Vacuum Sealer Bags & Supplies - Discount Coupon

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Just a follow up on the Zipper Bags.

I've been working on some Back Packing meals for our Backpack Camping trip on the Pinchot Trail in a few weeks.

The other guys going on the trip are out spending a fortune on tasteless MRE's Meals Ready to Eat

I figured I'd make my own but lets call them JAW's, Just Add Water, for the acronym lovers because technically they are not ready to eat.

The bags are pretty sturdy and seal very well.

I dehydrated a bunch of different meals then tested them using a cozie reheat method.
  1. The Food is Dehydrated
  2. The food is sealed
  3. water is boiled
  4. bag is opened
  5. water is poured in over the food and resealed
  6. bag is placed in cozie for half an hour to hydrate.
  7. Meal is ready to eat
I only had a few bags blow out on me and its because dried foods can be sharp, especially pastas, to alleviate this issue, sharp foods are placed in a paper bag then the bag is placed in the vac bag and sealed... works great.
  • Mashed Potatoes
  • Bunch of meals
  • Spaghetti's
  • Oatmeal
  • Cozie


I want to point out that this type of sealing is brutal on the bags but they fared pretty well.

So I am very happy with these bags!!!
 
Got my 110 today...tried to seal some 1/2lb bag of almonds....had to reseal 3 of 'em! Tried to seal about 3/4lb of beef jerky...had to reseal 3 times utilizing 2 bags pretty sure it's still not 100% sealed...first impression: It seems if you have irregular food items (?) the bags like to scrunch up and wrinkle; therefore, NOT sealing the bag completely!

Lisa, is this a common problem? Any tips tutorials (other than the basic operating instructions)? I hate to waste bags as they're not exactly free!

Thanks,

Brett
 
Brett, evening...   Overfilled bags will "wrinkle" at the open end causing air leaks in the creases....  using bigger bags or not overfilling is the only solution I have found...  also sharp bones will poke holes unless wrapped first... nepas has found beef jerky will poke holes also.... he wraps in freezer paper first to prevent poking holes in the bags.....  Oh, 1 more thing.... when sealing, I place a thick book under the bags to bring them up to level with my machine so the bags don't hang down and cause more wrinkles..... 

Dave
 
Brett not sure of your sealing issue but Dave has some good advice.

Also not sure if the issue is your sealer as you pointed out that you got the "110"

However I will cover some possible sealing issues not related to the sealer itself.

If you are sealing thick bulky (thick) items, you need a good amount of head space as it will wrinkle. You can also try flattening out or layering the foods thinner if possible.

Also as I stated in an earlier post, if you have sealing problems due to puncturing the bag, place foods in a paper lunch bag first then seal.

The following information is related to dry foods only. (Your mileage may vary)

Paper Lunch Bag sleeve and vac-seal bag (Not Lisa's bag, Sorry Lisa)

Oh by the way, don't use a ziploc bag or another vac-seal bag inside, for one its wasteful and two, it doesn't work as well as a cheap paper lunch bag.


Bag with head space due to bulk package (Not Lisa's bag, Sorry Lisa)


Shows paper lunch bag doing it's job.


Flat foods such as oatmeal work fine. (Lisa's Bags)


Double Seal


Bulky item to show some minor wrinkling.


Beef vegetable soup. had a blowout so I used a paper bag.



I have had stuffing mix, blowout these bags, my rule of thumb now is, "dry goes in paper lunch bags", unless its something like mashed potatoes, or oatmeal.


Closing notes:
  • These bags are not indestructible so treat them as such
  • These bags are not magical, so don't expect them to perform better than foodsaver bags
  • There is a bit of a learning curve with Vac-Sealing in general
  • These bags work, and are priced fairly
Hopefully this will help.
 
Brett not sure of your sealing issue but Dave has some good advice.

Also not sure if the issue is your sealer as you pointed out that you got the "110"


However I will cover some possible sealing issues not related to the sealer itself.

If you are sealing thick bulky (thick) items, you need a good amount of head space as it will wrinkle. You can also try flattening out or layering the foods thinner if possible.

Also as I stated in an earlier post, if you have sealing problems due to puncturing the bag, place foods in a paper lunch bag first then seal.


The following information is related to dry foods only. (Your mileage may vary)


Paper Lunch Bag sleeve and vac-seal bag (Not Lisa's bag, Sorry Lisa)
Oh by the way, don't use a ziploc bag or another vac-seal bag inside, for one its wasteful and two, it doesn't work as well as a cheap paper lunch bag.




Bag with head space due to bulk package (Not Lisa's bag, Sorry Lisa)




Shows paper lunch bag doing it's job.




Flat foods such as oatmeal work fine. (Lisa's Bags)




Double Seal





Bulky item to show some minor wrinkling.




Beef vegetable soup. had a blowout so I used a paper bag.







I have had stuffing mix, blowout these bags, my rule of thumb now is, "dry goes in paper lunch bags", unless its something like mashed potatoes, or oatmeal.




Closing notes:

  • These bags are not indestructible so treat them as such
  • These bags are not magical, so don't expect them to perform better than foodsaver bags
  • There is a bit of a learning curve with Vac-Sealing in general
  • These bags work, and are priced fairly


Hopefully this will help.
Brett, evening...   Overfilled bags will "wrinkle" at the open end causing air leaks in the creases....  using bigger bags or not overfilling is the only solution I have found...  also sharp bones will poke holes unless wrapped first... nepas has found beef jerky will poke holes also.... he wraps in freezer paper first to prevent poking holes in the bags.....  Oh, 1 more thing.... when sealing, I place a thick book under the bags to bring them up to level with my machine so the bags don't hang down and cause more wrinkles..... 

Dave

Dave, as always...you're there to watch over us inexperienced noobs...I thank you! Placing something to make the bag level with the elevation of the face of the sealer (that should help a lot!)

SQWUIB,

Thanks for the pointers and tips...after I put everything away, I thought about what I did to contribute to the issue and came to the conclusion...leave more head room (it does say 3" in the instructions). These bags are tough enough as nothing has poked through the backs (jerky nor almonds) it's more the elevation and wrinkling. I'll give it try today and post results?!

Thanks Again Guys...you guys are the best!

~bRett
 
Hi Lisa....

I just ordered 2 sizes for game sticks and sausage. Thanks again for your service.

Brad

BTW....... I love the Tehachapi area........used to visits friends down there every summer.
 
Will these bags work if you already happen to have Foodsaver vac? I bought mine last year and would hate to have to buy another. If so I'm in...
 
Will these bags work if you already happen to have Foodsaver vac? I bought mine last year and would hate to have to buy another. If so I'm in...

Yes, I have a Foodsaver and had problems with the FS bags but since I switched to VSU bags I haven't had any problems! They work Great with my FS unit!
 
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Happy New Year Everybody!

I just saw the question regarding the Premium vs. the Economy bags.  Thanks to fpnmf
  for posting the link that explains the mystery.

There is no difference in MIL in the bags.  The Premium bags have a strip of mesh running up the center of one side of the bag (the patented VacStrip), that vacuums more efficiently than a regular full textured bag, like FoodSaver or our Economy Full Mesh bags.  They also draw less liquid out of the bag, because the liquid has to be pulled to the center before it can exit the bag, and liquid weighs more than air, so by the time the liquid is drawn to the center strip, most of the air is already out of the bag. The Premium bags cost about $.01 - $.02 more per bag.

I hope all of my friends on this forum have a healthy and happy 2013.

Lisa

Hey Lisa, I have a question, do the Economy bags have one side that has the mesh loose like the strip on the Premium bags, or is the entire side mesh, like a FS or your zipper bags. The reason I ask, is I've had a bad time with the premium bags losing their seal somehow. They seal up fine, but over a couple weeks in the fridge or freezer, I'll find the bags have leaked air into them. I've experienced this multiple times with everything from boneless pork chops, chicken breasts, even a boneless pork butt. I have not experienced this with a FS bag, nor your zipper bags. I'm about to place an order for more zipper bags, but so far the Premium bags, while initially appear to do great, I've had issues with them, so I'm wondering how the Economy bags are built. I'm still going to use your zipper bags, but for the rolls, if your economy bags are equal to the FS roll build, I'd rather give my money to you than FS. Thx, Bluto.
 
Hi Bluto,

The Economy bags are similar to the FoodSaver bags in that there is no loose mesh.

If your bags are coming loose, I am thinking that you're not getting a good seal. With any vacuum bag, if you're sealing something a little wet and there is moisture between the layers of plastic where the seal is being applied, it is always a good idea to set the seal time longer, so the heat can really get through the moisture and effectively seal the plastic together.

I hope that helps.

Thanks!

Lisa
 
Hi Bluto,

The Economy bags are similar to the FoodSaver bags in that there is no loose mesh.

If your bags are coming loose, I am thinking that you're not getting a good seal. With any vacuum bag, if you're sealing something a little wet and there is moisture between the layers of plastic where the seal is being applied, it is always a good idea to set the seal time longer, so the heat can really get through the moisture and effectively seal the plastic together.

I hope that helps.

Thanks!
Lisa

I'm pretty sure what happened is the 11.5" rolls I got from you had wrinkles in them that I could not get completely flat for sealing. The bag material itself seemed to be wrinkled as it was rolled, so they just weren't going away, no matter what I did. I haven't had the issue with your 8" rolls, just the wider ones. Unfortunately my FS is not adjustable for the seal time, otherwise I'd try that. I've had to seal/reseal many due to the wrinkled material, but there is only so much I could do, some wrinkles just wouldn't come out.
 
I'd like to finally make a pretty good sized order of bags.

The last discount code I found expired on March 31.

Is there a current code?

Bear
 
I'd like to finally make a pretty good sized order of bags.
The last discount code I found expired on March 31.

Is there a current code?


Bear

Here you go Bear, it was posted on a different thread:


Hi everyone,

It's time for the April discount code for all Smoking Meat Forum members....

Save 10% off all of your FoodSaver supplies and our VacMaster vacuum sealing residential equipment.

Just enter SM413 at checkout and the discount will automatically be applied. This code is good through April 30,2013.

We also carry chamber vacuum machines and supplies for the professional smoker!

Take care, and thanks for your business!

Lisa

http://VacuumSealersUnlimited.com
 
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