An Even Cheaper Way to Vacuum Seal You Foods!! Reynolds, You're Fired!!!
Written: Jan 14 '09 (Updated Jan 30 '09)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Cheapest way to vacuum seal food and protect it from food spoilage.
Cons: None to date.
The Bottom Line: I highly recommend it!!
Great and most inexpensive way to get vacuum sealed frozen food storage!
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| daquan's Full Review: Ziploc Brand Vacuum Freezer System |
WHAT'S THE 411 ON THIS PRODUCT?
First, let me say that I had the Reynolds Handi-Vac unit which worked very well in the beginning. That is, until the time came to replace the batteries for it, and from then on, the thing just went down hill and just wouldn't work properly any more!! I found myself constantly replacing those blasted batteries every blasted two weeks! I spent more on batteries for that ill-fated thing than I did for the actual unit itself!
Then one day when I went to use the thing, it came on, but it just wouldn't suck the air out of the bags any more! This of course, after having replaced the batteries again for the umpteenth time. I got so mad, fed up and frustrated with that thing that I just threw it in the trash!! Enough was enough!
Then I heard that Ziploc has introduced THEIR version of the vacuum sealer - a hand-held manual pump that works with hand pumping motion!
WHAT THEN?
I waited for a while before I bought this one because of the tons of trouble that I had with the Reynolds unit. Then I saw the commercial on the Food Network. Still, I waited a while longer before buying it.
Then while shopping in the supermarket, I decided that I would get the unit and try it out. It was amazing! Who would have ever thought that you could get a vacuum sealer for less money than that ill-fated piece of junk that Reynolds is offering?!
WHAT ELSE?
So I tried this vacuum sealer just to see if it's any better than the Reynolds unit and found out that it works just as good! The main and most important thing about it, is that there are no aggravating and annoying batteries to have to constantly replace at all!! That has been cleverly done away with so that there is NEVER any loss of power in getting a perfect vacuum seal for all of your perishable foods!
HOW DOES IT WORK?
Air is the promary reason for food spoilage - even in the freezer! As with frozen food storage, when food is placed in an ordinary plastic bag, over time, the air that's in the bag allows mosture molecues to come to the surface of the food and freeze into ice particles - hence all that snoy-looking ice that surrounds the food. The food then begins to lose it's natural moisture throughout, as well as the flavor and taste. Thus freezer burn has set in!
The air eventually dries out the ice particles on the food and then it starts to eat away at all of the moisture, and in worst-case scenerios, the food then changes color, texture and taste! Meat such as veal, beef & pork turns a grayish brown, chicken turns opague and fruits and veggies just look awful and shriveled up!! You're just throwing your money away if your food isn't properly packaged to protect the food and prevent air from attacking it.
The Zoploc Brand Vacuum Freezer System take care of any air surrounding your foods by getting rid of the air altegether! I think it's the cheapest and most economical way to store frozen foods, especially for families who are on a tight budget and are pinching their pennies!
Boy! And in these days of the present reccession, financial crisis, job losses and high unemployment rates, we can ALL use a little help in keeping our food budget from going out of control!!
As you pull on the pump, air is drawn from the bags and the pump is cleverly design so that the air that is removed from the bag does not go back into the bag on the down stroke. A rubber gasket that surrounds the bottom of the pump helps prevent air from escaping around the unit. The effortless pulling and pushing on the pump's handle gets all of the air out of the bags until there is no more - drawing the bags up close and tight with the food.
HOW TO USE:
You just use this device just as you would an air pump to pump air into an air tire for your bike or your vehicle! Simple, easy! Seal the bags tightly with the built-in zip seal. make sure that the food is well below the vent area. Place the pump over the air vent in the upper right-hand corner on the bags. Press down firmly to form an air-tight seal between the pump and the bags. And just push and pull on the handle of the pump until you feel resistance of the pump. That's all there is to it! Then just store the packaged food in the fridge or freezer as you normally would.
CONSTRUCTION & FEATURES:
1. Completely manul pump that works with your own power.
2. No aggravating and annoying batteries to have to constantly replace at all!
3. Pump can be dismantled for easy cleaning.
4. Specially designed rubber gaskets help keep air out that has been
pumped out of bags. Air is removed only on the up stoke of handle.
5. Vacuum bags come in 1-qt and gallon sizes.
6. Pump is made from and ultra-lightweight plactic material, yet it's strong and powerful enough to pull out ALL the air from bags!
7. Storage of pump is easy. Just keep in a drawer.
8. Bags can be used for short-term and long-term storage of frozen foods.
Bags can be reused after washing and are much easier to clean - unlike those ill-fated Reynolds bags that trap blood and other liquids from food behind the textured wall, making them awfully hard to clean!!
9. Cheaper than other methods of vacuum sealing foods for freezer storage.
10. Bags can be opened, resealed and re-vacuum sealed as often as you wish!
11. Pump comes with three quart-size vacuum seal bags to get you started.
ANY SHORTCOMINGS AT ALL?
None to date.
MY OWN EXPERIENCE SO FAR:
So far, I like this unit! It's quick, convenient, lightweight and powerful!! I mainly use it for short-term storage of foods in the freezer, since the bags can be opened with no cutting. The FoodSaver, I use for long-term storage of foods in the freezer.
It's great and convenient for short-term food storage for those who don't want to go through the hassles of having to cut vacuum seal bags open all the time!
IN SHORT:
This unit can help save you tons of money over having to throw away food because it became a victim of freezer burn! It's cheap and economical for families on a tight budget, but don't want to spend money for a pricy expensive vacuum sealer.
The vacuum sealer and the bags can be found in the food storage bag section in supermarkets and drug stores.
WHAT ABOUT CLEANUP?
Cleanup is a snap! Just unscrew the blue part with the small tabs completely off, remove the handle and wash the parts by hand in hot soapy water. Let parts air-dry.
Vacuum bags can be easily washed, air-dried and later reused! Easy to clean and there are no dirt-catching crevices at all. No entrapment of blood or other liquids behind any secondary bag walls that would otherwise make the bags ridiculously hard to clean!!
FINAL THOUGHT?
Yes!
If you're just about as sick and tired as I am of that ill-fated Reynolds unit and your food being spoiled by freezer burn, and you want a cheap and inexpensive way to say goodbye to freezer-burnt food and spoiled cheese, veggies & fruits forever, then this unit is the one to get!
Also, you can respectfully say goodbye to suffering from the blasted aggravating and constant battery replacements as can happen with the Reynolds unit!!
WHERE TO BUY THEM?
You can get the Ziploc Brand Vacuum Freezer System and the coresponding vacuum-seal bags at just about any supermarket or places like Walmart, Target, Kmart or Walgreens! Even CVS.
Thank you for reading this review.
~Daquan.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
daquan
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 - Top 500 |
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Location: East Boston, MA.
Reviews written: 245
Trusted by: 62 members
About Me:
Was born & raised in Boston. I like kitchen gadgets & appliances. Love to cook!!
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