Looking for Vacuum sealing machine recommendations

[old sarge]

I'm real happy with the LEM 1088a that I purchased. No roll bag holder built in but the 'b' model has one attached to the exterior. But the vac sealer itself is a beast. Very solid; just not well known.

 

[red sled]

I have been researching sealers. Reviews on the Pro 350 are great. I think this is the best higher end sealer. Myself being new to sealing and for light duty, I am going with FoodSaver FM2000 $60.

Have you tried your new FM2000 and how do you like it ? Thanks.

 

[schlotz]

So, with the VM380, are you capable of sealing foods with their liquid i.e sauces etc.?

 

[browneyesvictim]

So, with the VM380, are you capable of sealing foods with their liquid i.e sauces etc.?

Yes. It can be done but it does take some finesse. For example if you had a bag with some soup in it, you would want to use the MANUAL "Pulse" function to draw out just enough air so that it does not draw out any liquid, then push the "Seal" button to seal the bag. This is of course with the level of bag positioned below the vacuum sealer so that the liquid is well below the vacuum. There is a catch tray inside if a little bit gets in, but if any liquid gets sucked into the inlet tube (sticks up on the inside right hand side) it can damage the pump. Also if liquid is left in the seal area, you may not get a good seal, when the seal bar melts the plastic together, so that can be a bit temperamental in this case. But this can be an issue with all suction sealers. With the powerful 5mm seal bar of the VM380 this can put up with a little bit more contamination at the seal.

I have used my sealer for sealing fish fillets a lot. Because they are kind of gooey and the vacuum can squeeze out moisture and will draw some liquid in I prefer to freeze the fish fillets in the bag first, then vacuum seal them so liquid is not an issue. So what I am getting at is if you can freeze your liquid or sauces first, then that is the best option.

 

[GaryHibbert]

I'm more than happy with my Foodsaver. It's just one year old but has never given me any problem. It has a wet/dry setting and accessory attachments.
I just did up a 400 pound pig I had butchered. Worked perfectly. When I seal a bag I always wait 10 secs before I remove the bag (just for insurance on a good seal). This seems to prevent overheating and I did the whole pig pretty much nonstop.
The only thing I miss is the ability to use the real big bags.
Gary

 

[rexster314]

I've had some model of Foodsaver since 1995. No matter which one, they would last about 2 years or so and I'd get another one. The 4800 model we have now is about 3 years old. I got tired of fooling around with them this past spring and got THIS
Slight overkill but it will outlast me I'm sure.

 

[johnmeyer]

So, with the VM380, are you capable of sealing foods with their liquid i.e sauces etc.?

I started two threads a year ago that were mostly about resealable bags, like Ziploc. The original thread had nothing to do with vacuum sealers. However, in my quest to find resealable bags that actually retain their seal, I ended up buying two different hand-vac sealers, one by Foodsaver and the other by Waring. The Foodsaver hand-vac is a bad product and should be avoided, but the Waring is absolutely brilliant and works phenomenally well.

The reason I bring this up in this thread is that the way the Waring works, you can vacuum seal really juicy meats, etc. and not worry about the liquid ruining the seal because no heat is involved. Instead, it uses a little valve that is built into the bag. As long as the liquid is not fully of small particles, the seal works great. It has a little cup at the end of the sealer gun that can easily be emptied if liquid gets into it.

Here is what I bought:

Waring Sealer

I use it several times a day, mostly to store breads, coffee, flour and other items that will stay fresher in a vaccum, but which have to be opened and closed many times before they are used up, and which don't easily fit into canisters.

 

[bregent]

Have you tried your new FM2000 and how do you like it ? Thanks.

I bought a factory reconditioned FM2000 from Groupon for $38 and it's been working great for the last 2 years. I probably seal 10-20 bags a week with it. I routinely seal 10 bags at a time and have not had a problem with overheating or failed seals.

I had a Foodsaver that I got from Costco that lasted me about 15 years. When it died, I was about to pull the trigger on a Vacmaster 350, but then realized how big and heavy they are. The FM2000 fits in a drawer in my kitchen with its accessories and bags and I can lift it with one hand. If it lasts me 5 years I'll be happy and buy another just for the convenience and small size and weight.

If I had the space to permanently dedicate for vac sealing, I'd probably get a more heavy duty unit, or even a chamber sealer.

 

[motocrash]

I started two threads a year ago that were mostly about resealable bags, like Ziploc. The original thread had nothing to do with vacuum sealers. However, in my quest to find resealable bags that actually retain their seal, I ended up buying two different hand-vac sealers, one by Foodsaver and the other by Waring. The Foodsaver hand-vac is a bad product and should be avoided, but the Waring is absolutely brilliant and works phenomenally well.

The reason I bring this up in this thread is that the way the Waring works, you can vacuum seal really juicy meats, etc. and not worry about the liquid ruining the seal because no heat is involved. Instead, it uses a little valve that is built into the bag. As long as the liquid is not fully of small particles, the seal works great. It has a little cup at the end of the sealer gun that can easily be emptied if liquid gets into it.

Here is what I bought:

Waring Sealer

I use it several times a day, mostly to store breads, coffee, flour and other items that will stay fresher in a vaccum, but which have to be opened and closed many times before they are used up, and which don't easily fit into canisters.

Can you set it to stun? :eek:

 

[motocrash]

I bought a factory reconditioned FM2000 from Groupon for $38 and it's been working great for the last 2 years. I probably seal 10-20 bags a week with it. I routinely seal 10 bags at a time and have not had a problem with overheating or failed seals.

I had a Foodsaver that I got from Costco that lasted me about 15 years. When it died, I was about to pull the trigger on a Vacmaster 350, but then realized how big and heavy they are. The FM2000 fits in a drawer in my kitchen with its accessories and bags and I can lift it with one hand. If it lasts me 5 years I'll be happy and buy another just for the convenience and small size and weight.

Right on.People get carried away with these things,like they're professional butchers or something...To each his own.I'll stick with my FM2000 also.

 

[johnmeyer]

Can you set it to stun? :eek:

I set mine to overload, so it blows up the starship.

And yes, the "gun" is just as cool in person as in the picture.

BTW, I have a Foodsaver that is twenty years old and going strong. I use it 2-3 times a day, both for sealing pouches as well as cans. When I finally can't repair it anymore, whatever I get must have a canning attachment. Putting leftovers in glass containers is amazingly useful and effective.

 

[motocrash]

I set mine to overload, so it blows up the starship.

And yes, the "gun" is just as cool in person as in the picture.

BTW, I have a Foodsaver that is twenty years old and going strong. I use it 2-3 times a day, both for sealing pouches as well as cans. When I finally can't repair it anymore, whatever I get must have a canning attachment. Putting leftovers in glass containers is amazingly useful and effective.

That's why i'm holding on to my old one,heat sealing strip doesn't work but vacuum is strong as hell still.Will do jars and containers all day long.I'm liking my new cheapo a lot too.

 

[red sled]

After reading and watching lots of reviews and user recommendations, we purchased a new Foodsaver FM2000 a couple days ago at Walmart. It's a reasonable price and we had a lot of smoked meat to get in the freezer this Holiday weekend. We vac/sealed two laundry baskets of meat and veggies and so far it's worked great. And cutting bags from the bulk rolls is pretty simple and saves money.

 

[motocrash]

After reading and watching lots of reviews and user recommendations, we purchased a new Foodsaver FM2000 a couple days ago at Walmart. It's a reasonable price and we had a lot of smoked meat to get in the freezer this Holiday weekend. We vac/sealed two laundry baskets of meat and veggies and so far it's worked great. And cutting bags from the bulk rolls is pretty simple and saves money.

Yeah,it's amazing what you can accomplish even without the intermittent wipers and rear window defrost huh.:D

 

[ab canuck]

I have researched this over a ton, I decided to call Lisa directly at vacumsealers unlimited. I ended up ordering the 380. It is capable of doing 15" bags or 2 smaller ones at a time. This is what we use as we do our own butchering etc. so big bags help. the 350 is for 12" or smaller. They are great machines and worth every penny, Buy what you need for size or think you will need.
I have went through 2 food savers so far and it was a tossup between vacmaster or weston. I went with vacmaster and wouldn't turn back....

 

[zwiller]

After reading and watching lots of reviews and user recommendations, we purchased a new Foodsaver FM2000 a couple days ago at Walmart. It's a reasonable price and we had a lot of smoked meat to get in the freezer this Holiday weekend. We vac/sealed two laundry baskets of meat and veggies and so far it's worked great. And cutting bags from the bulk rolls is pretty simple and saves money.

Lucky! None in stock around me. I would Amazon but need to use some gift cards.

 

[red sled]

That stinks. I don't recall for sure, but we may have purchased the last one at our store. We weren't' 100% committed to buying the Foodsaver but while we were looking at them someone came along to buy bags for theirs. After chatting with them for a few minutes we decided it would work for our limited use.

I think the lady who sells here ( Lisa ? ) has some really good items and vac sealers. Just not sure we can justify the extra $$ for our limited use.

 

[mosparky]

For what it's worth, Foodsaver has some really good deals on remanufactured units( including FM2000), for those more budget minded. I almost pulled the trigger but life happened.

 

[zwiller]

Finally got my FM2000 a few days ago! Plan to use tonight to vac seal some smoked cheese. Totally will use Lisa/VM350 if I get more into it later on.

 

[Victor]

I just purchased a VacMaster Pro 380 right before Christmas.
I purchased it through the vacuum sealers unlimited web site.
Should I have went through Lisa, instead of the web site?