Lets talk vac sealers
 

Butchered up my moose the other day. I used plastic wrap and butcher paper for some bigger roasts and vac sealed the rest. I like vac sealing over butcher paper personally, but each their own.

I am on my second food saver vac sealer and I might be able to finish up the season with my current one, but its not looking good. I am thinking pulling out the wallet and buying a chamber vac. I see the VacMaster 215 are popular but know nothing about them.

I cant handle looking at my vac bags now and seeing all the air bubbles in the bags.

Its time for an upgrade.

Anyone have experience with chamber vacs and is it worth the investment?

No experience with a chamber vac but I have been purchasing bags from amazon with one side already sealed. Much much better than having to seal twice!

I have the VacMaster 112S which isn't as fancy as the VacMsater 215. Its been absolutely amazing. I picked up mine from across the boarder as it was way cheaper than buying it in Canada. Bags are also cheaper and better quality. I got mine from webstaurantstore.com and they have 30% off sales quite a bit. Mine was $500 USD with free shipping and 1000 4mil quart size bags ~5c/bag.

I have done three deer with mine and if you Sous Vide it makes it definitely worth while. If you have any specific questions let me know. It's a little noisy, although I do mine in the basement and you can't hear it from the main level.

I've been using a Foodsaver for about 2 years now. Have had no issues with it sealing. I buy the bags online for less than the Costco bulk box.
Buying Costco sized burger, sasuage and chicken packages, breaking them down and sealing meal sized portions is the way to go.
It seams it really needs to be kept clean for really good function.
I now have a small collection of the Foodsaver containers. And nothing works better to seal an open bottle of wine!

I’ve gone through 2 foodsavers they are garbage, got the industrial one from cabellas been happy with it so far, thing I liked about it was the replacement parts are right there, if needed.. pretty sure it was around 300 when I got it on sale.

https://www.cabelas.ca/product/10342...ABEgJohvD_BwEP

I have a Reber, I bought it many years ago at halford hide. It's been and still is good.

I have a Vacmaster 215. Vacuum sealed an entire elk in a single session with no issues. It is a lot quieter than food saver units and has replaceable parts so it can be fixed rather than replaced.

The big downside to them is you are stuck to a maximum bag size so you can't just get a roll to seal an entire salmon for instance, but you could always keep a cheap food saver just for that kind of thing. Another downside is the size and weight. I bought a small rolling shelf off of amazon that is the perfect size for it and I store the bags on the shelves below.

This is probably one of the better videos showing the differences between the 2 styles. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhGyyZ9GSQc

im on my 2nd food saver and yet again, not impressed so am also looking at a new vacsealer. The foodsaver over heats alot after as well.

I have had the cabelas 12” vacuum sealer and love the thing. Used it so much and never had any issues. It usually goes on sale every 3 months for just over $100

I started with a foodsaver, worked ok for a few years then had intermittent vacuum issues. So I picked up a Cabelas commercial unit and it worked ok for a few years, then started having sealing issues. Of course, my serial # was a few hundred before they started offering replaceable parts for it. Not sure what to get next, maybe a used chamber vac

We went through a couple FoodSavers... It's not the cost of the machine that has kept me from going back, but the cost of the 'consumables'. Those bags are frickin expensive. I can wrap with paper and the meat will be fine for a couple years, after that I have to wonder "why is this still in the freezer?" Eat it or turn it into dog food (the dog loves that option :))

ARG

I can get 2 rolls 50ft long for 25 bucks on amazon

I’ve got a Foodsaver at Costco quite a few years ago. It stopped vacuuming and there was air left in the packets. It got tossed in the back of the cupboard and I forgot about it for a couple years. Dug it out a couple months ago and ordered a set of the seals through Amazon. 25 bucks and it’s good as new.

So I got my wife on board with getting a chamber vac. That was the biggest obstacle. Like someone said that consumables are outrageous in cost. Specially if you were to butcher seal then grind and make sausage and seal again. Where my wife brings up a good point is using less ziplock bags and food spoilage in the fridge.

Hoping to find a used unit but if not I will get one by next season.

Bought a chamber vac thinking it would be stored in the closet and come out each fall to seal up the meat. It sits permanently on a stand is used almost daily. The bags are cheaper than zip locks and much better at keeping leftovers. Seal up soups in individual servings and reheat in a pot of boiling water. Perfect for garden vegetables. Only regret is i didn't get a bigger unit.

1,000 10"x15" chamber bags come to around $130-$150 shipped. That is 1,250 feet or 12.5 boxes of rolls or just over $300 worth of food save rolls.

This is the shelf I bought https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B071SCVPRC It fits the VP215 perfectly. I would only suggest using a small piece of plywoood on the top to prevent the feet from sticking through the shelf wires.

Once you get one you will find yourself using it quite often. About the only time I use a ziplock bag any more is if something is going to be opened and closed a lot.

Sealing leftover soups/stew/stock/chili etc works great (just cool them first) and if you lay the bags on something flat as they freeze they are easily stored plus no more storage containers stuck in the freezer for months.

So with the single use plastic ban looming what happens to things like this? Will there be a plastic tax?

Thanks for that. Will check it out.

Tried that... wasn't impressed with them and still too much money.

I can get a roll of butcher's paper that is 24"x787' for $50. My biggest problem with the 24" roll is storing the thing when I'm not using it.

ARG

I've had to change the seals as well, so now a I keep a spare set on hand

I have not had issues yet and have been using them for a year. They seal great

I have a food saver v4420 that I've been using for a few years without any issues.

Thanks a lot guys. Now I want to buy a bigger sealer, even tho I don't really need one....

I have been using a Foodsaver Model V2830 for umteen years and I have never seen a most durable machine. You do not have to have Foodsaver rolls, the ones I use are the ones available from Walmart. The ones I used in it were from Cabellas and what ever was the cheapest. I do not think I have ever used Foodsaver bags, unless they were cheaper. It has been throw down, rode hard and put away wet. It rattles when I shake it, it has NO insulation on the wire, and the only thing I have done to it is new gaskets, and it still works. This is not testmonial but actual facts. I think that ANY vac drive machine will work. As far as VAC drying goes, it is the only way, no freezer burn, keeps for years, as long as it does not open. I have been using one on my venison since 1986 and on everything else.

Old school Elpack Chamber Vacuum machine w/ MAP capability has served me very well for many years.

Rotary Vane Busch Vacuum pump.
Can cryovac a whole turkey.
Adjustable vac pressure and sealing bar temps.
Can manage soups and stocks easily.
Movable plates to increase or decrease interior chamber volume
Mounted next to my butcher table makes short work of any game.

Downside is the weight-2 man lift to move.

I'm guessing it's the sealing strip that overheats? Used to have that problem as well. Way better when I switched to the precut bags as it is half the sealing. I also wipe a damp rag across the strip once in a while if having problems, helps to keep it cool.

Which ones do you buy? I usually get mine from Halfords, but would like to check out the amazon ones

These are the ones I have ordered in the past. Few different options for sizes.

Ronegye Vacuum Sealer Storage Bags for Food Preservation with Two-sided Texture Channels, Reusable, BPA Free, Commercial Grade, Each Bag Size: 8" x 12", Quantity: 100 pieces (Clear). https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B06XXM29GG/..._1NJQDbRP79M1B




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That's a good price. Thanks kindly

No problem. I have also ordered these larger ones no issues either. Much easier on the machine with only sealing once. Beyond frustrating when the machine overheats in the middle of a job!


TINVOO Vacuum Sealer Bags,Vacuum Sealer Rolls,11 x 16-inch Sous Vide Bags Commercial Grade BPA Free/FDA Approved Food Saver Bags Rolls for Food Preservation (120 Gallon Size ) https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B07DPNTDBW/..._FRJQDbX7FGF7K


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Uline also carries vac bags