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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
262 of 266 people found the following review helpful
By goosedude
For years I have craved a FOODSAVER or SEAL-A-MEAL or other vacuum sealing products but I just couldn't swallow the expense of the large units available. I liked the variety of uses and containers available but I really just needed a unit to every once in a while seal gallon and quart size bags.
For years I used ZIPLOC's hand pump vacuum bags (Bags = difficult to find, expensive and the seals didn't last) and Reynold's hand held motorized vacuum system (Too much trial and error to get the pump positioned to start vacuuming...and the line was ultimately discontinued).
Recently purchased the Handheld FoodSaver model as a present for Xmas and contemplated getting one for myself when lo & behold......WOOT offered the RIVAL Vacuum Sealer for 1/2 the price.
I figured....what the hell?? If it sucks I can return it or I am out only a couple bucks.
Be advised....The Unit is not the smallest thing & does not have a long power cord and lays horizontally so don't expect to be far from an outlet or get a short extension cord. If you are using on a countertop in front of other appliance (i.e. coffee maker) expect to be a little cramped.
I started with the sample quart bags + Gourmet deli cold cuts bought = break up into 2 1-lb portions.
NOTE: This unit is NOT quiet. You push down....wait for Hands-Free light & Sealing light to go on....let go....wait for lights to turn off. Hit Open/Cancel button....VOILA! in ~10-15 sec Vacuum sealed food. So far....so impressed.
This unit is compatible with SEAL-A-MEAL & FOODSAVER bags and rolls...so ran off to the local warehouse club which have a package of rolls & bags for the lowest price.
NOTE: This unit does not offer a bag cutter like the more expensive units.....so a pair of scissors is necessary for trimming roll material.
Being at the warehouse club allowed me to pick up a variety of bulk purchase products to test the unit more thoroughly:
1) Large Cuts of meat.....Check
2) Pizza Rolls / Frozen Snacks....Check
3) Pork Chops....Check
4) Chicken....Check
5) Cheese...Check
6) Fruits & Veggies
After using the unit so far like 20+ times in 2 days.....I have to say I am impressed at this little unit. It is a very cost effective alternative to larger units. Even after purchasing the package of rolls & bags.....total cost was significantly less than the cost of the basic larger units.
While it doesn't have the versatility of other units with a Vacuum tube and other storage containers, or storage for rolls or a bag cutter, this unit is extremely effective if you are just looking to seal gallon & quart size bags....so I have to give it 4 stars.
I will update my review at a later date to review its reliability over a long period.
UPDATE - SEPTEMBER 2011
Well...the unit is still working great after all this time and many rolls of Foodsaver bags.
I will note this....if you plan on sealing alot of stuff at once to create the bags ahead of time. This is because if you use the unit too many times in a row without a good period of time for the sealing coil to cool off.....it will prematurely seal the bag and all the air will not be completely removed from the bag. Also...I figure its good to not overwork the heating coil not as it is the #1 thing that breaks on Foodsavers/Vacuum Sealing units so theoretically this would be the thing to go bad 1st in this unit.
Anyhoo if I am sealing a large amount of stuff....I break the food up into the pre-made bags before and....seal a bag.....wait a couple minutes....go on to the next bag....etc.
For years I used ZIPLOC's hand pump vacuum bags (Bags = difficult to find, expensive and the seals didn't last) and Reynold's hand held motorized vacuum system (Too much trial and error to get the pump positioned to start vacuuming...and the line was ultimately discontinued).
Recently purchased the Handheld FoodSaver model as a present for Xmas and contemplated getting one for myself when lo & behold......WOOT offered the RIVAL Vacuum Sealer for 1/2 the price.
I figured....what the hell?? If it sucks I can return it or I am out only a couple bucks.
Be advised....The Unit is not the smallest thing & does not have a long power cord and lays horizontally so don't expect to be far from an outlet or get a short extension cord. If you are using on a countertop in front of other appliance (i.e. coffee maker) expect to be a little cramped.
I started with the sample quart bags + Gourmet deli cold cuts bought = break up into 2 1-lb portions.
NOTE: This unit is NOT quiet. You push down....wait for Hands-Free light & Sealing light to go on....let go....wait for lights to turn off. Hit Open/Cancel button....VOILA! in ~10-15 sec Vacuum sealed food. So far....so impressed.
This unit is compatible with SEAL-A-MEAL & FOODSAVER bags and rolls...so ran off to the local warehouse club which have a package of rolls & bags for the lowest price.
NOTE: This unit does not offer a bag cutter like the more expensive units.....so a pair of scissors is necessary for trimming roll material.
Being at the warehouse club allowed me to pick up a variety of bulk purchase products to test the unit more thoroughly:
1) Large Cuts of meat.....Check
2) Pizza Rolls / Frozen Snacks....Check
3) Pork Chops....Check
4) Chicken....Check
5) Cheese...Check
6) Fruits & Veggies
After using the unit so far like 20+ times in 2 days.....I have to say I am impressed at this little unit. It is a very cost effective alternative to larger units. Even after purchasing the package of rolls & bags.....total cost was significantly less than the cost of the basic larger units.
While it doesn't have the versatility of other units with a Vacuum tube and other storage containers, or storage for rolls or a bag cutter, this unit is extremely effective if you are just looking to seal gallon & quart size bags....so I have to give it 4 stars.
I will update my review at a later date to review its reliability over a long period.
UPDATE - SEPTEMBER 2011
Well...the unit is still working great after all this time and many rolls of Foodsaver bags.
I will note this....if you plan on sealing alot of stuff at once to create the bags ahead of time. This is because if you use the unit too many times in a row without a good period of time for the sealing coil to cool off.....it will prematurely seal the bag and all the air will not be completely removed from the bag. Also...I figure its good to not overwork the heating coil not as it is the #1 thing that breaks on Foodsavers/Vacuum Sealing units so theoretically this would be the thing to go bad 1st in this unit.
Anyhoo if I am sealing a large amount of stuff....I break the food up into the pre-made bags before and....seal a bag.....wait a couple minutes....go on to the next bag....etc.
133 of 139 people found the following review helpful
By Jill R
This is a great no frills product. At 1/3 the cost of the "fancy brand name" sealer this unit does just what it is supposed to do..remove air and seal the bag. Sure there are units out there that have more bells and whistle but what do you expect for $50?? and on the gold box deal it's even better!!!
OK, so you can't manually stop the suction to seal soft foods and there is no hose to do canisters but again, for the price it does what it is supposed to. One thing it has and the fancy ones don't is the removable tray for liquids. After doing some chicken it's good to have the piece come out to get properly washed!
It makes noise yes.. it's a machine! I bet those complaining about how loud it is also complain about the sound of the ice from falling from the ice maker..
If you want a vacuum sealer and don't want to spend $100+ this one does the job perfectly (and uses the foodsaver bags too, just put the textured side up).
OK, so you can't manually stop the suction to seal soft foods and there is no hose to do canisters but again, for the price it does what it is supposed to. One thing it has and the fancy ones don't is the removable tray for liquids. After doing some chicken it's good to have the piece come out to get properly washed!
It makes noise yes.. it's a machine! I bet those complaining about how loud it is also complain about the sound of the ice from falling from the ice maker..
If you want a vacuum sealer and don't want to spend $100+ this one does the job perfectly (and uses the foodsaver bags too, just put the textured side up).
85 of 92 people found the following review helpful
By J. Foy
Amazon Verified Purchase
My wife and I decided to make an emergency 30 day food supply and I bought this to seal up foods mostly for that purpose. After a trip to the grocery store to buy our first round of stuff, I was lined up and ready to start sealing everything. When it works, it really does a great job. For dried beans, I poked a hole in the existing bag so the sealer could get the air out of the inner bag as well. The result was a package of dried beans hard as a a brick - good thing.
I did mention 'when it works'. After a couple of bags were done, I started having an issue in which the unit did not suck out the air and went on to seal the bag. I quickly aborted the process to save the bag and retried over and over with no success. After messing with the unit for a while, I finally realized that I had to reseat the gasket/seals (as others mentioned in these reviews). After doing so, it started working property again. That said, I am a bit disappointed as I have to mash down and massage the seals about every fourth or fifth usage.
Next, as someone else mentioned, you do have to press fairly hard on it to activate it. The unit has a 'hands free' indicator on it which simply means it has acquired enough suction that you no longer have to press down on the unit and it will continue on its own. This is fine for many items, but when I poured a box of dry rice into a bag and started to seal it, my arms started to get tired really quick as it seemed to take much longer until the 'hands free' kicked in. Makes sense that it would take longer given that it was loose rice in a bag. Still, when you're doing many items at once, your arms get a bit of a workout.
I bought the combo box of bags (4 - 11', 1 - 8", 30 quart bags), which seemed to be a good starting place.
I did mention 'when it works'. After a couple of bags were done, I started having an issue in which the unit did not suck out the air and went on to seal the bag. I quickly aborted the process to save the bag and retried over and over with no success. After messing with the unit for a while, I finally realized that I had to reseat the gasket/seals (as others mentioned in these reviews). After doing so, it started working property again. That said, I am a bit disappointed as I have to mash down and massage the seals about every fourth or fifth usage.
Next, as someone else mentioned, you do have to press fairly hard on it to activate it. The unit has a 'hands free' indicator on it which simply means it has acquired enough suction that you no longer have to press down on the unit and it will continue on its own. This is fine for many items, but when I poured a box of dry rice into a bag and started to seal it, my arms started to get tired really quick as it seemed to take much longer until the 'hands free' kicked in. Makes sense that it would take longer given that it was loose rice in a bag. Still, when you're doing many items at once, your arms get a bit of a workout.
I bought the combo box of bags (4 - 11', 1 - 8", 30 quart bags), which seemed to be a good starting place.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
This is great.
I used this the first time and fell in love with it. The second time everthing I tried to seal seem to get too hot and melt where it was suppose to seal. Read more
Published 7 days ago by Debby
3.0 out of 5 stars
Sealed
It is a good product. Takes more effort to seal food than I thought. Sometimes I need to do it several times. When it works, it's great!
Published 10 days ago by Lynn Wobeck
4.0 out of 5 stars
Rival Vacuum Sealer
The Vacuum Sealer works good but the bags that came with it were not so good. Only 4 small bags come with it.
Published 11 days ago by goforit39
5.0 out of 5 stars
great price
Simple and easy! Perfect price for a casual home gardener and for anyone with limited storage space for kitchen gadgetry.
Published 23 days ago by Karen Lynn Mitchell
4.0 out of 5 stars
Just what I was looking for.
I've used it to seal about 80 bags so far and works well. You do have to push down hard at first to activate it. Gets the job done.
Published 24 days ago by Tom Heifner
2.0 out of 5 stars
I was very disappointed when I received the product
When the product was received, there was nothing but the sealer in the box. To me it looked as if the product had been sold once and returned and anything that had been in the... Read more
Published 29 days ago by G. Gillespie
5.0 out of 5 stars
great!
This Rival Vacuum Sealer is great.
Its such a bargain and works amazingly.
I use it to vacuum seal my meats when i marinate them. Read more
Its such a bargain and works amazingly.
I use it to vacuum seal my meats when i marinate them. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Ramin Mirbod
5.0 out of 5 stars
Healthy!
I loved the shortness of the arrival time. I am dying to use this product but it is a mothers day present so I will have to update at a later date.
Published 1 month ago by Brian Michael Kline
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great gift!
I had bought this model from another site and really loved using it. I was unable to find it again and it is more expensive in stores. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Susan R. Smith
5.0 out of 5 stars
Works like a charm
Is exactly what I needed and works great. Would recommend this product for anyone who likes to freeze small amounts for two people.
Published 2 months ago by Renee Reyes
