Whether it’s storing this year’s crop of strawberries fresh from the garden or saving last night’s stroganoff to use for another meal, vacuum sealers can be a great tool. Vacuum sealers work by removing the air within the storage bag, then sealing the bag before any air can get back in. This significantly reduces the opportunity of aerobic bacteria–bacteria the require oxygen to survive–surviving in the foodstuff, along with decreasing oxidation. When along with refrigeration or freezing, vacuum sealed foods can store safely for a significant long time.
Selecting the best vacuum sealer could be challenging, however. There are lots of different brands to choose from, and often numerous choosing vacuum sealers tips models within each brand. This informative article will not attempt to judge the various brands and models, but will give you a simple idea what features to look for and how to ascertain which group of features are right for you.
Sealer Bar Width
The sealer bar could be the part of the sealer that melts both sides of a vacuum storage bag together to generate an air tight seal. In addition, it determines the widest bag the sealer can use. For instance, if your sealer features a 12″ sealer bar, you will not manage to use bags wider than 12″ at most. For best results you would want to use bags narrower than the sealer bar to make certain a small seal entirely across the bag.
Before searching for a vacuum sealer, take time to take into account that which you might want to seal. For all folks who are storing everyday foods, bag width is not just a critical consideration. Others, however, might be storing larger items like cuts of meat, whole vegetables, as well as important documents (vacuum sealing can help preserve documents as well). These individuals may want to look at a larger sealer bar to ensure the machine can seal bags wide enough to support their items. Consider, too, that while a bag might be, for example, 12″ wide, a few of the internal space is taken up with bag seams and might not allow a full 12″ internal storage space.
Automatic and Manual Modes
Most vacuum sealers include an automatic mode. This mode does a lot of the work for you by testing the air pressure to be able to shut down each time a certain pressure is attained, then automatically starting the sealing (and sometimes bag cutting) process. For some casual users this is ideal and takes much of the guess-work out of vacuum sealing foods.
But not absolutely all foods behave the same. Dry pasta, for example, is much easier to seal than fresh spaghetti sauce. An excessive amount of suction could end up in the sauce being pulled out from the bag and building a mess. For more capable users and for more delicate uses, some machines include a manual mode. The consumer may then monitor the method themselves for more precise control.
Variable Pressure
Many models deliver a single vacuum pressure, some units allow the user to create the quantity of pressure for greater control. Again, this is pretty much important depending on how you want to use your vacuum sealer. More delicate items may require more gentle pressure to avoid damage (some models boast the ability to crush aluminum cans, after all). If the problem of that being sealed is very important, finding a device with variable pressure might be important to you.
Multiple Sealing Wires
Most models seal the bags by utilizing heated wires to melt the bag sides together. Having multiple sealing wire provides a much lower chance of tiny gaps in the seal, which let air back to the bag. Most models will have two wires or even a much wider heating bar to make certain a stronger seal. Some models will have three or maybe more wires as well. For the most part how well a bag is sealed has just as much to do with the operator as the unit, so this may or may possibly not be as critical a feature.
Continuous Seals
Some models support the ability to produce multiple sealed pouches in a continuous row. For instance, an individual could seal pasta, meatballs, and sauce in three separate pouches, but leave all three still linked together as a single package. Most models only permit one seal per pouch, however, many ensure it is possible to seal one pouch after another without cutting between each pouch. This can be a handy feature, but might be less important for some users.
Automatic Bag Cutter If cutting bags yourself is a hassle, then you may want to take into account a device that cuts the bag automatically. This is more important when using rolls of sealing plastic instead of individual pouches. A case cutter can be quite convenient, especially when sealing multiple bags within a session. On another hand, it is an additional moving part that can break and will likely need maintenance or replacing after the cutter becomes dull.
Option of Bags
One easily overlooked consideration could be the accessibility to bags, both generally and in specific sizes. Vacuum seal bags can be a little pricey (some as high as 50 cents to a dollar a bag), and most would want to avoid using a larger, higher priced bag if they can use a smaller one instead. Be certain the bags you need are readily available. It is possible to use bags from other manufacturers as well, however for best results it may be more straightforward to utilize the bags from the same manufacturer that made your sealer.
Most bags are readily available on the Internet today, but that won’t allow you to much if you run out of bags in the center of a session sealing highly perishable foods like berries. The ability to find your bags locally along with online could be important. Take a little time to do your research and you won’t be stranded in the center of a project.
Just how to Decide?
If you aren’t sure how you want to use your vacuum sealer, you might wish to buy the most inexpensive model you’ll find at first, just to get your feet wet. Once you know how they work and what you certainly can do together, then you’re able to search at additional ways you want to use it, and whether or not the model you’ve will support that use. Or even, then you’re able to upgrade to an improved model knowing fully that which you are looking for.
Take a little time to take into account that which you might use your machine to do. If your goal is better storage and packaging of leftovers, you may look at a unit that may package separate ingredients within a, continuous string of pouches to be able to keep the whole dish or meal conveniently grouped together. If you should be an enthusiastic hunter or fisherman hoping to preserve the meat you’ve brought home you may want a high quality model with a broad bag capacity. If you preserve delicate items or home documents you may want a style with variable pressure control to make sure you don’t damage your items with excessive of suction.
Simply speaking, take time to take into account how you want to use your sealer, then look into which features will be most critical in meeting that need. While investing in a second vacuum sealer is not the finish of the entire world if you actually will use it, it’s often an avoidable expense if you research and plan carefully before you decide the initial one.
Recent Comments