# Food Saver sealing issues



## herkysprings

Hey All,

I use my food saver often, but lately i noticed that my bags are not sealing well, and air leaks in. I took a closer look in to it, and it seems like I have a "Crimp" on my sealing strip. I confirmed that on the end of the bag that I made, pre cutting and putting anything in (dry bag) had a small gap in the seal.

Has anyone tried fixing or replacing these? I haven't called Foodsaver about this, but I have read that there is no vendor supplied "fix", you have to get a whole new unit.

Just looking for something cheaper than new, otherwise the thing works great!

Matthew


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## fftwarren

I would call foodsaver. If your sealer strip has a crimp, that sounds like a defect kind of thing. idk how it would have just got a crimp in it


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## DanMcG

HerkySprings said:


> . I took a closer look in to it, and it seems like I have a "Crimp" on my sealing strip.


Anyway you could post a pic of this crimp you're talking about. I just can't picture it happening on my unit.


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## smokey paul

Wow a crimp in the sealing element. I have used them for 5-6 years and never had that problem. maybe a QA thing and they may want it back to figure it out.

I know every time I called them they worked with me and even sent me a new unit.

The one I have now, about 1 yr old, has a wide sealing strip and work the best that I have had.


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## cruizer

I am sorry but foodsavers are total crap. I went through four of them trying to find one that would work. Thank goodness for WMT return policy! Great idea just does not work. Went to Cabelas as some have suggested and WOW what a price everything at Cabelas is gold plated though. Just my 2 cents but never buy foodsaver brand.


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## adiochiro3

We love our foodsaver.  never heard of the crimp problem.  We have run into a batch of bad bags that wouldn't seal properly on any of our 4 machines -- can't remember if it was a brand thing or what.  I do remember that it happened when we were butchering TWO bison last winter!  Major PITA for sure.  Thank God we all had a ton of bags on hand and didn't run out!

I bet the manufacturer will work with you.  If not, share it here and they can see what kind of bad PR they can generate.  Word gets around here fast!


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## scarbelly

I have had my FS for over 15 years (on my second one - had it for about 10) and have never had even one issue. We have used it almost every week for sealing something - just did 22 # of pulled pork in 4 bags with liquid in them that did get sucked into the tray - wiped out the liquid and it is still sealing great- Have made as many as 15 bags of chicken at a time with no overheating in either the old or new units - I would take a pic and email to them for help

Good luck


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## herkysprings

I'll get a pick of it tonight.

I know that moisture in the bag can cause issues when creating the second seal, but I know for a fact that my last few bags had issues on the first seal. I hope I can get it repalced or fixed I use it a LOT!


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## cheezeerider

I have the same  issue with mine. You can send it back to foodsaver and they will reeplace it at a cost. I get around this by sealing the bag once and then pulling the bag out about 1/4 inch and sliding it to the left or right a bit and sealing again. That has worked well for me.


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## h2oskier62

I have a FoodSaver Ultra which is I believe a consumer-grade model.  The adhesive of the teflon tape over the sealing strip has failed and the tape pulls away and out of alignment exposing the heating element.   I have to reposition the strip each time I seal a bag.  I called FoodSaver and they said there are no parts for this and recommended that I buy a new unit.  The unit functions perfectly otherwise.  I cannot believe they are suggesting this for a piece of tape.

I am disappointed at the lack of Customer Service from them as even though it is a lower grade model it still is a $150 unit.

If anyone has any ideas, I am open to suggestions.  I thought maybe a high temperature glue for the edge of the tape...


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## linguica

A long while ago I had a food saver with a problem "crimp" on the sealing bar and I smoothed it out by rolling the bottom edge of a wine bottle over it with firm pressure. That and double sealing the bags worked 95% of the time. For those of you that don't like the food saver brand, what non commercial unit would you recommend......for home use?


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## mickey jay

I've currently got the same problem with the crimp.  It's annoying at the least,and seems to be getting worse.  Its a brand new foodsaver, but probably 6-7 years old.  It was given to me by someone who never used it.  I'm debating trying to deal with foodsaver, but other's testimony kinda makes me want to just get another one.  So yes, what is the current non-foodsaver non-commercial recommendation?


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## daveomak

h2oskier62 said:


> I have a FoodSaver Ultra which is I believe a consumer-grade model.  The adhesive of the teflon tape over the sealing strip has failed and the tape pulls away and out of alignment exposing the heating element.   I have to reposition the strip each time I seal a bag.  I called FoodSaver and they said there are no parts for this and recommended that I buy a new unit.  The unit functions perfectly otherwise.  I cannot believe they are suggesting this for a piece of tape.
> 
> I am disappointed at the lack of Customer Service from them as even though it is a lower grade model it still is a $150 unit.
> 
> If anyone has any ideas, I am open to suggestions.  I thought maybe a high temperature glue for the edge of the tape...


H2 and others, evening.....  Using some high temp silicone, can you put a few drops all along the edge of the tape to the body to create little "clamps" to hold it in place ???  the silicone may not stick to the teflon sealing strip but might hold it where it should be...    then place saran over the entire strip and lower the lid....   the saran will keep the silicone from sticking to other stuff and flatten it out so it won't interfere after the fix is complete.....  just a thought... not at all sure if it will work....     Dave


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## bellia

Yes, I have the same problem with the sealing strip on mine. I have tried to adjust it, but each time I put in a bag it will not seal. It has even smoked and burn the rubber on the upper seal track.  My machine is barely 3 years old it still runs good and looks like new.  I can not afford to just throw it away, I do not have that kind of money.

Bellia


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## goliath

i have an LEM vacuum pac machine and its the bomb... in fishing season or when i do up bacon i can have 30 bags to do or more. this thing has never missed a beat no need to let it cool down for minutes after you've done a few bags. a real work horse.

and as for bags .... vacuum sealers unlimited premium bags beat the hell out of food saver bags. by performance and price.

even with the shipping where i live i still save alot on the price of bags....


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## cavediver

Bellia said:


> Yes, I have the same problem with the sealing strip on mine. I have tried to adjust it, but each time I put in a bag it will not seal. It has even smoked and burn the rubber on the upper seal track.  My machine is barely 3 years old it still runs good and looks like new.  I can not afford to just throw it away, I do not have that kind of money.
> 
> Bellia


I found a site called elementsandmore.com

They have replacement sealing strips for Foodsaver and Rival units.  I've no experience with these folks and have not done business with them; this is just a heads-up that the parts are out there :)

I trashed an older Rival that suffered from the same issue.  My current Foodsaver is developing the same problem too; this time around I will try to change the strip.

ETA: After further research, it appears you can buy just the teflon tape from McMaster Carr.  I found a source on the internet that referred to part number 76475A32, but I (again) can't vouch for that one myself :) 

If you do a search on the subject of replacing the seals / elements, there are several great tutorials available.


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