Vacuum sealers for food - money-saving or not?

sb44

For anyone who isn't sure what FoodSaver machines etc are.

http://www.foodsaver.com/

sb44

sb44 wrote: »

If anyone is looking for a FoodSaver vacuum sealer, I have just bought a Foodsaver V475 for £19.99 off ebay (not arrived yet as I only bought it yesterday).

I already have the small secondhand FoodSaver that I bought off ebay for £30+ so I was just looking to buy some replacement bags for that one.

Anyway, I found this bigger one that also comes with a few bags, a 10ft roll, bottle stoppers etc and a canister.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/NEW-FOODSAVER-V475-REEZER-FOOD-VACUUM-PACKING-PACK_W0QQitemZ370073424969QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item370073424969&_trkparms=72%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14.l1318

Ok, it arrived today, haven't tried it yet but I am impressed with what I got.

I assumed that the canister included would be one of the normal round small ones but I had a nice surprise.

It is a new style rectangular one that can also be used for marinating, it quite flat so will fit into the fridge easily, has latches on the sides so it closes well in case you just want to use it without taking the air out, plus it has a cheese grater that sits inside it so the cheese doesn't go everywhere.

It looks like the box has been resealed so they may be customer returns but that doesn't bother me as long as it works as it all looks brand new.

There wasn't a video with it as stated in the ad but it doesn't say video on the box so I think it was a mistake when typing out the sales page.

Hope this helps anyone who was thinking of getting one of these.

I wouldn't have bought one otherwise as they are about £70 through the shopping channels.

champys

I just got a vacuum sealer as well, just to see if I like it and use it. It was for sale at a 'vide-grenier' (sort of car boot sale) for 3 Euros and never used. It is not a sophisticated one though, the make is Bifinett which is Lidls. But it does seem to work fine! There is a roll with it, but so far I have found it quicker to use ordinary freezer bags.

sb44

champys wrote: »

I just got a vacuum sealer as well, just to see if I like it and use it. It was for sale at a 'vide-grenier' (sort of car boot sale) for 3 Euros and never used. It is not a sophisticated one though, the make is Bifinett which is Lidls. But it does seem to work fine! There is a roll with it, but so far I have found it quicker to use ordinary freezer bags.

I don't think Foodsaver machines can use ordinary bags to take out the air.

They can seal them I suppose.

Shall have to have a try.

champys

Have look at post #2 at the beginning of this thread - that's where I got the idea from!

sb44

champys wrote: »

Have look at post #2 at the beginning of this thread - that's where I got the idea from!

Nope, just tried a sandwich bag.

I can seal any plastic bag but it does say that to vacuum air out I need to use bags with air channels in to withdraw the air.

jennyjelly

Ok, so now I've decided to buy one I've got to decide which one. I've looked at the JML one over and over (I practically know the words to the ad off by heart!) but can't find the specifications for it anywhere.

I'm also quite tempted by the Andrew James one here http://www.andrewjamesworldwide.com/Product.asp?Product=vac1d
which says its vacuum power is up to 50 kpa (whatever that is). They are also selling this one through ebay for £29.95 + £9.95 postage.

Would some kind JML owner please please please have a look in their manual and see how the power compares?

I want to make an informed decision and money is a bit tight and I have to be careful how I spend it (as we all do!) but it's hard to be sure I'm buying the right one when companies don't give all the facts!

So if someone could help me out I'd be very grateful.

Thanks.

JJ

Trudy_Grapevine

Hi, I know this is an old thread, sorry for ressurecting it but I just wanted to thank the person who recommended the Eiffel machine.
I would not have known about it if I hadn't read this forum and I am so pleased with the quality of the equipment, it is brilliant.

So if anyone else is looking for a good bag sealing machine this would be the one I would recommend. It is a bit more expensive than other models but I have heard the cheaper ones tend to be not that good.

nesssie1702

Be careful when you're using vacuum pack machines, as they are not the bee all and end all.

Some bacteria grown anaerobically (without oxygen) and food that's vacuum packed is the ideal place for them. That's why it's really important to make sure that for certain foods that they are heated thoroughly if they've been vacuum packed.

Foodstuff like hard cheeses and bacon isn't as critical, as it's not got enough water availibility to let bacteria grow - that's why cheese like cheddar goes mouldy.

If it works for you, then by all means go for it, but please don't be complacent with these machines.

bitsnbytes

Anyone have any experience with the lidl version of the vacuum sealer? I think the brand is bifinett. They have this coming in on June 1st, 2009 and is only £18.99. I've generally had excellent experiences with lidl/aldi products and with the 3 year warranty it is an added bonus (it works as well since I recently needed to claim the warranty on a kitchen mixer which cost me £69.99 from aldi in 2 years and they refunded me the full amount via wire transfer to my bank account since they no longer manufacture it :beer:). However, since the cheap food saver is around £30 at least, how does this compare with the foodsaver? Anyone had any experiences with this machine? Can I use regular sandwich bags with this?