What is the best deal overall on a vacum food sealer?

[koger]

Cmon guys, what in your opinon, is the best vacum sealer product out there, for the buck? I want something that works well, and the packaging material is affordable/quality. All replys appreciated.

[LKH]

What you are asking for is not possible.

The reasonably priced ones such as Foodsaver, sell their bags for outrageous prices.

The high dollar ($1500) and more sell their bags cheap.  They are much tougher and I just bought 100 8"x10" bags for $15.  That's about 1/5 or so of the foodsaver price.  Also, they are sealed on one end and you don't have to cut and seal before use.

Only thing I use them for is fish.  I can do meat just as well with plastic and freezer paper.

[motorhead7963]

Well here at my house we use the Food Saver. It works great you can buy extra rolls of the bulk bags. with this sealer you cut the bag to the size you need, I have been using it for years when properly vacuumed and sealed you wont get any freezer burn . Great investment !!!

[koger]

Thanks for the replies, anyone else got any feedback, anyone?

[SELFBOW19953]

The only problem I've had with these is when you have a bunch of bags to seal.  My Food Saver won't do more than 8 or so bags before I have to let it "rest"-the sealing strip needs to cool down.  This happens when I get all my bags ready before I start sealing.  I still like my Food saver.

[jonsimoneau]

I use a foodsaver. Use the roll plastic for freshly killed game animals. Use the Tupperware that you can suck the air out of for leftovers etc. As was mentioned it is a great tool for when you are butchering a deer.

[eidsvolling]

I used a high end system last fall to store my venison cuts in the freezer. I ate the last piece on May 2nd, and it was just as good as when it went in the bag. You might be able to find the system locally if you look hard enough:

   High end system  

 

[joe skipp]

My wife bought me one about 10 yrs ago...think she paid close to $200 and it still works fine and the meats last. The bags are expensive but well worth the savings down the road. Mine is the original Food Saver but other companies offer different models.

[SELFBOW19953]

I use mine, a lot!!!  I buy bulk green peas and lima beans in the summer (shelled and washed from a local grower for big canning companies), 30 to 40 lbs. of each.  I put up at least 100 ears of corn each summer.  In the fall I put up a years worth of broccoli.  All year long I freeze large quantities of chicken and pork, when they're on a really good sale.  I also put up venison when I butcher my own.  I've been through several over the years.

[J. Holden]

I recently bought the least expensive model Wal**** sells.  It is the Food Saver brand.  It came with some pre-made bags and I bought a roll to make my own bags.

I've sealed some salmon, chili, and just some veggies today.  So far the salmon looks like it did when I caught it a month ago, no failure with the bags.  We'll see about the chili come fall and the veggies will be eaten next week, just wanted to see how vegies held up.  Be careful, I crushed one of my green peppers.

I'm happy with it.  For $88.00 I figure I'll get my monies worth with the food I save with it.  I like the compact size and the option to make my own size bags.

Two other guys I work with at the firehouse both have Food Saver brand also and they love it.  Had them for years with no problems.

Hopefully I can put some pheasant, quail and deer in the bags this year.

-Jeremy  

[old_goat2]

Best I could tell the Ziploc like bags that had the orifice to vacuum out the air were the cheapest, might not work quite as well as the plug in units that heat seal the bags, but works good enough for everything I've done.

[kbetts]

I don't have any problems with my Food Saver.  Our family makes sausage and scrapple around the end of February and it keeps all year.

[Al Dente]

Ditto on the heating element for the FoodSaver.  I've used one for years, and after repeated sealings without downtime, the seals will fail.  You will notice AFTER the food is in the freezer.  It will look sealed, but after an hour or so in the freezer, the bag will look as if it is opened.  Not vacuumed down tight to the food like it was when it was done.  Give the machine a rest after every 4-5 jobs.  The fail was not with the vacuum, but with the heating/sealing element.

[bergie]

We have used a Food Saver for years and have no complaints

[wazu02]

No complaints with the cabelas commercial grade sealer. Have been using it for a few years sealing a half of beef, 4 hogs and several deer per year. They are expensive but if you watch the bargain cave you can usually find a deal. I have had a couple cheaper vaccume sealers prior to this one and have had issues with the heating elements going out. I guess it's one of those deals where you get what you pay for. You can use any type of bags or rolls but I try to buy when cabelas runs those on sell. Usually this time of year

[Bill Kissner]

The Cabelas commercial sealer is on a great sale now. Regular $450, now $329. I have one but have not used it but a few times. So far so good.

[sswv]

I've had a Seal-A-Meal brand for several years and it's still going strong. The local Kroger carries the bags which aren't that costly. Never had an issue with anything overheating and I've run several bags (whole deer) back to back many times.

[Mint]

I went through 3 food saver models including the more costly Turbo model. I picked up a Weston model that looks exactly like the commercial sealer cabela's sells for less than $300 and it has been working great. And as a bonus the bags are cheaper than food savers are.