I'm on my 3rd FoodSaver and have used them since 1986 and my next one is in the basement should the one I have go to appliance "heaven". I found the last one at a really low prices at Tuesday Morning. All have performed very well and I would classify myself as a heavy user of a FoodSaver - everyday use and several times a day - bags, canisters, and canning jar storage. -I don't see that you can go wrong with any of the models. I've never had the same one twice and they are improving them all the time. Get on their e-mail list at FoodSaver, they are always having specials. -The higher priced machine doesn't necessarily mean better performance or longevity - it's how you take care of it and follow the information from FoodSaver for the best use. -I need a port (hole) so I can use the hose and jar sealer and the hose for sealing canisters. We do home food storage and a large amount of our dry goods are vacuum-sealed in canning jars and placed in storage. Any food item that needs to remain free-flowing is stored in jars or canisters, rather than bags - such as chocolate chips... If you place chocolate chips in a FoodSaver bag and vacuum-seal it shut you will end up with a chocolate chip "brick" as the chips fuse together. Anything that is low-moisture and would crush in a bag (chips, cereal, crackers, etc.) store best in a jar or canister. If you store flour it needs to be placed in a jar to remain free-flowing, instead of sealed in a bag. There is enough moisture in the flour to cause it to smell moldy if stored compacted in a bag (as suggested by FoodSaver). -I need a FoodSaver wide enough to seal both sizes of bags, which only come in two sizes and have for the 25-years I've used them. The only time I have the pre-cut bags on hand is when they come in the bulk box of bags I purchase at Sam's Club (I stocked up when they were $29.99 last fall), or the time I found rolls of bags as well as pre-cut bags at a reclaimed freight store at a great price (I bought all they had and didn't need to purchase bags for years after that). I prefer rolls to pre-cut bags. -Whether it's upright or flat, holds the roll of bags or not doesn't really matter to me. I've had both. Those are personal choices - neither is right or wrong - just a choice. -My best suggestion is to make room for it so it remains out and ready-to-use. I have a baker's rack with the FoodSaver on one shelf (it's to one end so filled bags can lay flat on the rest of the shelf for sealing); a cute basket with rolls of bags in it another basket with other FoodSaver accessories (I also have a FoodSaver FreshSaver), a Sharpie for marking the bags, and a pair of scissors to cut bags. On another shelf is my collection of canisters, some canning jars and canning lids used for vacuum-sealing dry goods. -Much of my cooking is based on make-once-and-freeze - in serving sizes. I make soup/stew/chili/broth/stroganoff meat mixture (meat only, no noodles or rice)/sloppy joes/all kinds of meats and meat mixtures/spaghetti sauce/etc. and freeze it in plastic storage containers (in serving sizes). Once frozen, pop them out of the containers, stack them in a FoodSaver bag and vacuum-seal shut. This way I can take out one serving (1-cup) of soup, or as many as is necessary. This frees-up my storage containers for other uses, and lengthens the storage time in the freezer without freezer burn. -I make large batches of freezer mashed potatoes a few times a year and freeze them either in dollops (using an ice cream scoop) or serving size containers. Once again, remove from the container, stack and vacuum-seal in a FoodSaver bag. -Frozen fruit and vegetables from the store are placed in a FoodSaver bag and flatten to a single layer (with the opening of the bag to the side NOT the top), then vacuum-sealed. Using this method, cut open the bag, give the bag a tap and the pieces break into pourable/measurable pieces. Quick-freeze cooked wheat/beans/rice or fresh fruit or blanched vegetables on a cookie sheet, then transfer to bag and vacuum-seal shut after they are frozen. -I prefer quick-freezing nearly everything before I bag and seal it. The filled bags are "filed" in plastic baskets. I can remove the fruit/vegetable basket and quickly flip through to see what I have or need. There is a basket with breakfast meat in it. I cut rings of smoked sausage (kilbasa) into "coins", quick-freeze them and then vacuum-seal in a bag. Once again, freeze in a single layer and you can take out the number of "coins" you need per meal. -Portion and slice meat (cooked or raw), quick-freeze before bagging. I make up large amounts of pre-cooked beef/pork/chicken to use in stir-fry, wraps, Mexican entrees, dinner salads..... Cooked shredded or ground meat is placed in zip-lock snack-size bags, then those bags are vacuum-sealed in a bag. This size will generally serve one or two people. -If you bag something that might penetrate the bag (i.e. bone-in meat), place a wad of plastic wrap over the bone to keep it from piercing the bag and compromising the seal. -Quick-freeze a casserole in the dish you will heat/reheat it in (line it with Renyolds Easy Release foil and it will be easier to remove and make clean-up a cinch after it's heated). When frozen, pop out of the dish and vacuum-seal. It will now go from the freezer back into the dish when you are ready to use it, but you won't have the dish sitting in the freezer. -I reuse bags, except those that contained raw meat I thawed the meat in. Do they stain? That's never been an issue for me because I quick-freeze foods first, and a spritz with a mild bleach/water solution of 1 quart water and 1 teaspoon bleach will probably remove any stains as well as disinfect the bag. I have a wooden dowel rack hubby made me for air-drying the bags open. I understand the bags can be cleaned in a dishwasher, but I've never done it. -Grainlady

We bought the model that Costco sells now, thinking it was the heavy duty model that they used to sell. It just didn't have enough oomph...wouldn't seal anything the least bit moist. We returned it and ordered a GameSaver Turbo Plus. It has a pulse feature and a setting for moist foods. It wouldn't seal automatically so we sent it to FoodSaver and the replacement came the other day. It was a more expensive model, but it does a good job so far. It took me awhile to get the leftover containers to seal, but I finally figured out I hadn't snapped the lids on hard enough. And I couldn't get canning jar lids to seal until I used two, but they were used lids, so who cares if it takes two? And I saved a couple of wine bottles so I can buy bigger (cheaper) containers of olive oil. Nothing worse than rancid oil...it'll be the true test of the bottle stoppers, lol.

OK, citric acid for sprouting... ascorbic for breads. Got it. Guess I was thinking they were same thing. Oh, and that's new information for me about sprouting the mung beans under pressure. That's really interesting. I have a vacuum sealer, but I haven't used it very much. I guess I should get it out and try it. I went over on You Tube and did a search for Foodsaver and found several things to watch, also found a few on Pump'n'Seal and maybe that's where my confusion comes from as I've seen a little about both kinds and may have mingled the way the two different systems work. The Foodsaver universal lid doesn't get very high marks on Amazon, I went there some time ago when it was mentioned before. I went to Foodsaver's website and I see that a jar sealer is $9.99. So do you buy one of those for each jar and leave it on the jar till you're ready to use the contents? Or do you have a Pump'n'Seal where you use a regular canning flat, punch a hole in it to vacuum out the air, and then seal up the hole with a little piece of tape? I can see where this method would be 'way cheaper than buying Foodsaver universal lids, if it works as well as they say. Have you used the Pump'n'Seal method and if so, what is your opinion? Foodsaver universal lids cost $24 for a two-pack. If they have to stay on the jar till you use it, it seems like $12 a jar is kind of a substantial outlay of cash unless a person could stumble upon some at a garage sale or something, where the seller didn't know what they had. Or does the FoodSaver have the capability of using canning flats in a way similar to Pump'n'Seal, so that you're only out a canning flat? And I suppose the canning flats could be resealed? It's kind of hard for me to believe that a little piece of what looks like duct tape is all that keeps the vacuum intact, but maybe it does because the vacuum holds it on.... Forgive me, I'm not trying to be critical or troublesome or stupid, I'm just trying to make sure I understand as I don't know anyone personally who uses these. Thanks for your patience and taking the time to provide this information. I do truly appreciate it.

Barb -- Even as an instructor, I've always found home canning to be an expensive method for food preservation if you have to purchase the food, and especially if you have to purchase canning equipment. In the home canning class I teach, we do cost analysis charts so people get a better idea of the true cost. Not to mention the hours of food preparation it takes from garden to the table. I used to break down the cost of utilities, but it changes periodically, and now there isn't just one cost, it varies throughout the day, so I don't bother with that anymore. It's not worth my time and trouble to plant, care for, harvest, and process 8-10 pints of pickled beets (about the average we would use in a year) when I can purchase them for 67-cents per can. That's one of the few commercially canned foods I buy. It's expensive for the cost of the utilities to process home canning, and for the extra energy to cool your home with an air conditioner while you process it. Do you have the kind of stove you can do home canning ON? Are your burners large enough (size and B.T.U. out-put) for the size of canner you are using? For a LOT of reasons, freezing or dehydration is a less-expensive choice for home food preservation. I also believe unless you have access to fresh-picked produce in the amounts it takes to fill a canner, you are probably wasting your time AND money because it means your home canned food won't have much in the way of nutrients after the delay from picking until it's canned if you have to wait several days to get the large amounts you need. It definitely doesn't pay to only fill a canner with a few pints/quarts when it takes nearly the same amount of energy to process a canner that is full. I also think most home canned foods are inferior when it comes to nutrition due to the lag time from harvest to processing, as well as from the heat processing, and how long and under what conditions they are stored in. And not everyone likes to eat home canned food.... Most of my friends and most of my students now can a favorite family recipe or two and jam/jelly/apple butter for gift-giving. Dehydrating takes very little energy, other than what it takes for blanching (but not everything requires blanching). I place my dehydrator in the basement where the heat it produces dissipates quickly. The exception is onions, which I do in the garage because of the smell. Kale can get a bit smelly, too. Dehydrated foods takes up less space than canning. It's amazing how many dried apple slices or dried tomato slices you can stuff into a canning jar!!! The FoodSaver product you are considering is fine for what it's designed for, but I think you would be happier with one of the full-size units which are more expensive. I have one of those small units and rarely use it (purchased it at Tuesday Morning for $19 several years ago), while I use the regular one many times each day (and have been using them since 1986). I'm into home food storage and have a whole room in the basement filled with vacuum-sealed dry goods. The FoodSaver is the center of my long-term storage, so it's a must-have for me. I have a new one, still in the box, I purchased on sale, ready to go if the current one quits. My entire freezer is organized with vacuum-sealed items, because they last longer in the freezer. No more freezer-burned food! I can pull out a plastic storage basket and flip through it for vacuum-sealed fruits or vegetables, all in a single layer in the bags. Cut the bag open, remove the amount needed, and reseal the bag and put it back in the basket in the freezer. I freeze soup/stew/chili in serving sizes. Pop it out of the freezer container, stack the "cubes" and vacuum-seal them a FoodSaver bag. Take out what I need and reseal the bag. I have all our breakfast meat in serving amounts and vacuum-sealed. I divide bulk amounts of chicken, and other meat products, into several bags and vacuum-seal it - both raw and pre-cooked. My pantry shelf is lined with foods in canning jars of various sizes. Instead of standing them up-right on the shelves two and three deep, and having to move them to see what's in the back, I lay the jars down on their side with the lid to the front. I have my shelves adjusted so they are the distance apart of one 1/2-gallon jar space (which is the largest jar I use). I spray painted the lids with chalk board paint, and I use a chalk board pencil or liquid chalk board markers (in fun electric colors) to mark the chalkboard lids. Some jars are covered with plastic Ball jar lids and you can write on them with liquid chalk markers. Not all of these are vacuum-sealed, but many are (especially those that contain freeze-dried foods). So my pantry is lined with canning jars filled with dry gluten-free pasta, dried and freeze-dried fruits and vegetables, baking aids like cacao nibs, chocolate chips (several kinds and sizes), chia seeds, palm sugar, arrowroot, whole grains and homemade cereal products, crispy nuts (soaked and dehydrated), pinto bean flakes, dried parsley..... And even more in the food storage room. You will have to determine whether a FoodSaver will meet your food storage needs and goals. -Grainlady