# I am so done with Foodsaver!



## maddy (Oct 30, 2010)

If the constant string of failures this evening were not the norm, perhaps I wouldn't be so upset, but I've simply had it. I've spent hours and hours troubleshooting, reading about various hacks, calling Tilia, cleaning gaskets, putting in new gaskets--and on and on--and I STILL can't get consistent sealing with this thing. About half of the meat I seal ultimately ends in failure, and the jar sealer--well, forget it. That ain't happening. Not with two stacked lids, not with the paper towel trick, not with a new jar and new lids, not with spinning around three times while saying Hail Marys. I've lost more money on failures due to this thing than I care to think about.

Does anyone here have a recommendation for a sealer that consistently works?


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

Nope. I gave up on them for the exact reasons you mentioned.


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## VBF (Apr 15, 2017)

We had the same problems. Bought a Meat! Brand chamber sealer a couple months back and absolutely love it.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

My mom has a FoodSaver. She found that it helps to freeze the food before trying to seal it. If it's not frozen the moisture often gets into the sealing area. She never could get the jar vaccuum to work.

I don't recall her using it much the past few years. Maybe she gave up on hers too.


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## Writer's Block (Dec 21, 2021)

I have never used the jar sealer, but otherwise I have been pretty lucky with seals.

I use it for more than food. I use it to waterproof stuff for trips, keep stuff sealed against water and dirt long term, etc.


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## HDRider (Jul 21, 2011)

I like my Food Saver. I only use it to freeze stuff.


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## Fishindude (May 19, 2015)

HDRider said:


> I like my Food Saver. I only use it to freeze stuff.


Me too.
Have processed and packaged a whole bunch of deer and hogs with ours and have not experienced the above problems.


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## po boy (Jul 12, 2010)

I have had one about 10 years and use it to seal meat, dehydrated squash, and store-bought frozen veggies. No problems.


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## robin416 (Dec 29, 2019)

A friend of mine had a new FS and was struggling. Her issues turned out to be her trying to seal bags that were too short for the amount of food in them. Then she was running into the issue of food stuffs in the seal area that caused it to not seal properly.

I just replaced my 15 year old FS with a new one. I won't say that it wasn't without trepidation because I did see complaints about them not functioning properly.


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## maddy (Oct 30, 2010)

It occurred to me an hour or so after going to bed for the evening that I had once picked up a vintage jar sealer at a garage sale. I was intrigued enough by the thought that I got out of bed and, sure enough, I found it tucked away on the back recesses of my canning shelf. So, I thought, no better time than now to pull it out and see if it works. I just hate unfinished projects, and I hate ending the day on a failure.

Turns out that this is an entirely manual jar sealer with the brand name "Pump 'n' Seal." By the looks of it, it is of early '70s vintage. And it turns out that this inconspicuous little gadget was the answer to my prayers--a simple little device that actually WORKS!

For those who have experienced a similar disappointment with the Foodsaver jar sealer attachment, let me share some details: This simple little device looks like a miniature bicycle pump, minus the hose. It has a suction cup on one end and a spring-loaded piston with handle on the other. The instructions are remarkably simple: You poke a hole in your jar lid using a tiny punch (it looks exactly like a bullletin board pin), then cover the hole with a tiny patch that resembles a miniature band-aid. You then place the suction cup over the band-aid-covered hole and begin pumping. After pumping for 15 or so seconds, you remove the suction cup, and--viola!--the jar lid is sucked in and firmly affixed to the jar. You can then remove the jar ring and store.

I successfully sealed quite a number of jars last night using this device. It went quickly, and I didn't have a single failure. I set the jars aside over night to see if the seal would hold, and--yep--every one of them remains firmly sucked in this morning.

Okay, I thought, this is great EXCEPT that this is a vintage device, and never in a million years will I find more of those little bandaid-like patches that I'll need to continue using it after the existing ones run out. But not only did I find those little patches for sale on the internet, I found the device itself still being sold! It's not at all hard to find--at Amazon, on eBay, and elsewhere. The price is about $34 as of today.

I'm completely sold on this thing. Once again, I find that simpler is better. Imagine that!


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## GTX63 (Dec 13, 2016)

Pump N Seal also has a Facebook page.


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## GTX63 (Dec 13, 2016)

Log into Facebook


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## maddy (Oct 30, 2010)

Thanks for that video. She shows that you can reuse the little patches--and also that you can use electrical tape as a substitute for them. Great info!


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## Pony (Jan 6, 2003)

I have no complaints with my FoodSaver. 

DH's best buddy found it when he was out at garage sales, and picked it up (along with a lot of cast iron pans!) as a going away gift when we left Ill-annoy.

It's worked great so far, including the jar attachment.

Of course, now that I've said it's good, the darned thing will start acting up...


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## paulyn (12 mo ago)

I vac pac in canning jars but they have to be the right jars. Wide mouth Ball or Kerr brand work best. Mayo jars, off brands, and small mouth won’t seal usually.
I seal salads in jars and they keep for a week in the frig. Just don’t add dressing until time to eat them. I also have been vac packing my freeze-dried food in pints and quarts, but my freezedryer has broken down 4 times in the past 4 months so I may be back to freezing the old fashioned way.


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## gilleyb1958 (Dec 26, 2021)

I bought my first Food Saver probably 20 years ago. Loved that thing and slap wore it out and bought another one.
That was the biggest piece of junk I ever owned so I bought a cheap one, not a FS brand and it's perfect and very basic.
Actually have 2 of them.
I use the other one for sealing up Mylar bags with a hair straightener and that tube that I guess is for containers.
Works great for that also with an oxygen absorber for really long term storage.

I have had some sealing failures, but it takes a little time to see what is going on and what you can expect. Practice and patience, it can get aggravating.
Food Saver bags are good but overpriced. I use them only for something that might puncture, bone maybe etc.
Cheaper ones for most anything else. Do good for me.


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## Kelly Craig (Oct 10, 2021)

I made my own sealing system years back. It disappeared with the ex. 

To operate the sealer, I used vacuum cleaners with rubber plugs from a big box that fit the end of the hose by drilling a hole in it and installing clear plastic hose in it. It worked.

Later, I found a nebulizer at a garage sale for two bucks. I pulled the cover and swapped the hose so it became a vacuum, rather than a noisy air compressor. It worked too.

To seal, I blew fifty on an impulse sealer. Being able to vary seal temps allowed me to seal ANY bag.

Now, I used the food saver my wife bought, let it ATTEMPT a seal on 7 mil bags, then jump to the impulse sealer sent with my freeze dryer. The combo allows the oxygen absorbers to work less hard keeping my food sealed.


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## CC Pereira (9 mo ago)

I prefer wide mouth mason jars, oxygen absorbers, a manual hand pump, and fermentation lids (for wide mouth mason jars). The jars protect goods from external air, moisture, and contamination. Oxygen absorbers use up the oxygen inside the jars, to protect goods from oxidation. The manual hand pump can be used to pump air (and oxygen) out of the jars, to reduce the amount of air (and oxygen) inside the jars, reduce the amount of time it takes for oxygen absorbers to use up the oxygen inside the jars, and thus help to protect goods from oxidation. Fermentation lids also allow gases (such as air and CO2) to go out of the jars but not in.


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