Hops Food Vacuum Question

[mgo737]

I am planning on buying the: Rival VS107 Seal-a-Meal
Amazon.com: Rival VS107 Seal-a-Meal Vacuum Food Sealer: Kitchen & Dining

My question is this, do I buy the vacuum sealer rolls for the hops?
Or do I buy the bags?
Any other info on using a food vacuum to seal hops? Thanks

 

[SavageSteve]

I use a vacuum sealer all the time. You can use bags or rolls-- you end up making bags out of the rolls anyway, cut to the size you need.

Go for it. You'll be amazed at how much they squeeze down!

-Steve

 

[The Pol]

+1 on the bag rolls... they are the BEST

 

[MajorTom]

Let me know how you end up liking it. I'm thinking of getting one. Its cheaper than the foodsaver so I want to make sure its half way decent. It is my understanding that it comes with six bags.

 

[SisterThelonious]

I like the roll best because you can make the bags any size you want and save on waste. It's amazing how much it squishes.

 

[samc]

Has a bunch of negative reviews on Amazon from the link you provided.

 

[SkiSoloII]

Try this: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f19/vacuum-sealers-seal-meal-119976/

Dave

 

[mgo737]

samc, not to be obnoxious but your post was rather unhelpful. I, of course, read the reviews before posting this. However, since I typically take the median approach to reading reviews it appeared that a few bad apples skewed the overall star rating. Thanks anyway.

 

[Joe Camel]

There are a few people on here that use the mason jar attachment and seal their hops in jars for freezing. Oxygen free and reusable

Cheers

 

[mgo737]

MajorTom, headed out to Menards last night and purchased it for $46 + $5 for a knock off brand 8" roll. Figured I could not go wrong with their return policy. So far the thing is awesome! Easy to use. Cheap. Works great. I guess the only thing time will tell is longevity...

FYI: I sealed 3 lbs of hops last night with it...

 

[BargainFittings]

The VacUpack sealer will be my next sealer.

I currently use a Sinbo Sealer and it works great. When it breaks I'm upgrading to the VacUpack.

 

[The Pol]

I am planning on buying the: Rival VS107 Seal-a-Meal
Amazon.com: Rival VS107 Seal-a-Meal Vacuum Food Sealer: Kitchen & Dining

My question is this, do I buy the vacuum sealer rolls for the hops?
Or do I buy the bags?
Any other info on using a food vacuum to seal hops? Thanks

I have to add this... my FoodSaver has an attachment to seal mason jars, which I prefer to the bags. You buy the jars once and that is all, you just pop them open and measure out what you need, and reseal. No more buying bags for hops.

I am not sure if the Rival has attachments like this, but if so, Id recommend it, I love it!

 

[masonsjax]

Sweet, a fresh twist to the old "plastic vs glass" debate! Giddyup!

 

[samc]

samc, not to be obnoxious but your post was rather unhelpful. I, of course, read the reviews before posting this. However, since I typically take the median approach to reading reviews it appeared that a few bad apples skewed the overall star rating. Thanks anyway.

You were not obnoxious just self centered. Posts are not just for your entertainment and enlightenment. Others read and search these forums and may not be aware of the negatives of an item. I merely pointed out that negatives exist and therefore have cautioned others to read the reviews.

 

[SixFoFalcon]

I have to add this... my FoodSaver has an attachment to seal mason jars, which I prefer to the bags. You buy the jars once and that is all, you just pop them open and measure out what you need, and reseal. No more buying bags for hops.

I am not sure if the Rival has attachments like this, but if so, Id recommend it, I love it!

I'm interested in purchasing said attachment. I have the FoodSaver V3480 (highly recommended, BTW) and I have literally dozens and dozens of Ball mason jars (we make and can a lot of sauces, jellies, etc.) I will still use the FoodSaver bags for larger quantities of hops (over a pound) and freeze them, but it would be nice to keep smaller amounts handy in mason jars.

Is this the product you use?
FoodSaver® Wide Mouth Jar Sealer

And WRT to the bags vs. rolls question, I will never buy bags again. The chance of the bag being the exact size you need is practically nil, and it only takes 30 seconds to make a custom size bag from the continuous roll anyway. Plus, the roll is self-contained inside my FoodSaver so there is no need to rummage through drawers or have bags laying around.

If anyone is interested, this is the FoodSaver I use and recommend:
FoodSaver V3480
Due to the price (more than double the price of the Rival), it's not entirely relevant to this discussion. But for those people who feel comfortable spending the extra cash, it's worth every penny. It came highly recommended by some BBQ/catering professionals who "use the heck out of it" so I think it will hold up well in my kitchen/brewery.

 

[The Pol]

YES, that is the attachment I use. The wide mouth jar sealer. I can fit about 10 ounces of pellet in each 12oz jar

 

[SixFoFalcon]

Thanks for the quick confirmation!

I was a little confused after reading the description on the FoodSaver website. I couldn't tell if the attachment allowed you to use the regular mason jar lids or not. It almost sounded like they were telling you to use one of their proprietary lids, but then there were no links under the "parts" tab so I didn't know what to think.

 

[bmckee56]

+1 on the Mason Jars. They cut the cost of bag waste and allow you to open and reseal easily.

Salute!

 

[The Pol]

Thanks for the quick confirmation!

I was a little confused after reading the description on the FoodSaver website. I couldn't tell if the attachment allowed you to use the regular mason jar lids or not. It almost sounded like they were telling you to use one of their proprietary lids, but then there were no links under the "parts" tab so I didn't know what to think.

I know, it is misleading. The attachment seals the regular mason jar lid on. Works awesome!

 

[bmckee56]

Mine only does large mouth (wide mouth) jars. Just like the picture earlier.

Still an excellant storage means. Works great for grain and DME to if you use the large mason jars.

Salute!

 

[SixFoFalcon]

Looks like you need to buy a separate accessory for the regular (non-wide-mouth) jars.

Regular Mason Jar Accessory

Might be good for storing an ounce or two in the small jelly jars.

 

[The Pol]

Looks like you need to buy a separate accessory for the regular (non-wide-mouth) jars.

Regular Mason Jar Accessory

Might be good for storing an ounce or two in the small jelly jars.

I should clarify, when I said regular jar lids, I meant mason lids, nothing special

 

[LandoCalrissian]

Do the more, um, modestly priced vacuum sealers have similar attachments? Because those Ball jars of hops look fantastic…

 

[mgo737]

this cheap rivals seal-a-meal comes with an attachment tubing thing that I believe can be hooked up into the mason jar lid attachment...

 

[bmckee56]

Yeah....... as long as there is a tube connection to the foodsaver unit (anybrand). You can do the lid attachment.

If you have a vacuum pump at home that you use for other things like filtering beer or wine, degassing or such, you can adapt the foodsaver piece to that and use your vacuum pump. Use a gauge inline with it though or you might experience some implosion of vessels if they are light weight jars. You would also need some means of releasing the vacuum pulled on the lid in order to get the adapter off the lid without breaking the vacuum inside the jar. Not hard to do though, just use a "T" fitting and a small hand valve to release.

 

[LandoCalrissian]

Awesome, thanks guys.