Let's talk FoodSavers

[hiccups]

For those of you that own a foodsaver what kind do you have and what do you like or dislike about it? Where do you get inexpensive bags or rolls?

I've been researching them online and there's a LOT to sort through. I'm going cross-eyed. Help save my poor eyes & brain. :D

[Noahs ARK]

Baconator has a FoodSaver....I found the link where he talks about it.

http://www.ldsglo.com/forum/showthread.php?p=72192&highlight=FoodSaver#post72192

I'm getting the one he talks about cuz it'll work with the canning jars. My sister has the same one and loves it.

[Baconator]

I've got the V3840. It matches my other appliances, but it's certainly not the least expensive.
This is the lid sealer I got.
http://www.amazon.com/FoodSaver-T03-0023-01-Wide-Mouth-Jar-Sealer/dp/B00005TN7H

So far, I've sealed tortilla soup mix and freeze-dried mac and cheese in jars and it's stayed dry and useable (Yay!)

Mostly I love the lack of freezer burn.

[kts532]

We have a Foodsaver and I use it for everything. The bags come in a roll that you can make into whatever size you need. I do all my stuff in my B.O.B. including matches. The machine that we have you can put it on manual so it will not crush things in boxes but will not rust or get moisture. I even do my guns and ammo that are kept in places that might have moisture.

[ktcottle]

I've had 2 food savers over the past 8 years. I have been really happy with mine. Inspite of all the reviews and the "want" to purchase the more expensive food savers, I have always just purchased the 100 dollar models and have been very happy with them. I used to purchase a lot perishable items - and I would spend a few days vacuum sealing to get the items ready for the long haul in the freezer. I would be careful not to over heat my food saver and it's worked fine for everything I needed it for.

My Uncle, Mother, and other family members have the food saver as well. They all love theres too.

[4evermama]

My foodsaver has worked like a champ for the last 6 years. Just the standard one sold at costco.

We have both sizes for the jar sealers. Use it to store nuts, marshmallows, chocolate chips, beans, you name it.

As for the bags, I break down meat to freeze (pre-cooked or raw) and it has always done a great job. Use it to freeze garden leftovers as well. We buy bulk deli meat, throw it on the slicer and seal it up. Never had any freezer burn.

Either jars or bags can be used to store pre-made mixes using dehydrated or freeze-dried ingredients. Soup or dinner packets are great to take camping.

For bug out bags, I seal documents and cash.

For camping, we seal back-up matches, mantels and other "must keep dry" items. Then, store it away knowing that whenever we need it, it will be dry.

Love, love, love my foodsaver.

[hiccups]

Does anyone use off-brand bags for their FoodSaver?

(This choosing of models would be much easier if the compare feature on the foodsaver site didn't only show features and then blank columns so I don't know which model has what feature. Tried two different browsers. Do it work for anyone else?)

[iggy]

Does anyone use off-brand bags for their FoodSaver?

It is not recommended to do so. I had some Deni rolls left over from a used Deni sealer I had. They sealed okay, but they wouldn't vacuum. The bags gave way. Even when I sealed the sides just a fraction away from the original seal.

Don't know where you are, but the Fred Meyer store here in Oregon has had the FoodSaver bags on sale, Buy2 get the 3rd one free, for the last week. Two weeks prior to that it was buy1 get1 free. THAT is when I stocked up on the rolls, pints and quart bags.

FoodSaver now has a split roll. The reviews are not good- it seals but won't vacuum all the time.

When I lived in Arizona, I vacuumed sealed all of my boxed meals. Rice-a-Roni, Mac & cheese. If some of the ingredients in the box was not in a foil or plastic packet, I vacuumed sealed it. BUGS- they got into everything! I even vacuumed sealed my 5 pound bags of sugar before I stored them in my cupboards.

[thermocouple]

Like 4evermama, we have been using a standard Costco version for a long time. Still works great, and allows us to buy meats in bulk. We buy the replacement bags also from Costco, a box of bags is not cheap, but it lasts us a couple years.

[prairiemom]

I've had 2 food savers over the past 8 years. I have been really happy with mine. Inspite of all the reviews and the "want" to purchase the more expensive food savers, I have always just purchased the 100 dollar models and have been very happy with them... I would be careful not to over heat my food saver and it's worked fine for everything I needed it for.

Yeah, I haven't seen enough difference to convince me to buy the more expensive models. I started off with a top-of-the-line one (someone got it for us at 1/2 price) but the sealing band wore out fast. So ktcottle is right--don't over heat. They say wait 20 seconds between sealings but I wait 1 minute.

[iggy]

FoodSaver recently (last year I think) came out with vacuum seal refrigerator bags.

I had purchased a Reynolds one, then of course they discontinued making the bags!

I love these bags. They are perfect for block cheese sliced up, lunch meats, sliced cucumbers, peppers, celery, other fruits and veggies. I also use them for my sprouting seeds- either to store in the cupboard or freezer waiting until I am in need of sprouting them.

Also love the Freeze N Steam bags that are relatively new too. I buy frozen veggies in the "Institutional size" aka Family Size, portion them out into these Freeze N Steam bags and toss back into the freezer. Wish they came in gallon size- then I could do my stir fry in them.

As for cost ~ Fred Meyers, Walmart and BiMart seem to have them on sale continuously. Buy 1 get 1 free, Buy 2 get 1 free, Buy 1 get 1 at 1/2 price, etc. etc.

In the past I had purchased a couple of the canisters from FoodSavers. I use one for rice. Well, that one canister wouldn't hold a seal. So went on line and FoodSavers said to check the seal. Remove it carefully, wash and rinse in warm water, dry, then replace the seal. I found one grain of rice inside the seal! One, itty bitty grain caused the seal to fail. The only thing I don't like about the canisters. They are round- and hard to get a hold of with one hand to pick up. You want to grip the lid - which is NOT advised. Make the canisters rectangular- or an elongated oval.

[prairiemom]

Foodsavers are worth every penny. I have now have two--just bought a brand new, still in the box one at a local thrift store for $7. I buy the roll to make bags cut to size. Probably the most important thing I use it for is to seal jars, all my herbs and dried vegetables, chocolate chips, nuts, etc.