If you have a big family that wastes good food, get a Food Saver and save yourself some money. Food Savers look like they are built for doomsday preppers. They are small, electronic devices that wil vacuum seal your food and make it last longer than an apocalyptic explosion. However, if you have a family that tends to waste food and you have the freezer space, I recommend a Food Saver. The V3840 model is one of the simpler ones and we have it at our house. However, your Food Saver doesn't have to be complex for effectiveness. You can literally save and freeze almost any food. We've done fish, steaks, pasta, and produce. It's great for that last piece of steak you might want a few months down the road. I prefer using the V3840 to save my produce portions because I always buy more than I need. Instead of rotting away, I use my Food Saver to keep it frozen for the next smoothie. The only issue is cleaning. If you have food with liquids, it's easy for some to escape onto the maker and in between the sealing strips. Just wipe after every use or you'll get a nasty smell two weeks later if you forget to clean it.

anaci

USA

My husband and I live on a farm. We produce much of our own food and one of these is a must. We purchased our first model many years ago, just a small and cheaper model. That unit broke fairly quickly and we contacted the company and they promptly replaced it. Our second model worked wonderfully for many years and finally wore out and we purchased this model. Thus far we have no complaints about the appliance itself. We use it for everything from frozen vegetables out of our garden to meats and dehydrated foods. My husband hunts and fishes and all his fish and venison go into Food Saver bags. We do not however use the food saver brand bags as we find them much too expensive but order bags from another company in bulk. Very rarely do we ever lose food anymore to freezer burn and manage to keep both our large freezers full with the help of our Food Saver. Ever so often we will have a bag lose it's seal if it gets punctured by say a small bone or something sharp usually. Overall our FoodSaver appliance has been a wonderful addition to our food preservation needs.

MAMC

Undisclosed

This is among my very favorite purchases for the kitchen ever! I use this all the time! I buy nuts for baking and eating in bulk (we're talking five pounds at a time) and since nuts go rancid so quickly I store them in the freezer. The FoodSaver allows me to pack them into little packets that hold either a snack sized portion or the correct portion for a recipe. By keeping the air out they don't get freezer burn and last for a long time. I also use this when I buy other items in bulk such as hamburger patties. They usually go on sale by the box around Memorial Day and I buy a box and divide them up and put each one into a FoodSaver bag. They keep perfectly in the freezer and taste just like fresh when cooked. For garden bounty this is also amazing! I usually get quite a bit of one item at a single time (say, green beans or tomatoes), so I'm able to prep everything and put it into a large FoodSaver bag and freeze it flat which saves lots of freezer space. Then I can open the larger sized bag and use it or reseal it. It's wonderful! This is the ideal item for people who hunt, fish, buy in bulk, or garden! You can't go wrong with it!

capers01

Vernon Rockville, CT

Every year my wife finds great deals on vegetables during their peak seasons. Every year she takes the old fashion way of putting it into a freezer bag and with a straw sucking the air out of it. I finally purchased this food saver and I love it. I love how fast it is and efficient. It really gets all the air out and helps foods stay longer in the freezer. I love that you can fit the bag size to fit whatever your needs are. Most of the other cheaper systems give you premade bags and your options are limited. Not with this, you can fit pretty much anything that you want to freeze into one of these bags. When taking the foods out of the freezer everything is still nice, fresh and crisp. There is no freezer burnt with this product. This really takes not much time to do and you can have fresh produce all year long. I find that this is reasonably priced as well. As it is not the most expensive on the market, but it is not the cheapest. It is very easy to use that any beginner could use it. Overall it is great and helps you save money on food when you can buy it in bulk.

StevenOx

USA

We have a passion for fresh veggies and fruits in our home and every year we start planting early to have a big harvest. I found out the hard way that using regular baggies to freeze the vegetables would often leave them with freezer burn so I finally invested in a food saver and am so delighted that I did. I grow enough green peppers and chives to last throughout the winter months and to have on hand for spaghetti sauce. Prior to to using a food saver, I would end up throwing away a lot of the vegetables. Plain baggies just don't keep the air out. The food saver is very easy to use. In the long run it will save our family tons of money without having to buy extra groceries. I use it also to break down meat packages that are too big. No more worry of freezer burn. I think it is a very wise investment especially if you have a large family. Growing your own food gives you a peace of mind with all the items the stores seem to be recalling. Yes, I highly recommend.

dmdifalco

Fort Gratiot, MI

I like this Food Saver Vacuum. I found that the food I seal in the bags lasts a lot longer than the food I store in Ziplocks or tupperware. The bags that go along with this product are very expensive and not at all reusable. I don't use it for everyday products, food I'll probably use before it's expired, or for food that I use a little at a time and therefore would be opening and closing it. I only use it for food that I expect to stay in the freezer for a long time. For example, I bought chicken in bulk and sealed individual breasts for freezing. They lasted much longer that way than if I had frozen them any other way. This vacuum gives me an easy way to stock up on perishables when they are a good price. At first, I thought mine was defective because I couldn't get it to run. The guy in customer service told me that you really have to put your weight onto it when you close it to create the seal. Otherwise it won't activate the suction. It worked after that, and you really do have to put your weight into it.

kendrlynne

Tooele, UT

I enjoy this gadget very much. I am able to use it whenever I need too. It worked very well for me when I was living out of the country and food was hard to come by. I would pre-make a few meals, and seal them in the bags, and then freeze. The food stayed amazing. Is really wonderful for quick marinades as well.

limadi

Lumberton, NC

Love this product. I need as much room as possible in my freezer, and I store meats for a long period of time. I also freeze fresh fish that we catch. I have yet to have one thing get any freezer burn when using this product even if the product has been in the freezer way longer than I intended. This product is great for garden produce and berries as well.

dbsfordystonia

Kingfisher, OK

We have a FoodSaver Vacuum Sealer and have found it to be very useful to preserve food for a greater length of time. We have used it to vacuum seal meat when I buy it in bulk. I vacuum seal it with the Food Saver Bags and have found that the meat will stay good in the freezer much longer. I mark the date so that I know how long it has been there. I also add marinade to steak before I seal the bag and that works well with this system.

GMRINAK

Anchorage, AK

The Food Saver #3840 was purchased to replace an older model of Food Saver, which lasted 11 years.  I love the look (stainless), and the vertical position so it takes up LESS counter space.  Has a retractable hose for sealing canisters, so it doesn't get misplaced. It automatically pulls the bag in to vacuum and seal and shuts off when it is finished.  Great product!!!!!!

ltsims

Bel Air, MD