I use is to wrap my moist items in food wrap prior to sealing...

 

This is my preferred method, too. I use Glad Press n Seal as it makes  a pretty airtight barrier around fish fillets, then into the vacuum bag for a seal. I find this double protection is great for preserving the quality of things like fish and venny, and it eliminates the problem of pulling liquid out which ruins the seal. I can follow someone's inevitable comments up by saying "no, it doesn't defeat the purpose of vacuum sealing," and "no, I don't mind spending 5 more cents or 10 more seconds to make sure my food is properly preserved."

[Lip_Ripper Guy]

Just went through this dilemma last night after burning out my 2nd Food Saver in a very short time, and about the 4th one total.  

The chamber sealers are sweet, no doubt.  For a good model, they run about $700-800 and can go as high as you dream.  The savings on bags alone will allow them to pay for themselves in a 3-5 year period.  We're talking $.04-.08 for bags that would run $.50-.75 for the Food Saver.  At 200-250 bags/year, the machine is paid for in about 3 years.

I didn't buy the chamber sealer, this time.  I will eventually, and maybe within the next year.  The reason for this is that they have a maximum chamber/bag size, 10"x15" in my case.  That will work for about 95% of my sealing needs.  The 5% is won't work for are some of the things I consider really important like sealing entire quarters of an animal, all the leftover trimmings until I can get enough to do a batch of sausage, various clothes, bulk batches of ammo I reload, flexibility to take along on hunting/fishing trips (chamber sealers are about 80 pounds or more), etc.  So I considered a regular vacuum sealer a necessity, in my case.

I went with the Vacmaster Pro 350.  It was between that and the Weston Pro 2300.  The main difference being 12" sealing bar vs 16" sealing bar, and about $150.  My Food Savers all had the 12" sealing bar, and I couldn't recall wanting anything bigger, so I saved the $150.

One trick I've found for sealing wet items is to throw them in the freezer for a bit.  Sometimes 15 mins is all they need to freeze the surface.  No problems with sucking out moisture this way.       

  

[Boar]

one thing i I do with my entire meat on bone quarters, I get a box of heavy duty glad industrial garbage bags, I cut them down to size, then I take my shop vac and insert the hose about 4 inches into the bag and secure the bage to the hose with a zip tie, then suck all the air out and at the same time I remove the hose and zip the tie shut. I do this twice to each quarter, keeps air from getting to the meat in the time I need to before processing. Dosent hold a perect seal, an is why I do it twice but helps alot if i cant get to meat for a while.

[Dusty]

Just went through this dilemma last night after burning out my 2nd Food Saver in a very short time, and about the 4th one total.  

The chamber sealers are sweet, no doubt.  For a good model, they run about $700-800 and can go as high as you dream.  The savings on bags alone will allow them to pay for themselves in a 3-5 year period.  We're talking $.04-.08 for bags that would run $.50-.75 for the Food Saver.  At 200-250 bags/year, the machine is paid for in about 3 years.

this is that they have a maximum chamber/bag size, 10"x15" in my case.  That will work for about 95% of my sealing needs.  The 5% is won't work for are some of the things I consider really important like sealing entire quarters of an animal, all the leftover trimmings until I can get enough to do a batch of sausage, various clothes, bulk batches of ammo I reload, flexibility to take along on hunting/fishing trips (chamber sealers are about 80 pounds or more), etc.  So I considered a regular vacuum sealer a necessity, in my case.

I went with the Vacmaster Pro 350.  It was between that and the Weston Pro 2300.  The main difference being 12" sealing bar vs 16" sealing bar, and about $150.  My Food Savers all had the 12" sealing bar, and I couldn't recall wanting anything bigger, so I saved the $150.

One trick I've found for sealing wet items is to throw them in the freezer for a bit.  Sometimes 15 mins is all they need to freeze the surface.  No problems with sucking out moisture this way.       

  

You can buy after market bags at fleet farm precut 32 bags $8 and change. Don't recall the brand but come in a green box

[monstermoose78]

For the juices I place a folded paper towel above what I am sealing this sucks up the juices and bingo sealed.