Rosethyme's Full Review: Deni Freshlock II Vacuum Sealer 1531
Deni “Freshlock” Vacuum Foodsaver - Model 1631
My sister purchased this vacuum food saver at a local store about 2 years ago. It was on sale for $20 (MSRP was $29.00). She tried it and was not happy with its performance, so she put it back into the box and left on a shelf.
About a year ago, I was watching one of the food saver commercials on TV and considered buying one of the units. I mentioned this to my sister and she said, “Wait a minute...I have a vacuum packager but I didn’t like how it worked. If you want it you can have it.” She pulled the box from her cupboard and gave it to me.
I tried the unit the next day.
It is a small rectangular plastic unit with a hinged cover that opens upward. It is about 15 inches long, 4 inches wide, and 3 inches high. The open lid reveals a metal wire near the edge that is used for sealing, along with a small plastic nozzle about an inch behind the wire for the vacuum. At the back there is a well or cavity for holding a roll of plastic to make the bags. On the front there are 2 LEDs: 1 red for “vacuum” and the other green for “seal”. It plugs into a standard 115-volt outlet. The bags are constructed of a thin gauge plastic with a white band running about 1 inch from the edge for labeling or marking the contents.
You lift the lid and unroll a length of the plastic to make a bag. If you need a small bag you only unroll 6 inches. If you need a larger bag you unroll 12 inches. The plastic on the roll is a sheet that is folded in half sideways. The fold is on the right; the left side has the open ends. The plastic is laid across the unit as it unrolls and while it is still connected to the roll but hanging over the edge, the lid is placed back down. You then press lightly on the lid to activate the unit and seal the bag. The unit seals the bag at the wire and cuts it from the roll using heat. Remove the bag from the unit and rotate it 180 degrees. Again you lift the lid and place the other side of the bag across the wire. Close the lid and press to seal the second side of the bag. Fill the bag with food, leaving about 2 to 3 inches unfilled at the outer unsealed edge. When you press the lid the LEDs should light up, indicating the unit has been activated: first the red for vacuum then the green for sealing.
Lift the lid and place the unsealed bag edge across the wire. Open the bag and insert the small plastic vacuum nozzle in the top inch of the bag. Make sure everything is kept in place and the edges of the bag lined up, then lower the lid and press lightly to activate the vacuum and seal the bag.
I found the unit awkward to use. The vacuum was very poor, and the fusing mechanism usually sealed the bag before the vacuum was complete. It did not perform as I expected. I tried it a few times before packing it up and placing on a shelf in the back of a closet where it still sits. Poor ease-of-use, ineffective vacuum performance. The thin gauge bags seemed very cheap. (Hey, it only cost my sister $20--you get what you pay for.) I use it now only as a bag sealer.
I would NOT recommend this product to anyone. A bargain is only a bargain if it is useful, otherwise it is a waste of money.
About a year later I was again watching one of the food saver commercials and again wanted to buy one. See my review of the Tilia “Vacuum Foodsaver - Gotta get one”.
The Deni Freshlock Turbo II Vacuum Sealer preserves the freshness, flavor, color and nutrients of food for about twice as long compared to other metho...More at AquaSuperstore.com
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