Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I bought the VP210 for Sous Vide cooking after getting fed up with bad seals from my suction style machine ruining my food. I have used about 200 bags with the VP210 so far and have not had a single failed seal. When used properly, the double seal bar works perfectly every time. No more moisture getting sucked in and ruining the seal. A good tip for filling bags with wet foods (such as a large wet piece of meat) is to get some small (you can cut up larger ones) flexible cutting boards. Roll the cutting board into a tube and place it in the opening of the vacuum bag. Now the sealing area of the bag is protected and you can easily place wet items in the bag and still ensure a good seal. If you are pouring liquids into the bag (such as a marinade) there are handy ring stands you can get to hold the bag upright that work really well. I use my wine decanter drying stand for this. The inside is slightly sloped to keep liquid away from the seal bar but I find that it’s sometimes not enough. Even cold liquid can boil slightly liquid (do not attempt to seal warm or even room temperature liquid) under vacuum and increase in volume causing it to migrate towards the seal bar. I have a 10 inch rectangular wooden bar that I place in the chamber, under the bag, in front of the seal bar, creating a hump that stops the liquid from going into the seal area. But wait there’s lots more! There is a video online (search for: “Vacuum Sealing a Canning Jar with a Commercial Chamber Unit”) where a guy demonstrates using canning Jars as Vacuum containers in a similar machine. It took me a minute to wrap my mind around how this works but in practice it works every time if done correctly. These jars make very inexpensive little vacuum containers that pay for themselves and reduce waste because of the bags you’ll save. I have found it works better to actually screw the ring of the jar down a little further than the video, just until you meet the slightest resistance. Don’t tighten it past that point though or bad things could happen. You may wonder how the air will get out, but trust me, it does every time. When the vacuum is lifted, the lid is super tight on the jar and you can now tighten the ring all the way down. I found prying the lid off to be difficult and can damage the seal on the lid causing it to fail on subsequent uses. Instead, I use a thumbtack to poke a tiny hole in the center of the lid to release the vacuum. The lid pops right off. Then, I take a small piece of electrical tape (I know, not very sexy but it works incredibly well) fold about a quarter inch of it over on itself to create a ‘pull tab’, then cover the hole with the tape. Now the lid can be used again and again. Just pull back the tape, let the vacuum out, and press the tape back down. I have used the same piece of tape dozens and dozens of times and it re-sticks perfectly every time. It even survives hand-washing of the lids as necessary. The guy in the video says you can use any jar as long as it stands up in the machine (up to a pint jar will stand up in the VP210) but I have discovered that any size jar will work (with dry contents) because, If you screw the ring until it barely resists, you can lay it on its side. You can even seal the giant half gallon canning jars with the VP210! This trick is incredibly useful. My entire pantry is full of vacuum packed, canning jars of various sizes from tiny ones for spices, to giant ones for things like flour and rice. My fridge is full of jars too. A jar of vacuum sealed garlic cloves lasts for months. Cheese stays fresh for weeks and weeks and weeks and does not dry out. Everything stays fresh, clean and neatly organized (wide mouth pint and quart jars can be stacked). Wash-off labels and wide mouth funnels can be found and are useful for this purpose. I live by myself and used to waste A LOT of food because I couldn’t use it all before going bad, no more. In addition, any vacuum style container with a one-way valve (including ones designed for use with suction machines) can be used in the chamber. These are much more expensive than canning jars but it’s nice to have a couple for big items like leftovers or lunch. Even a wine bottle with those special vacuum corks can be placed right in the VP210. I wanted to post this review because I have found tremendous value in this machine that I was not even aware of when I purchased it. I use it several times every day and still get a real kick out of it. It’s actually fun and satisfying to keep my pantry and fridge neat, organized, and stocked with vacuum packed food. I know the cost is high (though not compared to similar units), it’s big, and not the prettiest thing in the world, but if you are even considering this unit I would strongly recommend you go for it. If mine ever dies I will immediately buy another.