Looking to buy-Best vacuum sealer for the money

[Toecutter]

Alright, time to upgrade to a better sealer. I have a cheap one bought several years ago. But it’s a PITA to get the bag under tis little suction gizmo and snap the top down. Half the time it wont suck all the air out, or the bag slips off the gizmo. Got plenty of bag rolls left.

Brands, models ?? Ease of use ?? Which should I buy.

Thanks for any help

 

[dfess1]

I've got a food saver similar to this one: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001E75OSG/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

picked it up for 100 bucks at Sams a few years ago. Use it ALL the time. Especially for my BBQ prep work, and for freezing leftovers. Rub down some ribs, then throw them in a bag and pull the air out. not only does it help with the rub infusion, it doesn't make your fridge smell like meat! I've been pretty happy with it.

 

[autoferret]

I had a old style food saver and it gave up the ghost. So i was looking at getting another one. I'm a lighting tech by trade and had the opportunity to gaff a infomercial for food saver and was given the top of the line model, it was used during the filming and they didn't want to ship it back. But i cant complain at all about it. it has a slit in the front that you slide the bag into it grabs it and then seals it. Has a dry and moist setting for the food. you and marinate and seal containers. They also have some really neat bags that you can steam in.

not trying to sell the product but i was really amazed at what you can do with it. its not practical for everything that they say it is. but for example i cook a whole chicken for myself and the wife, i'll food saver the other 2 1/4's to make them last longer so i dont throw out that food.

 

[autoferret]

not only does it help with the rub infusion, it doesn't make your fridge smell like meat!

I like that meat smell in my fridge!

 

[TomSD]

Another Foodsaver owner here. Got it at Sams a couple months ago and use it quite a bit. I buy bulk fish/chicken and repackage it in single servings then freeze it. Great for me, being single it takes me a while to go through all that meat and I can't stand freezer burn. Still figuring out new ways to use it but I hear it is good for stuff like marinating and whatnot too.

 

[dfess1]

I like that meat smell in my fridge!

ha! The wife doesn't. Especially when there are 36 racks in there!

 

[autoferret]

ha! The wife doesn't. Especially when there are 36 racks in there!

I have a prep fridge/freezer in the garage that all my meat goes into. Hard to put normal food plus 40lbs of chick wings, 25lbs of roast beast, 25lbs of pork butt.


On a food saver note. If you take a marinating type salad dressing and put some into the bag before you seal and then freeze it you can pull it out and have a ready to go bag of chicken or fish.

this is a style of cooking i'm starting to read about. Sous-vide

 

[TomSD]

On a food saver note. If you take a marinating type salad dressing and put some into the bag before you seal and then freeze it you can pull it out and have a ready to go bag of chicken or fish.

this is a style of cooking i'm starting to read about. Sous-vide

Hadn't thought to do that! I already repackage down to single servings for ease of use but hadn't thought to add seasoning/marinade at the same time. I'll have to try that next time.

 

[Toecutter]

alright, so I reviewd the various models on the foodsaver site, and read numerous product reviews. It seems they either love it or hate it

My question for those here is if you like it, which model is best ?? People seem to be complaining about the automated model, as they say it wastes the plastic bag material

 

[TomSD]

This is the one I have and yeah it uses a ton of bag, sometimes damn near half the bag is waste, but they really aren't all that expensive. My other complaint is it overheats so you have to wait between seals. Not a big deal normally but I buy in bulk and package them all up at once to freeze... I end up having to pace myself.

I have no experience with others though and overall it is a good unit so it isn't like I am taking it back or looking for another. It is just annoying.

 

[kosmokramer]

i just picked up a meal saver for 25 bucks from cl today brand new. cant wait to use it

 

[autoferret]

http://www.foodsaver.com/product.aspx?pid=8793 this is the one that I have. It does use some extra bag during sealing but you know that u have enough bag to get a good seal and in the end if u save 1/2" per bag what do u get 4" by the end of the roll maybe. And if it doesn't fully seal b/c of moistness u have enough there to re seal!

 

[bovineblitz]

i just picked up a meal saver for 25 bucks from cl today brand new. cant wait to use it

Not really a good deal, hate to break it to you. If it really is new though then it doesn't matter

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002NGNBPA/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

 

[kosmokramer]

ya, it was brand new and no waiting on shipping

 

[blizzard]

I got an old sealer on CL awhile back. It's a pretty basic model but works well. One thing I have head is that the new models can't seal mylar bags and/or some models use a branded bag. I can reseal the mylar bags my hops come in. So... that's something to consider that maybe someone here can comment on.

 

[JohnTheBrewist]

This sealer gets good reviews and doesn't need special bags. I don't have one but it's the one I plan to get. Right now, I just use mylar bags with an impulse sealer and oxygen absorbing tabs (from the same company).