Foodsaver vacuum sealer

mjd

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I know there have been some discussions about Foodsaver vacuum sealers but didn't see anything about models, pros and cons.

What kind of Foodsaver vacuum sealer do you have and what do you like/dislike about it?

What bag sizes do you use or is it easier to use the roll for custom sizes?


I'm thinking of getting one. It's just me but I waste some foods because it gets freezer burned before I can use it.

Thanks in advance.
 
Their machines may work for some people, but I've had nothing but bad luck with them!! On every one that I've had, the heater strip crapped out prematurely!! 😡
 
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Shermie, how long did you have them before the heater strip crapped out? Many items, especially appliances, are have planned obsolescence. Did you like it before it died? Would you mind sharing which brands and models you had?
 
Foodsaver and we've had it for years and years. Actually my step mom gave it to us as she'd been gifted it and only used it a couple of times over a couple of years. We use it mainly for when we make sausage or buy meat in bulk and need to freeze it. I buy off brand rolls to make bags off Amazon, just picked some with 4 plus star reviews. They were a lot cheaper than the brand bags. The machine came with accessories to freeze liquids, but we've never used it for that.
 
Shermie, how long did you have them before the heater strip crapped out? Many items, especially appliances, are have planned obsolescence. Did you like it before it died? Would you mind sharing which brands and models you had?

Don't remember the model#'s, but at the time, I had several & bought their top model at the time. In three months, the thing crapped out!!! It was the heater strip again!!!! First, it had stopped working at all, then it would stop in the middle of the sealing job!! Every one that I had, that problem had followed me like a cancer!!!!
Took it back to BB&B. They gave me a mechandise credit for anything in the store within the price of the machine, the price of the failed unit. After that, I would buy just about any other vacuum sealer other than a FoodSavor machine!!! :ninja:
 
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Don't remember the model#'s, but at the time, I had several & bought their topmodel at the time. In three months, the thing crapped out!!! It was the heater strip again!!!! First, it had stopped working at all, then it would stop in the middle of the sealing job!! Took it back to BB&B. They gave me a mechandise credit for anything in the store withimacvhine.n the price of the failed unit. After that, I would but just about any other vacuum sealer other than a FoodSavor machine!!! :ninja:

I can understand why that would be frustrating. I would not be happy if I had that kind of experience with a product after just a few months.

Have you found any other brands you like? I try to buy based on products with high reviews and several thousand of them. I'm kinda the same way about new recipes. I've only run across 2 or 3 that turned out to be awful even with good/great reviews in the thousands.
 
I can understand why that would be frustrating. I would not be happy if I had that kind of experience with a product after just a few months.

Have you found any other brands you like? I try to buy based on products with high reviews and several thousand of them. I'm kinda the same way about new recipes. I've only run across 2 or 3 that turned out to be awful even with good/great reviews in the thousands.
That's what I try to do. I have a Ziplock unit now. No problems. Had it for 4 years now.
 
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I have had two Foodsaver models. Both were really good to use, but both failed after 2-3 years, both with vacuum pump problems. I think they are designed for casual use. When I do a batch of smoked salmon, or confit duck, I will often do 10 - 15 bags in succession. I always buy continuous roll, not pre-cut bags, it is far more flexible. The Foodsaver dispenses and cuts the roll, others do not.
 
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I strongly believe that since Tilia doesn't make them any more, that they are crap!!!! Anytime a product is no longer made by it's original maker, it goes to being junk!! Same thing happened with KA mixers. When Hobart sold the division to Whilpool, They began making them with crappy parts, causing them to fail prematurely!!!! :ninja:
 
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I have a Foodsaver, FM3945, bought at Sam's Club, so it came with extra bags and things.

I hated it at first and struggled to get it to work, which I talked about here earlier. I even spent quite a while on the phone with support, and they told me to return it if I wanted. I wasn't really happy with them.

After watching several videos online, I finally figured out how to use mine, and now it love it. The unit is extremely picky with getting the top of the bag lined up so that it'll vacuum properly, but once you know how to do it, I rarely have a failure.

A couple of things I don't like:

1. A lot of foods, either due to moisture or softness, are recommended to be frozen first before sealing. Probably just me, it's annoying to have to freeze something before I seal it...to freeze.

It does come with a "moist" button, that's supposed to work with soft items - still crushes the living crap out of them, so that's useless.

2. They make reusable bags for thing things you want to seal and reopen and reseal, so maybe something like nuts - you can seal them up (like a ziploc bag), open them, have a few nuts, then seal them again, over and over.

Those don't really hold a seal for very long. By the next day, air seeps in, so it's kind of pointless.

I usually just buy the rolls and cut my own bags to fit. It's not cheap, but probably cheaper than throwing out a bunch of food. I do like the fat-bottomed precut bags for soups, though. Easy to fill and store.

Another thing is like is the ability to reseal plastic bags, like maybe you opened a bag of pretzels...you can squeeze the air out and just pop the top of the original bag on the sealer strip, close the lid, press seal, and it reseals the original bag.

My brother talked me into it, and when I talked to him after buying it, that's when he filled me in on all the problems I was having, saying they were common ones, and that led him to buy a commercial-grade one. This tabletop one I have, you do have to let it cool down a bit, if you're trying to do a whole bunch at once.

My sister has a very old Foodsaver. She sent me a pic, it's about the size of an old laser printer :)laugh:), but she's still using it. She loves it.

So, overall, I'd recommend it, though I'd warn you about the frustration level, until you figure it out. If you buy the same model I have, I'll offer my services as Foodsaver consultant, free of charge, to show you how to get it to work. Seriously, I was about to throw that thing through the window, I was so mad at it! :laugh:
 
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