Been a fan of this method since picking up a cheap second hand vac sealer a year ago. If you buy in bulk which can reward with useful discounts, it's well worth considering. My second hand machine died so I picked this one up from Amazon Warehouse - was around £30.00. Has a powerful 140 watt motor - probably overkill. Great for keeping beans from staling. ![](https://i.imgur.com/uNV356h.jpg) This morning's work ![](https://i.imgur.com/g3nMFnA.jpg)

How much do you spend on the vacuum bags themselves? I am really trying to resist getting this involved in bean storage, but my freezer solution does need work.

IMO, vac packing is better than freezer storage. I use these https://www.amazon.co.uk/Aobosi-Foodsaver-Approved-Storage-Machines/dp/B0793LJ6QW/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=1L5KVA2NV9YAD&keywords=food+vacuum+storage+bags+medium&qid=1646131378&sprefix=food+vacuum+storage+bags+medium%2Caps%2C119&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEyTVdRVkNOMzdTVzZRJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwMjE1MDM5M0hOVDE0NFBKVTNRRiZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwNDIzNTc2MVk2ODNYMUlZM0lLRiZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU= Last a long time if just used for beans

I have been looking at these for some time now. I used to see quite a few of the industrial ones in hotel kitchens. The two which I have been looking at are Luvele and Zwilling. The Zwilling use reusable bags and both have solid containers. https://www.zwilling.com/uk/fresh-and-save/ https://www.luvele.co.uk/collections/vacuum-sealers

Zwilling looks like a decent piece of kit but it's pricey. Like the idea of reusable bags.

This is what I use. [URL=https://i.imgur.com/sSG1FUN.jpg][IMG]https://i.imgur.com/sSG1FUN.jpg[/IMG][/URL] pretty awesome machine.

After I pack 18g pouches with this https://youtu.be/qiEBU36bHOY

That looks seriously heavy duty.

Bags are recyclable at the local supermarket

@"tompoland"#p10462 Thats some setup you have. Nice.

@"Meldrew"#p10464 I started with the vacuum thing after reading an article about grinding frozen coffee. Apparently the trick is to not let it defrost prior to grinding because all sorts of chemical reactions start up, the end result of which is a less than full bodied, full flavored pour. Therefore, trialling freezing meant, for practical purposes, trialling vacuum sealing too. I started with a pair of Acaia Orion dosing machines which were cool but slow. When I saw the packing machine for AU$400 I took a punt and bought it off e-bay. It works incredibly well and is as accurate as the Acaia's. My method is to roast, let the beans rest for eight days or so and use them from the zip bag with the one way valve, each day until I think they have hit peak flavor. Then I vacuum seal them. These days though I don't freeze them unless I roasted too many. Through a lot of trial and error, I have found that a medium to dark roast will hit peak flavor around the 14 day mark (some as early as 8 days though) and will stay at peak flavor if vacuum sealed with a good machine, for another three weeks. But after that they decline surprisingly quickly. I've tested over 100 roasts now and kept a flavor log on the majority of those roasts, day by day as I sampled them. I write the "Best Between" dates on every bag of roasted coffee, typically being between 14 and 35 days, assuming that they are vacuum sealed at the 14 day mark. That's the story behind the vacuum sealing machine and the weighing/packing machine. Not that I am obsessed :-)

Vacuum packing beans

DavecUK

PortafilterProcrastinator The major advantage of having a slightly puffed up bag is the positive pressure….you “know” air can’t be getting in!

Systemic

LMSC @Systemic Do you freeze after vac packing in 250g please ? Thx

Tried vac packing and freezing and just vac packing - no noticeable difference so now, I just vac pack.

MediumRoastSteam

Systemic - I attest to this. Same experience here.

Meldrew

Sounds good to me, just a vac pack it will be.

Gagaryn

I was in Lidl today - picked up one of these - https://www.lidl.co.uk/p/kitchen-equipment/silvercrest-vacuum-sealer/p51075

I expected it to be rubbish but just vacuum packed 1kg of beans into 100g packs and it worked brilliantly. New fav thing!

Systemic

Got yourself a bargain there. Best way to keep your beans fresh. If you buy in kilos, the vac sealer will pay for itself in no time.

DavecUK

Systemic I am wondering if a trip to Lidl is in order…

Gagaryn

DavecUK Less than the price of a kilo of beans. I’d been looking at more expensive versions on line. Only negative is that this cheap one doesn’t have a cutter built in. But, I presume that like me you own scissors. :-)

PS - looking at the pictures on Amazon this seems to be exactly the the same bar cosmetics.

Meldrew

I am just going to be passing Lidl tomorrow and just happen to spot these. Oh these would be good to try and they are cheap. Wonder if the wife will fall for it.Bet they don’t have them. Lol

LMSC

Thanks Gagaryn

Grabbed one! A bargain indeed

PartySausage

I’ve had one for a couple of years & it’s still going strong. Just have to take a little break between each seal as there’s an interlock to let the element cool

Doram

I have had this one from amazon for a couple of years. I chose it for being very compact. It feels flimsy, but works great.

However, one time I grabbed a pack of vacuum bags (3 rolls) for it from Lidl and most of the time they leak and lose the vacuum a few seconds after sealing - this never happens with other bags. Might just be a bad batch, but maybe something to be aware of?

Amberale

I have a couple of vacuum processors, only because we process a couple of cattle carcasses a year.
The heat sealing strips overheat after a few minutes of continuous use so we use a couple at a time and pre-cut and seal bags from rolls.
For coffee I roast 4×100g with my Nano, use standard bags with a one way valve and either, pack them in one bag and vacseal it or….
I bought a set of vacuum containers and I put two 200g bags in the container and suck the air out of it.
The containers are not as efficient as the sealed bags but they are reusable.

I have wondered just what I am sucking out with the high suction system.

Waitforme

PortafilterProcrastinator

You could try submersing the bag and gently squeezing, no bubbles and all is good, the gas is CO2 🤔

DavecUK

I’m off to Lidl this evening

LMSC

DavecUK
Giphy - Meaning Digital Art GIF by Pop and Sicle

oztayls

I did this only once, one morning. By the afternoon, the beans had gassed out and there was no vacuum. One of my DUH moments! Surely this can only work for stale beans?

DavecUK

oztayls that means that there is very little oxygen and lots of CO2. A good thing.

oztayls

Yes, true. Since then I’ve just been using my homemade glass jars with the valves (cut from coffee bags) inserted into the lids. Does the same thing by expelling the air and leaving the beans bathing in CO2 :)

Waitforme

Grabbed a Lidl one today, my wife will be delighted to get some freezer space back 👍

Thanks @Gagaryn

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