vacuum sealing food

Submitted: Wednesday, Mar 02, 2011 at 14:39
ThreadID: 84718 Views:5581 Replies:8 FollowUps:6
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hi Guys,Has anyone had any success with vacuum sealing food using a manually operated suction pump?Does it actually prolong the life of food in the fridge?To me if it works, manually operated when caravanning is the way to go.
kman
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Reply By: gonebush SA - Wednesday, Mar 02, 2011 at 15:26

Wednesday, Mar 02, 2011 at 15:26
hi, we have the machine type bought from the camping show which is good and much better than the cheaper ones from ebay, even apart from the idea of food lasting longer it's how flat and easy food is to pack into fridge or freezer making lots more fit into the same place. but i think you are talking about those smaller ones, that were advertised on tv, we were looking at them at the last camping show too, but i think the bags would workout quite dear as they only work with their own bags i think, that's what put us off, but like you would be interested to hear about them and the cost of using them.
AnswerID: 447090

Follow Up By: SDG - Wednesday, Mar 02, 2011 at 15:31

Wednesday, Mar 02, 2011 at 15:31
Big W sell the units for 60 bucks, included is 3 bags. From memory extra bags are 20 bucks a packet. Not sure how many in a packet. Gone to look at them a few times, but they are always out of stock at my local store.
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Reply By: pepper2 - Wednesday, Mar 02, 2011 at 15:35

Wednesday, Mar 02, 2011 at 15:35
I have machine type as well,you can vacuum and reseal virtually any plastic bag with it eg corn chip bag,potatoe chips bag thus saving the unused contents for later.
AnswerID: 447091

Follow Up By: Jeffie - Wednesday, Mar 02, 2011 at 15:55

Wednesday, Mar 02, 2011 at 15:55
We have a Breville Vacuum Sealer and though it works quite well I would not recommend them to others.
They can only use their own bags, which appear to be able to be used about 12 times but in fact it takes so much cleaning to make them reusable its hardly worth it and sometimes you have difficulty resealing them anyway.
We used ours to keep meat etc fresh for a CSR trip of 20 days and it did the job - no need to keep everything frozen just kept it in the fridge.

The ones you can use with any brand of bag (as per pepper 2 above) would IMHO be better.

Jeff.
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Follow Up By: Shaker - Wednesday, Mar 02, 2011 at 16:47

Wednesday, Mar 02, 2011 at 16:47
I can't imagine cleaning & reusing bags, it would be a logistical nightmare to ensure that they were close to sterile.
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Follow Up By: Jeffie - Wednesday, Mar 02, 2011 at 17:41

Wednesday, Mar 02, 2011 at 17:41
Spot on Shaker.
After trying to clean a few bags, (had to wash them several times then get them dry), we gave up and threw them out once used.
Its OK if you have somewhat dry food but anything with a bit of moisture made it almost impossible to clean satisfactorily and we were not prepared to run the risk of food poisoning just to save a few $$.
The Breville does work OK but to restrictive - must use their special bags due to the way it seals.

Jeff.
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FollowupID: 719424

Follow Up By: kman1 - Thursday, Mar 03, 2011 at 18:32

Thursday, Mar 03, 2011 at 18:32
Thanks pepper,which machine do you have as I reckon the cost of special bags is too expensive?
kman
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FollowupID: 719544

Reply By: Member - cuffs (SA) - Wednesday, Mar 02, 2011 at 15:46

Wednesday, Mar 02, 2011 at 15:46
I have a e bay one, keeps cooked Pizza, stews, BBQ meats, roasts & marinated chicken pieces up to 4 weeks in camp fridge no need to freeze.



AnswerID: 447093

Reply By: Member -Dodger - Wednesday, Mar 02, 2011 at 16:54

Wednesday, Mar 02, 2011 at 16:54
We have a Sunbeam foodsaver vacuum pack machine in our van and run it off a 300watt inverter. The bags are in rolls that you seal then cut off the length you require. It has been working well for about 6 years without any problems.
We cry-ovac meat and many food items in meal lots then simply keep them at fridge temps until we consume them.
We even cry-ovac any fish we catch (fillets ) and they last for weeks.
Best bit of food type gear we have.

I used to have a handle on life, but it broke.

Cheers Dodg.

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AnswerID: 447102

Reply By: Gronk - Wednesday, Mar 02, 2011 at 17:34

Wednesday, Mar 02, 2011 at 17:34
I think hes meaning a manually operated one ( NOT ELECTRIC )

I haven't seen one, but if that's what he means, it makes sense, but don't know where you'd get one ??
AnswerID: 447110

Reply By: Member - Barry H (WA) - Wednesday, Mar 02, 2011 at 17:44

Wednesday, Mar 02, 2011 at 17:44
kman1,

I bought a manual vac set up from the old Ranger camping stores here in WA, I am not sure what they call themselves now, I think they have changed hands recently.

Had it for about a year and so far no probs, it does prolong the life of the food, no doubt about that.

From memory it cost around $30 and they sell replacement bags as well.

Regards

Barry H
AnswerID: 447113

Reply By: Member - Michael J (SA) - Wednesday, Mar 02, 2011 at 18:26

Wednesday, Mar 02, 2011 at 18:26
Hi kman1,

I used one of the manually operated suction pumps for
years and it performed very well.(in those days the electrical ones had yet to be invented) Mainly used it for the dogs food (and then froze it) -and he never complained;))

But did use it for our own use on quite a few occasions. No problems at all. Come to think of it I have no idea what happened to it.

We moved on to an electrical model but I guess the manual one would be ideal when travelling.

Cheers
Michael
AnswerID: 447121

Follow Up By: V8 Troopie - Thursday, Mar 03, 2011 at 02:04

Thursday, Mar 03, 2011 at 02:04
You must have had a better model than I have Michael. A few years back I ordered a manual pump kit from the states and it was supposed to work with zip lock bags - it never held a vacuum for long with these.
It also works with screw top jars after punching a small hole into the lid and fitting a stick on one way valve - this did work but was not convenient for everything I wanted to vacuum seal.

I now have the electric model, working off an inverter on my boat to seal excess fish meat for later consumption. The fridge does not freeze things so vacuum sealing is a good option.
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Reply By: kman1 - Sunday, Mar 06, 2011 at 17:21

Sunday, Mar 06, 2011 at 17:21
Hi guys,Sincere thanks to allthose that took the time to reply.
kman
AnswerID: 447475

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