Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

I checked on some of the food I packed in Mylar bags. The directions said oxygen absorbers could take a full week to work. I used 6 -500 cc absorbers per 5 gallon bucket. When I checked on the Mylar bags where sucked in some but were not pulled in tight like they would be with a foodsaver. Should I repack?

Re: Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

I kind of doubt absorbers actually create a vacuum. they just absorb oxygen.

Re: Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

thats it. Thats all they are for, absorbing oxygen. They WONT create a vacuum....well they might if you used a WHOLE lot of em, I suppose, but they are NOT intended to do so. Buy a food saver and use the oxy-absorbers for dry goods that are too bulky for food savers, like 6 gallon pails of rice/grains/flour.

Or you can just vacu-pack small amounts of the dry goods. its all about how much storage area you have.

Re: Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

Patience possum, patience! If 3 absorbers suck out all the oxygen, will 6 suck out any more? No... However, over time if any oxygen does creap in the extra absorbers will take care of the problem. Just keep them in a cool place and don't move them much!! You're probably good for 10-15 years at least.

Personally, I'm not real big on the vacuum thing, for grains anyway. I've always been a fan of CO2 which is heavier and pushes things out. It's a pain in the butt though so I use O2 absorbers too.

sb:wavey::wavey:

Re: Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

Actually guys, they WILL suck a vacuum.

I put them in the mylar bag in a bucket and throw a extra one or two outside the bag, but still in the bucket. (In case my bag seal didn't take.....the bucket is the back up )

As long as you use a gasket type lid, the bucket lid will suck in like a soup bowl, and sometimes the sides will suck in as well.

If that isn't evidence of a vacuum, I don't know what is.

Re: Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

Hi SB ...:wavey:
I went by the more is better philosophy when I used 6 absorbers per bucket. I was insecure because these were the oxygen absorbers the frugal squirrel was going to replace then changed their mind about. I tried using the foodsaver to suck the air out but the bags were so big and there were so many of them I could tell it was straining the unit so I stopped.

LOL about my food storage. I have them in my Daughters old bedroom. I didnt want to use closets because they get so hot in the summer. My Daughter was laughing about sleeping with buckets of survival food last time she came home for a vist.

Re: Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

But do they have to suck the air out to be effective or just replace the oxygen?

Re: Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

When mine work they are almost like a brick. I do get ones that are not that way sometimes but i'm not sure if its because the absorbers didn't work or I didn't push out enough excess air. I would personally redo any that weren't tightly "vacuum sealed".

Re: Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

They absolutely create a vacuum.

The oxy absorber is basically a bag or iron, when oxidation process works, the oxygen atoms are pulled from the air and bonded to the iron producing rust. This reduces the amount of air in the container. This also removes the available oxygen and results in a mostly nitrogen atmosphere, which is very beneficial for long term stability.

http://waltonfeed.com/self/upack/oxyintro.html
http://waltonfeed.com/self/upack/useoxy.html

From the walton feed site:
Open the oxygen absorber bag and place the absorbers you don't plan on using during the day in it. Put the newly boiled lid on top of the jar and tightly screw down the ring. The absorbers will absorb the oxygen in the bottle then stop working. As this happens the lid on the bottle will pop down, reflecting the partial vacuum that is now inside the jar.

Re: Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

Avalon, If you've used mylar bags and sealable buckets, which you have, I personally would not disturb/reseal them. Actually, once the bucket is sealed up I don't disturb it again. Some of mine are partially collapsed, some are not.

If there is a very small opening(microscopic probably),ie you don't have a hard package or a collapsed bucket, that's still OK. You have still removed 99.99% of the oxygen, leaving only the nitrogen. With two barriers, mylar and bucket, the chances of more oxygen infiltrating back in is extremely small, especially if you can keep it in an area where the temp doesn't change much, cool and dry being best.

They're OK. Leave 'em alone!!

sb

BTW Andy should know about vacuums. He's been crushing barrels down in Franklin!!!

Re: Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

I have to disagree. If there is any opening what so ever the mylar is completely useless. How is it supposed to remain 99.99% oxygen free if there is a hole in the mylar? :confused_ma:

Re: Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

SB, it looks like you are correct... I found this.. it looks like it is possible for them to not be tightly pulled but all the oxygen is removed...
http://waltonfeed.com/self/upack/oxytime.html

Reality check, I don't think my bags have holes, I just didnt do good job of pushing out enough air.. they have sucked in some.. just not hard packed like a food saver..

I decided not to save pancake mix for long periods of time after the article someone posted on mold... Im having a big pancake supper at my house for the whole family and neighborhood..I just bought a big outdoor gas stove with a griddle for camping and it can cook massive amounts of pancakes.. Everyone is invited..

Re: Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

Hey Reality, we can agree to disagree, that's ok. To better explain my position, I guess I look at it this way. Unless there is something forcing air(oxygen) back into the "hole" the only way for Oxygen to get back in is by osmosis. Osmosis can be quite effective if you are talking a large area. This is the purpose of using a mylar bag as it prevents transfer of air via osmosis.

But we are probably talking about a very very small opening. AND it might only be open under a presssure differential. The amount of osmotic transfer should be extremely small, especially when a second, although not as good, barrier(the bucket) is in place.

This is just my opinion. I know of no studies that have been made.

Cheers

sb

Re: Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

This is EXACTLY why you use a bucket with a gasketed lid and throw an extra absorber or two in the bucket outside the bag.....so even IF the bag fails, you have a backup of the bucket (with oxygen removed ) to compensate.

Re: Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

Squeezing out as much excess air as possbile will result in having to use less oxygen absorbers.

An oxygen absorber is simply extremely fine iron powder contained in a non-airtight packet with lots of little holes. It is fine in order to increase the surface area. The minute this comes into contact with air, it will begin to react and the iron will oxidize and begin to rust, thereby binding Oxygen molecules, leaving only the regular trace elements found in normal air, being primarily Nitrogen. Very clever and extremely cheap way of removing oxygen from packets. Even if an oxygen absorber breaks for some reason, iron/rust is not very toxic to humans, and will not spoil the food as such.

Re: Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

BTW, MRE Depot has a REAL good price on the 500cc absorbers....pack of 100 for 14.95, and if you enter the promo code --> FLUWIKIE <-- on checkout in the promo box, you get another 10% off.

That's pretty dang cheap.

http://www.mredepot.com/servlet/the-...l?sfs=f7d4e189

Re: Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

HONEYVILLE GRAIN has the same size and count for $8.00 and an additional 10% off if you use the code TROLLEY at checkout (today is the last day for the code). Shipping is only $4.95 no matter what you buy. They are fresh too since they are the ones they use in their current production.

http://store.honeyvillegrain.com/ind...ROD&ProdID=309

Good company in shipping time and customer service from my experience.

Re: Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

DANG ! that IS a good price !

Re: Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

Damnint!!!! I just bought 2 bags from MREdepot.

%^&*$ %#$#$# $%% $^#$!!!!!!!

Re: Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

Has anyone tried using argon in their buckets? I know it's used in auto body shops to preserve paint and solvents. If you only use have a bottle or can, you squirt some Argon into it to displace the oxygen and you don't get that skin on the surface.

Re: Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

Yep,they will suck up a mighty vacuum.Your sealed product,if done right,makes a brick of your grain.

Re: Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

so does a seal a meal vacu sealer :)

Im wondering on sealing dried meats with a vacu sealer. I like the sealer but the problem seems to be that a majority of its uses need some form of refridgeration and if something bad DOES happen, electricity may not be readily available; either the grid will go down or it will be far too expensive, probably the later.

I want to make jerky and fruit leathers and seal them for room temp storage, but I never have(they never last long enough, we eat them too fast) I did succesfully dehyrdrate and store peas today. They kinda suck(my first try) but honestly, if there wasnt anything else, they would be wonderful.

Re: Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

Problem is there will nearly always be a pressure differential. Air pressure in the real world changes constantly and will literally pump air (containing the evil oxygen) into (and out of) your mylar bag if it has a hole. Unless, of course, the seal on your bucket is perfect. We're talking about saving food for years here. 10 years of constantly fluctuating air pressure can wreak havoc with a bag with even pin-size holes.

Re: Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

Sure does! I use both.The foodsaver makes it pretty firm,the addition of an 02 absorber makes it into a brick in a matter of minutes.

Good deal all the way around!

Re: Question about oxygen absorbers working..
 

Put some dehydradeted milk in a tisuue and rotaae it vevery 6 months and quict your complaining. probelm solved