OT Reynolds Handi-vac Sealer yes/no?

hmmm...jus checked amazon..these things are only 17bux...called wiffie and caught her at Target..they're only $8.49 there!!.. :woohoo: :woohoo:

I have both this one and also the larger vacu-seal type unit. I use this one for things like cold cuts, cheeses, left-overs that are being stored in the fridge. I also use it for seasoned nuts I keep in the freezer and pull out for salads. I use it for things I'm resealing a lot, getting in and out of. It works great on anything that does not go into the freezer. For some reason, it more often than not will lose it's vacuum once it gets into the freezer. The trick may be that your food needs to take up most of the room in the bag you use, but the bags only come in two sizes.

I use the larger vacuum unit for things that are going into the freezer for longer term storage and it works fantastic. I also use the larger unit to reseal things like chip bags, frozen corn, etc. My only complaint is the large amt of wasted bag. It wastes about 3 inches on each end that gets sealed.

I really like both units and would recommend them both. My cheeses are lasting a lot longer with the reynolds piece. I love it and plan to get it for all my sibs for xmas next year. My only complaint is that the bags aren't easier to find. I am still trying to convince one of our stores here to carry them.

Gwen

I have both as well and I concur exactly with your comments. It really is very nice for sealing things (like sausage in my case) that you want to get often.

One thing I found was that initially I was pressing the pump to the valve with too much pressure. You only need to apply a bit of pressure to start it removing the air from whatever you're sealing. Pressing down harder does not help whatsoever.

We've had one for 5 or 6 months now. It's our only sealer, so it gets used for both long and short term freezing. Seems to hold up well in both applications.

I'm able to get most of the air out of the bag by jiggling the bag while running the pump. This lets me use a bag that seems way too big: like a quart bag for 2 ounces of hazelnuts, of a gallon bag for 1/4 pound of bacon.

Ken