# Foodsaver Models



## lazydaisy67 (Nov 24, 2011)

I'm watching several models of Foodsavers on E-Bay. My goal is to be able to seal canning jars since I'm dehydrating lots of veggies right now. I like the idea of sealing things in a bag as well, so I want that as an option in the future. Can I get some feedback on which model of Foodsaver works "best" or good and bad experiences people have had with theirs? 
Also, would long term storage in the vacuumed Foodsaver bags be practical? I assume shelf life would be limited unless the food was also dehydrated.


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## siletz (Aug 23, 2011)

If you want to seal up your dehydrated food in jars, you just need to get one with a port for it. It's a small hole on the top of mine that a hose connects to, and then connects to a plastic thing that goes over the jar. So, just make sure the ones you're looking for have that canister port. 

As for long-term storage, you can seal up anything that's already shelf-stable (dehydrated food, salt, pwd milk, etc) and increase the storage life greatly. This is not a substitute for canning, however.

Youtube has several videos showing how this whole process works and what people have already done that are pretty helpful if you're just starting out.


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## goshengirl (Dec 18, 2010)

I'm on my third Food Saver over the years - love them. I started as a suburbanite getting the large packages of meat at Sam's and dividing them into smaller packages for the freezer. Now my use has branched out to using the mason jar attachment for dehydrated foods, just as you're looking to do.

So here's what I've learned: If you use it A LOT (and I do), it will fail eventually. For me, it's the heat strip - my first two Food Savers burned out after 4-5 years. That said, I use my Food Savers A LOT, so I have no complaints. But it's taught me not to put a lot of money into a fancy model.

The model I have now is the bare bones - no roll storage, no cutter, no 'hands-free' function. It is nice to have a cutter feature for a straight edge, but you can also spend 20 minutes on occasion using an xacto blade, metal ruler and cutting mat and just cut up and make up a slew of bags, then do that again when your bag stock needs replenishing. And in your case, where your primary use will be for jarring up dehydrated foods, it's all about the accessory port (and yours may last you much longer than mine have, since you won't be using your heat strip as much as I do).

Oh, and regarding those fancy models - I wouldn't want the 'hands-free' models anyway - they take away the user's control in the guise of making things easy, and with more functions there's more that can go bad.

In your case, the only feature you absolutely have to have is the accessory (or canister) port. After that, I would recommend a double wide heat strip (or sealer) for when you do want to bag up items.

I definitely wouldn't spend over $100 for a unit. Remember that you will still be spending $ on bags (or rolls to make bags - more economical), and you will still need to get the mason jar attachment. Using the attachment to seal dehydrated foods in mason jars is fantastic. You may want to consider getting a bunch of 100cc oxygen absorbers, too for your dehydrated foods in jars. Some folks consider that overkill with the Food Saver attachment, some folks consider that bare minimum. Use your judgement.

Here's my (latest) Food Saver model from Amazon:
Amazon.com: FoodSaver V2244 Advanced Design Vacuum Sealer, Black: Kitchen & Dining

And here's my mason jar attachment from Amazon:
Amazon.com: FoodSaver T03-0006-01 Regular-Mouth Jar Sealer: Kitchen & Dining

Hope that helps. :wave:

p.s. - once you have a Food Saver, you will probably find a number of non-food uses for those vacuum packed bags, too.


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## Emerald (Jun 14, 2010)

I have an older model that looks quite like the game keeper model(my model is not made any more) and the only problem I've had with it is I had to replace the black gaskets after almost 6 years of use. 
I do not tax the sealing bar by constant use when I am putting stuff away. I seal the edge leave it open for a bit and then seal another edge leave it open to cool etc.
The only problem I ever had with mine is the black gaskets wearing out. they were $3 each to replace.
I do want to buy the small(regular) mason lid "sealer" to go with the wide mouth one.
I use it for many things that you wouldn't think of.. like all my herbs for in the camper, making ice pops out of fruit juice.
Why due to another thread here I took big(think fat malt type ) straws and sealed one end and filled with salt or a couple strike anywhere matches and then just sealed the other end for in the car. Worked well but I did have to open the unit before a "normal" seal time.
I've used them to take the air out and reseal cereal and potato chip bags. Another one where you have to manually open before it melts stuff too much.
I've gone thru almost 7 of the big 6 roll boxes of 
bag material. Which reminds me I have to buy another one as I am down to one big roll and one short roll.


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## lazydaisy67 (Nov 24, 2011)

Awesome! Thank you so much for your info! I am so excited to get one and get to work!


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## backlash (Nov 11, 2008)

Our first food saver was the simple easy to use inexpensive model.
It wore out and I bought the automatic upright model.
We both like the old simple style better.
The new one is finicky and you have to mess around to get the thing to start sealing.
It also wastes more of the bag than the old one did because you have to have a longer bag to get it into the sealer port.
It does have the vacuum tube to seal jars and we like that a lot.
My wife uses it almost every day.
We bought the specially made bowls for it.
They all cracked after a few months use.


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