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Food Saver 3840 - Don't waste your time

17K views 60 replies 42 participants last post by  iwanttofish 
#1 ·
I've used a couple different models of food saver products over the years and I got to say this is one piece of junk. Its a rather attractive machine that could easily be left on the counter and that is about the best thing it does is gather dust.

Being a vertical type unit it has a automatic bag sensing feature and that is its huge down fall. The width of the bag sealer was much wider than previous Food Saver models and it did real well with wet items and sealing the first time around. But only if you had insert the bag curl down and wiggle it into the machine and trigger a couple of micro switches to start the machine. If the machine was even a hint of warm the bag would go every which way but down into the area to trigger the machine to turn on. There is no manual switch other than the auto sense. It was very frustrating to use and wasted 1 1/2" of bag material for each seal.

Suspecting that I would have trouble sealing mass bags, I purchased the machine at Costco so if I had problems I could take it back no questions. I did just that.

Maybe someday I'll afford a chamber style unit but not anytime soon. I ordered a Vacupak to take its place.

Ted Culin
 
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#2 ·
Another victom, I am on number 2 of this model as the last one lasted a whole month before it broke. Costco made me send it back to the manufacturer and they send me a know one. Trying to get the curled bag into the slot before it takes off, wasted bags, bags losing their seal in the freezer,the machine can not figure out when to seal and when to vacume. The shape of the machine will make for great wheel chalk for the boat.
 
#4 ·
Sorry to hear this. My V840 has worked well for me -- has vac-packed a lot of fish the last 3 or 4 years. It is basic, but has the bag cutter, and the separate seal control (for making bags).
I do really question some of the decisions Foodsaver has made about their machines: for example, my friend has one where you have to run the vac pump to make a bag. Ridiculous! And now they have separate widgets for cutting bags? What the hey?
I would like to try one of the chamber units but the cost. . .wow.
Dylan Mason
 
#7 ·
I had 12 tuna (48 loins) to vac pac last week so I knew i was going to put my old (10yr+) Tilia FoodSaver (the original?) to the test. it got through about 4 loins before the green heat-seal light stopped working and thus the unit stopped sealing no matter how weakly it vac'd. so that sucked, literally.:palm:
Since i had already bought the bags at Costco and noticed the V3840 for sale there for $150, i got one. It finished the job in 3 respectable hours (sashimi and beers helped the process :))
so, compared to the old school ***, this unit kicks arse. good suction, hands free, fast, works with semi-wet fish. having it seal or suck is an easy button press, the sensors are a bit fickle if you don't insert the bag flat or curled, but it did 44 loins without fail. i think the key to any of these vac pacs is keeping them from sucking wet stuff (fish). I was pretty diligent about drying each loin prior to packing, and still kept it on the "wet" food setting to be safe. even if it craps out in a month (after more tuna) it was worth it. i'd say the bags were more of a problem, they don't all "curl" as you'd like after sealing and cutting, and yes, the unit does tend to use more bag (too much trim) than necessary.
:twocents:
 
#17 ·
I have been using the Cabelas CG-15 for the last 3 seasons and it is great. They go on sale for 349 a couple of times a year.
The Cabelas unit is far and away better the the 3 Food Savers I had. Wish I would have been smart enough to buy the better unit first. Have had 3 food Savers bought at full retail and sold a yard sale prices:doh:
 
#10 ·
I went with the Weston pro 2300 it runs about $400 and the down side is you still need the foodsaver type bags. Much heavier machine and you can get parts to repair. I also have a Cabelas unit which is made by the same co. and been using for 5 years and lots of fish. The pump was not getting enough vacuum and was able to buy gaskets and rebuild for under $10 and good as new. Would like the chambered but they are so big for the kitchen and so expensive for just fish.
 
#11 ·
If you can afford to bite the bullet, get a VacMaster SVP-15 (It's been replaced with a newer model now, the VP215). The SVP-15 has solid state parts that are cheap to replace. The new model appears to have some computerized controls. I think you can still find the older SVP-15. I have a few friends who have them - we've all had them for 3-5 years and they kick arse. It will be the last vacuum packer you ever buy. You can vacuum pack anything in a chamber sealer, wet, dry, doesn't matter. Make your own breast implants, vacuum pack vodka tonics, you name it!:cool: Bags are only 8 cents a piece and are so much thicker than the expensive foodsaver crap. They are about $1500-$1600:doh: but I went through at least 3 of the $300 foodsavers before investing in this thing and they never worked well anyway.
 
#14 ·
If you can afford to bite the bullet, get a VacMaster SVP-15 (It's been replaced with a newer model now, the VP215). The SVP-15 has solid state parts that are cheap to replace. The new model appears to have some computerized controls. I think you can still find the older SVP-15. I have a few friends who have them - we've all had them for 3-5 years and they kick arse. It will be the last vacuum packer you ever buy. You can vacuum pack anything in a chamber sealer, wet, dry, doesn't matter. Make your own breast implants, vacuum pack vodka tonics, you name it!:cool: Bags are only 8 cents a piece and are so much thicker than the expensive foodsaver crap. They are about $1500-$1600:doh: but I went through at least 3 of the $300 foodsavers before investing in this thing and they never worked well anyway.

He's not kidding. You can package water in them as long as the level in the bag isn't higher than the seal bar when the bag is laying flat.
 
#23 ·
:yeahthat:

If your at all serious about vac packing, then get a chamber vac packer. Initial cost is expensive for the unit, but the bags are way cheap compared to what they try to sell you for the air evac type sealers.

Not only that, quality of the product is way better with the chamber sealer.
I have a vacmaster chamber sealer that I bought 4 years ago. One thing to say. Sweet. I can vacuumpack bags of liquid. Best thing so far... Just finishing up my first canning batch using the military style retort bags. No jars to deal with, just put it in the pouch, vacuum pack, seal and toss it in the pressure cooker. You need one of the chamber sealers to give a good seal on the the metalized bag. Did it in the house and NO SMELLL as you don't have to exhaust the jars. No worry about breakage in the canner or travelling with the pouch. The bags run about $.18 each which is competitive with the jar lids.
 
#45 ·
I have a vacmaster chamber sealer that I bought 4 years ago. One thing to say. Sweet. I can vacuumpack bags of liquid. Best thing so far... Just finishing up my first canning batch using the military style retort bags. No jars to deal with, just put it in the pouch, vacuum pack, seal and toss it in the pressure cooker. You need one of the chamber sealers to give a good seal on the the metalized bag. Did it in the house and NO SMELLL as you don't have to exhaust the jars. No worry about breakage in the canner or travelling with the pouch. The bags run about $.18 each which is competitive with the jar lids.

Curious about this. What is the suggested shelf life?
 
#13 ·
I love my Rival Seal a Meal. I used my neighbors VS112 for a while and it worked great. I finally bought a much nicer one that has the roll holder and cutter in the back. I love it. Super simple and it just works. Even if the dang thing quit, I'd just buy another one for $30 on Ebay! Can't argue with the price.

Chass
ct
 
#18 ·
I have had a Tilla Compact FOODSAVER for 17 year now. I sent it in one time to have the cord replaced. The person I spoke to on the phone said "don't let it go, we don't make them like that any more."

It allows you to suck the air as long as you want, and you decide when to hit the seal button. The models with the sensors, seal when they are ready.... are garbage.

It was a couple hundred bucks back then!
 
#20 ·
I can tell you one to NOT BUY.
FoodSaver® GameSaver® Pro Plus
VACUUM SEALER KIT

The above unit is a piece of junk, terrible. The Foodsaver website says it will do repetitive seals, it will not. I bought it based on the "compare" info on their site. Big mistake. Terrible design, it runs the vac pump to just make a bag out of a roll and the machine stops working when you try to make several bags at once.

I have a Foodsaver Professional II, it is OK, not good, but OK.

I'm afraid I'm going to have to buy a commercial model to be able to vac pack my catch, we should be able to get decent units at a reasonable price.
Ron Mason
 
#22 ·
I have the Foodsaver V2490. Bought it at Costco and I am quite pleased with it. it does NOT require you to run the vac pump when just sealing and has tons of options. No its not like the earlier very solid model that I replaced it with, but it better than the reviews I am reading! Costco only carried it for a few months (maybe a year)
 
#25 ·
Not that I have read. I'm going to try the retort bags this year, but will borrow someone's cavity sealer. Ya they are the best - but the up front investment is too high for me right now on a cavity sealer. Also if it looks like an industrial tool, my wife will not touch it, but if it looks like a kitchen gadget she will use it - go figure :shrug:
 
#26 · (Edited)
Wow! This thread couldn't have come at a more appropriate time. Back in '02, I bought my 1st and only food sealer, a Foodsaver 500. It's the flat, white one w/2settings. Vac n seal or just seal, pretty damn simple.

Here it is almost thru 2010, and my 500's getting pretty old, so last week I went to Costco and bought that fancy FS 3840. I mean, who could beat that price? What a ******* piece of garbage! It worked fine the 1st 5 bags, but after that I kept getting that red light error on the sensor like I've either shoved it too far in or not enough or the bag is too curled up....over and over and over. :mad: I changed rolls 3 times, switched up the pre-sealed bags and even used scissors to try and make the bags more even. I finally ended up busting out my old FS 500 and finished the job, the night halfway gone.

For the past 4 days now I thought it was me. Can't even work a stupid vacuum sealer, sheesh.:passout: But it's not. Today is my day off and I'm taking it back to Costco, though it's tempting to drop the damn thing in the ocean on my next helo ride. :whistle: Thanks for bringing this up, StickFish. :applause: Guess I'll keep shopping around for another one, but really, $1500 for a food sealer? That damn thing better be able to go get me a beer out of the fridge and give me a back rub, too, for that price! :bigshock:


Sandy Jones
 
#27 ·
Sparks google Vacupak, or cabelas has the CG-15 refirb's for $300 - short of a chamber sealer I think those are the best options out there.

The vacupak will pull 25"Hg which is almost a pure vacuum (I think that is 28" at sea level) and has a pump that will handle water in fact you clean the pump by running water through it. Mine will be here tomorrow shipped out of Renton.
 
#28 ·
I've had the food saver 1075 for about ten years and I dread the day it fails, kind of tempermental sometimes but it has worked well.

I've put up about 14 fish this year plus a couple coho, I smoked five tuna and made over 100 individual bags of just smoked tuna last weekend and it's still going strong.

Bill
 
#31 ·
Customer service in Tigard heard all about it yesterday when I took it back. "Is there something wrong with the unit?" I replied, "Do you have a few minutes?" I explained in detail exactly what was wrong with it and they were really paying attention.

I had an older 1050 (I had gotten that at Costco also) and it was a good 10 years old when it finally gave up, very rarely had a bad bag - I went through four rolls of large bags every year with that one.
 
#30 ·
I gave away our last Food saver before it quit working so we wouldn't have to toss it in the garbage. I'm sure the new owner has tossed it by now.

Wife unit ordered the Vacuum Sealer Pro-2300 from Cabela's. Very good non-chamber unit and looks nice so it doesn't clutter the counter top. Stainless and colorful lid.

You can use up your old Food Saver bags with it also. The Cabela's bags come in pre cut sizes and wife ordered many different ones. Some are long and you can put a whole fillet in one without cutting it up. They're a whole bunch cheaper than the Food Saver brand bags.
 
#36 ·
Sparks, one of the things about Costco (good or bad, you decide) is that you are a member so ALL of you purchases are tracked in their system. if you can't find the reciept just head to the Customer Service desk with you member card and make your return....they can look it up if they REALLY need the proof of purchase.
 
#33 ·
Really Ted? You spoke up about your level of satisfaction. :D

Costco does take that feedback seriously for sure. They must be getting a ton of returns, but more information about why will help them. Foof Saver, of course, also should hear this stuff. Odd how a company seems to be evolving the "planned obsolescence" business model (like not selling aftermarket heat strips) more quickly since the older the model, the longer it seemed to last.

The latest model seems to have extended the planned obsolesence model to non-functionality out of the box. :hoboy:

Like they don't make enough on the bags? :shrug:
 
#34 ·
Costco does take that feedback seriously for sure. They must be getting a ton of returns, but more information about why will help them. Foof Saver, of course, also should hear this stuff. Odd how a company seems to be evolving the "planned obsolescence" business model (like not selling aftermarket heat strips) more quickly since the older the model, the longer it seemed to last.
Freudian? LOL!!!!
 
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