What size chamber sealer

[blackdogbbq21]

I'm looking at upgrading my vac sealer to a chamber sealer. I want to be sure i buy an appropriate size one and not kick myself later. For those of you that own them what is the max size bag you can use? Is it adequate for everything you need, or do you wish you had something different?

 

[Volsfan846]

They are much different animals than the old food saver things. You can seal anything in them. I put things in a Mason jar and vacuum seal those. I put a half size hotel pan in mine and marinade steaks and other meats under pressure. You can even vacuum seal liquids like soups and sauces. Get the largest one you can afford to buy. You will never say man I wish I had bought the smaller one. And get the highest quality unit you can afford. Should last you a lifetime.

 

[RemoGaggi]

Exactly what Volsfan said - Get the biggest and highest quality one you can afford. I got the small Avid Armor ($400) and while I love it, every now and then I wish I had a bigger one.

 

[KB BBQ]

The VacMaster VP215 is a very popular unit which I own and I highly recommend it.
Check it out here: https://www.webstaurantstore.com/ar...achine-with-10-1-4-seal-bar/120VMASVP215.html

 

[sudsandswine]

There’s obviously a little less flexibility on the max size of things you can vacuum seal based on the inner dimensions of the chamber. I have a decent sized chamber vac and I still use my Foodsaver for spares, briskets, etc. max size I can use is 11x13” bags. I would try to figure out the maximum dimension of the things you’d be most interested in using it for then make sure the inner dimensions can support it. I am fortunate to have enough space to keep both so it doesn’t really bother me keeping the Foodsaver around and using whichever one situations dictate. That being said, I do like my chamber vac a lot and it can do things my Foodsaver can’t.

Most of them are quite heavy, the one I have probably weighs 40 or 50lbs and I keep it on a cart I roll in and out of a small room off the kitchen. I definitely wouldn’t be interested in lugging mine around or keeping it on the counter permanently (personal preference there).

 

[Bbq_lover]

I have this one and love it. If you look up the bearded butchers on YouTube you may also find a coupon code. I bought mine last year and use it all the time. I found that buying the bags on sale brings my cost down to less than 5cents a bag blended cost for all the sizes. Either way shop around for the best price on bags. The chamber sealer is amazing and I like it more than the foodsaver. The only area foodsaver is better at is sealing larger items like a brisket, whole racks of ribs or whole salmon because you can control the length of the bag. That doesn’t matter to me as I can just portion it out and then seal them in the chamber sealer.

https://www.meatyourmaker.com/prese...rs/chamber-vacuum-sealer/1117075.html#start=1

 

[sudsandswine]

I have the same one. Full disclosure - I found some metal shavings, more like residue maybe, in the oil after I changed it the second time. I sent pics to them and they didn’t seem particularly concerned but offered to replace it anyway so that they had a chance to inspect it in person. I obliged and they sent me a new one and I sent my original back to them. I don’t know much about hydraulic pumps but it seems in general machined cylindrical things often advise to do oil changes after some initial use so maybe some fine metal particles is to be expected. I don’t point this fact out as a complaint but as an example that the warranty process and support was straight forward and resistance free. They have a limited lifetime warranty so I’m always slightly skeptical in those situations. The unit itself seems very high quality and manufactured well. The support and company is US based, in fact just a couple hours east of me. I bought mine shortly after they launched and also have the dehydrator and jerky gun (which is nearly identical to a LEM, wouldnt surprise me if the same factory makes both) and I’ve been pleased with the price, quality, and performance.