Itrusou Vacuum Sealer Bags Rolls 4-Pack (8" & 11") - BPA-Free Heavy Duty Commercial Grade Food Storage Bags with Date & Contents Label - Perfect for Freezer Storage, Meal Prep, Sous Vide Cooking, and Long-Term Food Preservation

This is a great vacuum sealer that works comparatively to the big brands but at a lower cost.This vacuum sealer is pretty good for what you get. If you ever used a vacuum sealer before, then this will work very similarly to most well known brand vacuum sealers. It is very easy to use with pre-ready pouches/bags or you could still make your own custom bags. If you haven't used a vacuum sealer, it may take some time to learn as it is not very straightforward. For this vacuum sealer, it does come with a starter kit of sealing pouch material, but if you haven't used one of these before it may take you a few tries to get the size and seals of the pouches how you want them. It does come with some basic instructions as well as some nice ease of use features like a moisture tray that collects moisture during the seal process, and numerous function buttons depending on whether you are sealing something that is wet, dry, and even different intensities if you are sealing something that you don't want to get smashed when using this.The overall seal is very good and secure. I haven't had any leaks when I used this, and it makes sealing things very easy to do whether you want to refrigerate something, freeze something, or store something away in the pantry like chips. The one major complaint I have about this, is the speed. Even the best brands are not the fastest, but to me, this one takes a considerable amount of time to finish taking out the air before sealing it. This isn't a huge deal as it works really well, but if you are trying to seal multiple bags/pouches of things fairly quickly, it would be much quicker just to use ziploc bags.In the end, this is a great vacuum sealer with numerous options to choose and easy to use sealing once you get used to it. If you are trying to preserve a lot of snacks, frozen foods, and more, then this is a great product to have. Just remember that it can be slow at sealing the bags, and once your starter kit runs out you will have to get more pre-ready bags or get more material to make more of your own. I highly recommend it overall.Thanks for your time.I have had no experience with using one of these before purchase. IN the past, it was hit or miss with whatever ziplocks we had in the drawer.The idea is simply that you use the machine to create your own size bags from either pre made or roll bulk sleeves. An air pump can, but doesn't need to, remove the air from the package in order to keep it fresher.Liquids can also be suctioned out in the process and will remain in a small removable tray which is easily cleaned. The sealed food can then be frozen, refrigerated or transported safely.The unit comes with a small amount of bag material--really just a sample. You will want to purchase a package of sealable bag material at the same time in order to get your bagging career under way.The instruction manual is not too helpful but there are many videos available and the process is a simple one and easy to master. The machine itself is solid, simple and works well, sealing and evacuating the bag almost immediately. There is a tray which is designed to capture liquids sucked out of the bag and it has a kill switch if not placed securely. If the unit isn't working, remove the liquids tray and place it securely.The temptation of course is to seal everything with your new machine and you certainly can. But I expect that having a freezer full of frozen food bags is not something that will be helpful to me. I will use this to replace my use of ziplocks in the freezer and will certainly have some frozen steaks, some good bagels and perhaps some of my winter soups under seal in the near future.Note that it is possible to open the bag in the freezer and remove what you need and then reseal it-- you just need to leave a little extra bag material when you initially package whatever you are freezing. The unit has a sliding cutter which works like a cutter on saran wrap and is a useful addition. Note that the unit requires several inches of space at the top of the bag in order to seal. If you are trying to seal and the unit doesn't turn off, it is likely that not enough of the top of the bag is going deep enough into the unit.