Vacuum Sealers

J

Johnclarke

Joined
May 6, 2001
Messages
369
Right, I have been looking at various vacuum sealers to seal goods to cache. Food, ammunition, survival gear to keep it dry/weatherproof and so on.

The bags can also be used again for water transport and countless other uses.

I'm curious as to your experiences with them and if you can recommend a good one. I have seen black and deckers for $20-30 and the foodsavers start at $140. Will the less expensive ones be as effective as the foodsavers or should I just spring for the better models?


Thanks
 
I've heard reports that the bags are prone to cuts and leaks. They tend to form sharp corners that wear easily. Ice crystal cuts for example in your freezer.

Mind, these are reports only, I've no ragingly reliable info. I do know guys who use them for extreme sports to keep items dry while canyoneering, but that's pretty short term use.

Phil
 
You defintely don't want to get the cheap ones. They don't create a sufficient vacuum. I have the FoodSaver brand that can be purchased for $99 in the US.

The bags are strong and reusable, you can curve the corners if you're concerned about sharp edges but I've never had a problem and removing the excess air helps prevent ice crystals which cause freezer burn.
 
We have had good luck with the Food Saver brand vacuum sealers. We use them not only for food storage, but also for sealing survival firestarter kits, and other survival goodies. Ethan Becker turned me onto Food Saver vacuum sealers, and we have been very pleased with the performance of the units.
 
Thanks for the comments everyone, looks like I will quit being a tightwad and spring for the foodsaver. I'm sure I will be happier with a good model instead of a piece if junk.
 
I've also had good luck with the Foodsaver II, which is made by Tilia and can be seen on tv infomercials. http://www.tilia.com/ You might check eBay and garage sales for them as well. A bit of searching on the web should find you a new one in the $99 price range mentioned.

The bags have stood up well to multiple use per bag for us, i.e. clean them out and reuse them. I think they will be more than sufficiently sturdy for your caching purposes, which is pretty static "on the shelf & not moving around a lot" storage.

I second the suggestion to avoid the cheap vacuum pack units, especially for any food storage you may be contemplating. They are quite handy for storing items that dampness will affect (like toilet paper ;) ) while camping or filling your BOB. Kayakers & canoe paddlers sometimes use this method to keep dry a spare set of clothes when piledriving down overly rambunctious whitewater.
 
My wife and I received out Tilla Foodsaver Compact 9 years ago as a wedding gift. We use it often, from sealing fresh salmon to packaging up dried fruit. I've vacu-sealed just about anything. I even used it to seal-up my "sh_t hits the fan" kit in my backpack, extra socks when backpacking, and most recently sealed up about 10 lbs of frozen blueberries. The bags are quite sturdy, but one has to take care when packaginf some things. Dries apple slices for example have in the past pokes small holes in the bags. The sealer creates quite alot of pressure. We also use it to seal canning jars of dried fruit(best way with the apples).

Very handy tool to have.
 
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