We have been using vacuum bag sealers for well over 15 years , in that time we have replaced three sealers .. this last one being the third @ three years old & made for by a company called Food Saver . It has sealed many hundreds of bags not only for food but things like seeds , machine & electrical parts wrapped in tissue that I send round the world .
None of the sealers were expensive either $20 , $20 & this one at $110 .
What does matter is getting the thickest embossed food bags you can , for this is where a lot of problems occur . The cheaper un embossed bags melt too easily and not being embossed means that there are no easy paths for the air to be extracted along .
The embossing takes the form of criss crossed indentations . We found that putting the embossing uppermost gives the best results for it is a bit stronger than the un embossed side , helps to trip the micro switch arms to bring the clamping plate into play & turn on the vacuum pump . Keep teh bags laid flat & in a cool place to ensure that they renain fairly stiff . bags left near a hot radiator get floppy 7 are difficult to insert in the machine .
Most of the table top shove in a bag sealers , have a small moisture tray inside the machine . It needs washing out often , use a small nylon brush to remove any dried on food or rust then leave it some where warm to totally dry off a It does not tqke much moisture condensate in this tray to form an electrical circuit & shut the machine down for safety reasons.
I frequently seal up 20 quarts of stocks , soups, tomatoes , preserves etc .
To stop any liquids entering the tray or being drawn into the vacuum pump I cut 280 mm lengths of 100 mm dia new unused waste pipe very carefully to ensure the cut face is square on the the axis . I then drew a straight line from top to bottom on each small tube & cut it with a fine toothed plastic cutting saw . then popped a small peg of
wood in the long slot & filed / sanded the cut edges dead smooth . I did the same at each end & gave both ends of the long cut a gentle rounded "V" to prevent damage to the food bag as I out it inside the tube .
I slip an embossed bag on my hand , push my hand inside the split tube & carefully turn back the excess bag over the rim of the tube avoiding making any sharp folds . The bags are then filled with a jar filler funnel each with one pint of food , & left to cool
The tops are then folded over once as in ...., made straight & folded once at the bag seams .
They are then put in the chest freezer on trays , 12 at a time till they are frozen rock solid
Once frozen . take the tray out ease the folded part up right . pull the bag out the solit tube ( the split is to allow the tube to open up as the contents of the bag freeze so you can remove the bag once frozen ).
In this frozen state with the bag top straightened and wiped with a clean dry cloth to remove any moisture off the bag sides it's a simple case of pushing the open end squarely into the machine & letting it auto seal .
If you fail to wipe any condensation off the bag sides there is a tendency for the faces of the bag slot to become damp & grip the other bags which often results in a difficult bag insertion next time round .
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