VacMaster VP210 Chamber Vacuum Sealer review and price compare 2025

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Product overview

Brand	Vacmaster
Material	Plastic
Color	Metallic
Item Dimensions LxWxH	24 x 19 x 19 inches
Item Weight	83 Pounds

product features

This fits your .

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Dry maintenance-free machine pump.
Keeps food fresh up to five times longer.
A double seal on each bag ensures a complete and lasting seal.
Customizable vacuum and seal methods offer a variety of packaging options.
The VP210 can vacuum package liquids and liquid-rich foods like fresh meats, soups, marinades, and stews.

product description

The VacMaster VP 210 Chamber Machine provides a solution to the problem posed by vacuum packaging machines currently on the market: how to vacuum package liquids and liquid-rich foods. Current machines on the market are suction machines, meaning air is vacuumed out of the vacuum bag, then the bag is sealed. However, along with the air, liquids are also vacuumed out of the bag, leading to partial or failed seals. The VP210 Chamber Machine uses different technology to eliminate this problem. When sealing with our chamber machine, the vacuum bag to be sealed is placed inside the chamber of the machine, and the lid is closed. Then air is sucked out of the entire chamber, not just the bag, allowing the air pressure on the inside and outside of the bag to remain equal and liquids to stay in the bag. The bag is then sealed, and the air let back into the chamber. In addition, the chamber machine can reach a higher level of vacuum. Most suction machines obtain a 24-26 hg level of vacuum, while chamber machines are able to obtain a 27-29 hg level of vacuum.

product details

important information

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Questions about VacMaster VP210 Chamber Vacuum Sealer

Assuming i am using the largest fitting bag, how many fluid ounces of any liquid would fit into the bag and be able to be safely sealed.

Answer:

Answer: I would not fill with liquids as in the vacuum process they tend to leak out if you put to much in. The unit does a great job on fruits, meats, and vegetables from the garden. I love the unit. Last years green beans look they did when I sealed them, the peaches also. Meats do not show any sign of freezer burn. However, I tried it on a hoagie roll and it looked like a cigar after all the air was remover. It did expand back to about 90% of its original size as we opened it and did not freeze it. Man did my wife and I laugh, One second there was the roll the next It looked like a cigar.

Does this item meet HACCP standards for sous vide?

Answer: Hi Jon,

Answer: No

Is this unit 110V or 220V?

Answer: 110v

Answer: The one I purchased is 110V

Answer: It's 110v standard three prong household socket

Answer: 110 v

Answer: 110

Has anyone come into any issues sealing powders? like flour, wheatgrass powder, cocoa powder

Answer: Haven't used it a lot for powders, but generally there's no problem with them. Some materials will "mat" and need to be broken up afterwards. And you have to be careful to keep the bag clean where it's going to seal (dust between the plastic where it seals will result in a poor or failed seal. But in general, a powder is really no difference than any other material.

Answer: Powder? Wheatgrass? You're asking about cocaine. Don't do it, it's bad for you. Don't sell it, it's bad for others.

Can this machine seal bags used for retort canning (heat and pressure resistant bags)?

Answer: The manufacter does not rate this machine for sealing retort canning bags and will discourage you from trying them. Some people report that they work anyway.

Answer: I don't know what that means. The bags can go into boiliing water but I'm not sure that answers your question. I would call VacMaster directly and ask them. I did that before I bought mine and they answered all my questions.

Does this only seal foods with liquids or does it seal dry foods too? Does it also have a sealing bar or just the chamber?

Answer: It can seal wet and dry very well. The sealing bar is inside of the chamber, once a seal is created the seal bar is clamped down against a silicone stopper. The seal bar can be easily removed for cleanup or maintenance.

Answer: This works just fine with dry foods. The sealing bar is inside the chamber. I have a different model which only works well as a vacuum sealer. It won't seal a bag without first drawing the vacuum since the vacuum is what causes the sealing bar to be pulled tightly against it's backing material.

Answer: It will seal wet or dry foods. The sealing bar is inside the chamber.

Answer: How long will foods last

Will the VP210 hold a 6 lb chicken?

Answer: I've sealed up whole chickens no problem, I just don't know how much each one weighed. I think I used a 10" x 15" bag and sealed 24 of them individually. If the chicken is one of those huge ones that Sams sells, I'm not sure if it could do that. Its a great machine and I use it everyday. Its paid for itself easily by preventing spoilage and being able to buy in bulk, seal and freeze. Great machine with great support from VacMaster

Answer: I presume you mean whole. I've done whole chickens but not sure how much they weighed, but I suspect it would fit. You could measure the height, which would be the limiting dimension and then look at the specs of the chamber. Definitely if you cut it up or butterflied it it would fit. I've done frying chickens without a problem. It is a great machine in general and the support from VacMaster is excellent. They are a good source for bags too; cheaper than other sources I've found.

can you freeze dry with this unit? I want to make feeze dried fruit as it is too expensive to buy.

Answer: No. This is not a freeze dryer. That would be a Harvest Right machine, and far more expensive than these. These are vacuum sealers, what you would use put your freeze dried fruit into bags after you have processed it.

What's the largest cut of meat you can fit in the unit?

Just got mine. Love it, but can anybody tell me what the double sided tape it for?

Answer: The double side tape is for maintenance. If your seal bar across the top of your lid gets loose you use it to replace the old tape. You can see it between the lid and the seal bar. I have had mine for over a year and have never had to replace it. Just hold on to it incase you need it! Merry Christmas ????

Answer: Aren't these things awesome!!? I never did figure out the double sided tape either

Answer: Its replacement heat strip

I plan on vacu sealing about 12 salmon filets a month. My question is what model would be the best for this usage?

Answer: If you are sealing whole sides of salmon at that quantity, I would recommend a FoodSaver. You can make the bags as long or as short as you like. I have had the same FoodSaver for about 10 years and have not had a problem with it ever. This machine is for higher volumes and everyday usage.

Answer: I have the VacMaster VP210 and it is fine for freezing salmon filets. However if that is all you do you may not need such a versatile machine. I have used mine to freeze various meats, fish (including salmon), stews, and to marinate items for sous vide cooking. It does a great job for all these, is pretty flexible as to the strength of the vacuum pulled. It does take up a fair amount of counter space. It's heavy so it's not something you want to move around once you decide where to put it,

Answer: To give the correct answer Ill need to ask you a question. ____ Are portionet the fellets or whole?

Answer: Vp210 is a good one, probably overkill for what ur doing but u will love it, I love mine

Answer: Buy this one

Anyone seeing the bag move from under the sealing bar when using the Vp 210?

Answer: It has only happened to me once, I was packing chili and overfilled one of the bags. I've used a box of 500 bags, and that's the only time it happened.

Answer: Yes and if the bag is inflating you have the same problem I did. The seal bar has come off its post in shipping this bar should lay flat not at a 45 degree angle:)

Answer:

Answer: Yes

Will it fit a 1/2 gallon mason jar on its side? the reason i ask, is i have a vacmaster vp112 and do dry goods all the time with 1/2 gallon jars.

Answer: It should, it is deeper than the VP112

Answer: Can't answer this

how many kgs can I seal using this machine?

Answer: The maximum bag size is 10 x 13 inches allowing for space at the top, so it goes more by volume than weight.

Answer: It's more dependent on volume than weight.

Can it be used for fresh juice in a glass?

Answer: We have vacuum sealed water with it! I think the possibilities are endless

Whaty does the food taste like afterwards? Also, especially interested in fruits, such as fig, peaches, apples, etc. On weight watchers points

Answer: Food tastes great after use. The problem

Answer: I use mine mostly for sous vide cooking and it works great for that. I have frozen meats and fish and they also do well. The only fruit/vegetable I've frozen were whole tomatoes from the summer. When I used them for tomato sauce in the winter their flavor was fresh and really not different from if I had used them fresh for a sauce. Of course once frozen the texture would not be good for eating raw.

Can I use any bags with this vaccum machine?

Answer: No, you need to use the bags designed for this machine

Answer: As long as they are for vac chambers, any brand will work. NOTE: bags with the mesh channels like for Food Savers will not work.

Answer: YES

How much did you pay for your machine? I

Buen día, quiero saber si tiene experiencia o información sobre envasar al vacío sushi. Gracias.

I have a million sous vide bags already- does this machine only work with vacmaster bags?

Answer: If the bags you have fit the dimensions of the sealing bar and chamber they should work. You may have to play around with the settings for the time of heating and cooling of the sealing bar, but other than that it should work. I had a few bags left from some other system and they worked fine

Answer: I have had excellent results using several different brand bags as this machine allows you to easily adjust suction and sealing times so I would not be afraid to experiment.

Answer: Vac master will work with food saver bags and similar bags as well

Answer: No, they should work

Would this work for tray sealing? Has anyone tried storing food contents in a tray then vacuum sealing with this vacmaster?

Answer: it depends on what you want to seal. I have vacuum sealed eggs in neoprene cups raw. it worked good under light vacuum. I have seen frozen ravioli on a tray break up some. Not good

Can this handle up to 70 lbs of food?

Answer: With this machine, I've processed hundreds of pounds of meat nonstop. Have worked this machine hard with no performance issues and it's still going strong after a few years.

Answer: not at one load.

Is the plastic used for these bpa free? wondering if any plastic can leach into the food?

Answer: YES: From VacMaster - All of our bags, rolls, and pouches are free of BPA, Phthalates, and other plasticizers. They are also compliant with Food and Drug Administration (FDA) standards. They even have a letter of guarantee: https://vacmaster.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/206949567-VacMaster-Bag-and-Pouch-Letter-of-Guarantee

Answer: The bags that VacMaster makes are food grade but you can call VacMaster and find out what exactly is in the bags.

Answer: They are. Even if not, the temps you'd be cooking at for sous vide are too low to have any effect on the bags.

Answer: The machines are made to FDA and USDA guidelines.

Answer: don't know but if you contact Vacmaster directly, I'm sure they can answer your question, their tech support is great

What are the inside dimensions of the chamber?

Can someone measure the length of this? Amazon says 24 inch, VacMaster says 20 inch, another Q&A says 19inch, my counters are 19.5 inch

Answer: The key is the cord. My 210 measured 19 inches but the cord exits the rear of the unit and requires space so 20 is more likely. The footings are less than 19 inches so you should be fine.

Answer: It is 19 long x 13 wide

Answer: I will sell you mine that I only used for 2 years. Half price

What happens if i vacuum for too long? will it damage the machine? i'm afraid i may put too many seconds on the timer... or not enough.

Answer:

Answer: it maxes out at 99 seconds so you cant vacuum too long. Doing too little is no big deal either, just try again until you like the seal you get after trying different times

Answer: This doesn't answer your question exactly, but...

do the white plastic boards pictured inside the chamber come with the machine?

Answer: Yes, they do. They act as ballast.

Any idea why it suddenly stopped removing all of the air?

Answer: Check the air setting time and the vacuum sealing time on the front of the unit. Also they have an OUTSTANDING team at VacMaster who know the machine inside and out and will have you stand in front of the unit and walk you through any issues that you are having. I had to call them once for a question and I have never been more pleased with customer service I received. Hope that helps.

Answer: My guess is that the gasket attached to the lid is either fouled or it has failed.

My vp215 draws a vacuum just fine, but it won't seal the bag. how can i best diagnose what is causing the sealing not to work?

Answer: Maybe check the sealer setting in the menu (red “set” button). If the sealing time is too low it won’t be getting hot enough for long enough to seal the bag. Should be between 1.2 and 2.0 seconds depending on the thickness of the bags you’re sealing.

I want to use it for seal skewers my skewers are 11.5inch with extra I need 13inch at least in length . Is that fit this machine?

Can it be use for beef jerky? Both marinade and dried

Answer: If you mean can it be used to vacuum pack beef jerky then the answer is yes for both dried and in a marinade. I often vacuum pack meats in marinades. You just have to be careful not to overfill a bag.

Answer: Of course!

Answer: Yes

will this machine vac seal mylar bags?

Answer: Here is what Vacmaster states about this: Typically our chamber vacuum sealers can seal mylar bags up to 7-9 mil, however it also depends on the thickness of the mylar material because not all mylar bags are made equally. To confirm, it may be best to send us a sample and we can do a test for you to ensure it will work for your bags.

Answer: When I contacted ARY they said that the 210/215 would seal mylar/foil bags.

Answer: It will seal Mylar but you will have to play with the seal time to figure out how long you need to seal them

Answer:

Answer: I do not believe that it will work with Mylar bags. It's been a couple years since I researched the chamber vacuum sealers, but if my memory is correct, you needed to go up several tiers, and a lot more money to get that functionality. Another person responded that it's possible to seal mylar with this unit, but I don't know if it might shorten the life of the sealing bar. I'd suggest that you contact tech support at ARY and get their opinion. They've been very helpful when I've contacted them.

Answer: I'm not sure. I only use the boilable bags which are not mylar and it works great. Sorry.

Answer: Sorry have not tried....tried calling VacMaster customer service?

How long is the sealing bar?

Answer: The sealing bar is 12 inches, the user guide recommends using pouches up to 10 inches wide by 13 inches long.

Answer: the bar is 10"

Answer: 10.5 inches. The largest bags we've used are 10x 13

Why does amazon show this as delivered abroad, but you don't ship to the uae?

Answer: Call your local government representatives

What is the diference with the VP 215 ?

Answer: From what I understand the 215 is an oil pump and the 210 isnt.

Answer: dont know

how high is inside chamber

Answer:

Answer: inside from bottom to top of stainless steel rim is 4" and the bubble in the top is a max of 3" Awesome piece of equipment Love mine. Worth every dollar!

Answer: 5 1/2 inches. Buy it , you won't be disappointed.

Answer: About six inches

Can this handle volume use? We won't use on daily basis, but when we do use, would be sealing 50 to 200 bags. Can it handle that work load?

Answer: I haven't done that much volume but it seems pretty robust.

Answer: Yes, we have packed that many on a given day without any problem we have don between 75-100.

Answer: You will be fine

Answer: NO

Dose it work for the bags with flat surface instead of texture surface?

Answer: We recommend using the chamber pouches (flat surface) but the texture surface can be used as well.

Answer: Yes. Unlike home sealers that suck air from a bag outside the sealer, this is a chambered sealer, so air evacuation doesn't require texture.

Answer: See this page on their website: https://vacmaster.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/208058717-What-kind-of-bags-rolls-or-pouches-do-I-need-

Answer: I've never used textured surfaces but works great on smooth surfaced bags

Answer: Yes, in fact that is the tour recommend for that unit.

what is the voltage for this? can it be used in other countries where the voltage is 220-240v?

Answer: Specs:

Does this have single seal line or double seal line?

Answer: Double seal line

Answer: Double

Which are the sizes and types of bags we need to buy to be used with this specific sealer ?

Answer: FoodVacBags 100 Quart Size 8X12 mil thickness Vacuum Sealer Bags

Answer: I have used as large as 10" x 15" bags despite literature stating 10" x 13" ,was the maximum size to be used with this machine. I use Vacmaster brand bags and find 3m rated thickness of bags to be adequate for packaging most boneless meats. My machine came with a sample pack of 4 different sizes to provide a little guidance on various sizes that can be used.

Answer: The maximum pouch size you can use is 10" x 13". You can use chamber bags or bags with texture.

Answer: this will use flat pouches up tp a 10x15 inch and will seal up to a 5 mil thickness.

what is this difference between the vacmaster vp210 and vp215?

Answer: One lacks an oil pump, one has one. Very clear in the product decriptions.

Does it have one or two sealing bars, how wide are they and what is the largest bag this machine can handle?

Answer:

Answer: bag size max that I have is 10x13 (that is the largest bag possible because of chamber length and heat bar width). Unit has a bars with two seal lines and an extra heating bar included.

Answer: It does have 2 seal lines on one bar and the 10 inch wide bag is the largest. The manufacturer says it will handle the 12 inch bag but this must be folded at the corners for it to work. I really like it

Answer: One sealing bar only and will only take bags that are 10 inches wide at opening

Does the Vacmaster VP210 come with any bags?

Answer: Yes- it comes with a grouping of bags of about three different sizes. I bought a large package of medium-sized bags, and have found that I really like the small and large ones. Might be a good move to try the samples first then order large quantities.

Answer: It usually comes with sample bags about 40 of them in 3 or 4 different sizes

Answer: Yes it comes with two sizes of bag samples.

Answer: Around ten sample bags

Answer: It comes with enough to get started but it will give you the option to buy more.

Answer: Yes. An assortment of sizes

Answer: No. Sold sepeatly

Answer: Yes, small and medium....

Answer: Yes, some. Different sizes too

Does it works with any generic brand of vacuum bags? or does it needs an specific brand?

Answer: It will work with other brands but not all. We recommend that you use our bags.

Answer: It will work with other brands. But I've found the VacMaster bags to be the best. They do have sales once in awhile, so sign up with your email on their website.

Answer: I'm not 100% sure but I would think so. The reality is I don't think you'l find bags any cheaper elsewhere. You can call VacMaster and ask, they're an American company and have great support. The machine is wonderful and my favorite kitchen tool. Its paid for itself easily by reducing food spoilage to almost nil no to mention its myriad of other uses

The bag is ballooning in the chamber. Why?

Answer: I presume this is when the chamber opens after it was evacuated? If that is the case then there must be something wrong with the sealing; possibly not heating enough or cooling for long enough before the chamber returns to atmospheric pressure. If it balloons during the evacuation procedure I don't know why that would be. VacMaster has, in my experience, and excellent customer service, so call them to trouble shoot.

Can a rectangular glass food storage container in a vacuum pouch then place in the chamber to seal

Answer: I did this with a small, circular ramekin and it worked fine. The plastic spanning the opening of the ramekin pushes in a little so if you overfill your vessel, expect some mess. I think your rectangular container would be okay.

Answer: According to my husband the vacmaster will not crush the glass container

In what country is this manufactured?

Answer: Designed in the USA. Manufactured in China.

Answer: I can not find a "made in" name anywhere on the product or in the literature. Contact ARY,Inc. Who are the supplier at 800-821-7849, they should be able to help you. PS The unit works great and is easy to use.

Answer: This is a China built product

Chamber size

Answer: Chamber Size (WxDxH): 11.25â x 15.25â x 5â

hello i want to know the exact measurements and weight of this product in box, thanks

Answer: Hi,

Answer: I don't know the exact measurements, but something around a 36"x36"x36 and weighing around 100 lbs (I lift weights and easily lift a 45-lb plate with one hand ... this was NOT a one-handed lift).

Answer: Here are the specs from the manufacturer:

Answer: In addition it's probably 18 x18x24 package size. Again an estimate based on the unit

Answer: the VacMaster weighs 80 lbs. 13 inches wide, 19 inches deep, and 15 inches tall

Answer: It's been a while since I got it. At a minimum it's 40 lbs....my estimate on the unit itself. It was packed very well so I would ad about 5 lbs. worth it though

Product reviews of VacMaster VP210 Chamber Vacuum Sealer

Beau : I absolutely LOVE this vacuum sealer!!!

Yes it's heavy and yes it's bulky but it is hands down the best sealer I have ever used. I make my own sausage, hundreds of pounds at a time, and this sealer runs through it in no time. After playing with it a little and adjusting the vacuum time I was vacuuming and sealing a 2.5lb pack of sausge every 25 seconds and never had to stop to let the machine cool off. I have sealed homemade soup in it as well and it worked perfectly!!

MLB : worth the money

My husband is big on fishing and we freeze loads of fish for family and friends. He would freeze the fish in water in baggies they would get freezer burn in a short amount of time plus it took up a large amount of room in the freezer.
This system is great .. you don't need to use water and the fish stays perfect for many months. when thawed and cooked it taste like he caught it that day.. I know the unit is pricey but it seals everything perfectly and the average cost of a bag is 6 cents.. Baggies cost so much more and does not prevent freezer burn.. I highly recommend this product.

Kindle Customer : in top 5 of "best purchases i've ever made"

this is the best most useful thing in the world - we love this!!! Hoping this old workhorse will last forever, as i'm spoiled now & can't live without it, we use it constantly - this is the one to buy, forget the cheap ones, they're just a waster of money, and the bags are affordable also

Kindle Customer : One Star

Paid almost $1000 for this and it quit working less than a year after purchase.

Irie : Reliable and durable

We have owned a VacMaster VP215 for 12 years and it has been so reliable for us! A great product - easy to use, can seal wet or dry foods, very sturdy and durable, and is so consistent. It is an item I would not want to do without! I highly recommend this product - it is well worth the money!

Tia N. : Update to 5 stars!!

Received my VacMsster yesterday and couldn't wait to try it out today. I reviewed the setup instructions which say after adding the settings, it should be ready to go. The vacuum seems to be working fine but I get no seal...not a bad seal... NO SEAL PERIOD. I've watched the YouTube set up videos and none of them say anything about having to do anything with the sealer. There is no mark on the bags after seal in ng. I cranked the setting up to 4 and still no seal. Any suggestions from experienced users?? Time change has precluded me from calling company but I will try tomorrow. My poor lamb chops are waiting for the sous vide bath and I can't seal the darn bags!! Any help would be appreciated!! UPDATE !! Apparently my problem was nothing more than the sealer bar having flipped over during shipment! Customer Service was very responsive and happily answered the multiple questions I thought of while on hold. I must say, I just LOVE this thing! Looked at it for over a year before I purchased and wish I had done it sooner.!

Susie : Best sealer

This is by far the best thing I have ever purchased for my family ! It seals perfectly and I would encourage anyone that buys in bulk or puts up vegetables or like to eat leftovers! Write, date on bags before sealing. And what’s inside!

Canonli : Very happy with the VacMaster VP210!!!

I bought this item January 2015 and I’m reviewing it August 2019
I packed more than 5000 products with it and it keeps going!!!
I’m very happy with it!!!

Lori Lindley : Husband's best Christmas present ever !!!

My husband loves this !!!!

Bill : Five Stars

This machine did not perform correctly sent it back an got the 215 an its great

Brian Pomykacz : Great working unit however over time the bin does rust.

Best vacuum sealer I ever owned as far as functionality and quality of seal. The only negative concerning this unit is that the bin rust over time . Not good for a piece of food equipment at this cost.

Claire : Seals food with liquids, but has a small learning curve to use it

I am a home cook and have been cooking food sous vide, but the standard external sealers always pull moisture/liquids up and out of the bag which is very frustrating. The VP210 chamber allows you to seal bags with none to alot of liquid. However, there is a learning curve, and I had to call technical support a couple of times to get the machine set up correctly, but once it is set up, it works great. I am able to seal meats and liquids in the machine without a problem.
The first machine that I received was dented on a back corner and the cover of the machine was set too low so it was impossible to plug it in. Amazon overnighted a replacement (thank you, I needed it for thanksgiving).
Then I needed to speak to technical support a couple of times to help set up the machine settings. I had to increase the the seal time of the machine up to 1.4 or 1.5... technical support said not to raise it above 1.5, but the setting as set by the factory was too short, so when the bag was sealing, air was getting back into the bag.
I raised the vacuum time in the chamber to 60 seconds due to the initial trouble I was having of the bags not holding the vacuum, but can probably lower the time now back to 40 seconds since the seal time is set to a longer time.
This is a basic chamber sealer for a very reasonable price compared to other units on the market, but you have to play around with the time you set the machine to vacuum. You cannot choose to set it to specific vacuum percentages, you have to experiment with the time to get the effect you want on a particular type of food. Most foods will seal within 40 seconds.
Researching the machine online, I read that this is dry rocker piston instead of the more expensive rotary oil motor. The dry rocker piston machine will tend to clog after sealing bags with alot of moisture in them (items like fish), but supposedly will still last 10 time longer than the typical countertop external strip sealing machine. The rotary oil motor machine will last 10 times longer than the dry rocker piston machine. However, I am using this on a home basis, not a commercial setting, so the representative said that the dry rocker piston would be fine.
There is a newer, smaller lighter-weight vp112 vacmaster sealer, which uses the same motor in the vp210, has a port for external vacuum sealing of bottles with the attachments commonly found on other brands like foodsaver, and is light weight because the cover is a foldable plastic without the heavier lid closing mechanism found on the vp210. Its also cheaper by a couple of hundred dollars. I opted to go with the vp210 because the chamber is slightly bigger and the bottom is flat. The bottom of the the vp112 is slightly curved, like a bathtub, so only the middle of the chamber has the full depth.
Note: I purchased the rolls of vacmaster bags with the vacstrip (amazon listed them as being purchased by others with this machine), which I found out from the company are not meant to be used with chamber vac machines (the bags were not sealing with a vacuum). When using the pre-made bags that come with the machine (25 bags each of 3 different sizes are included with the machine for a total of 75 bags) the sealer works as intended. I was told by the company to purchase the 3 mil premade pouches.

not really saying : Expensive but awesome

I'm reviewing this from the perspective of a home user. If you are a light commercial user...it'll work fine for you, assuming the chamber is big enough and it has the features you need.

Anyway...

This is my third vacuum bagging appliance and my first chamber style unit. I am a big fan of vacuum storage, not just for prolonging the life of foods but also to infuse different flavors and create ready-to-cook meal packets for the freezer. I have played around with sous-vide cooking as well though I'm not really a regular practitioner of that art.

I bought this for my home kitchen for several reasons:
1) I make a lot of soups and sauces. I have been vacuum sealing with jars and refrigerating them; I want to be able to bag and freeze instead.
2) I wasn't satisfied with how my previous vacuum baggers (from a warehouse club) dealt with meats. I especially didn't like when they sucked meat juice into the machine, and was tired of having to pre-freeze or otherwise play tricks to avoid a mess.
3) I wanted to be able to buy bulk (1000 pack) bags instead of the very expensive textured bags.
4) I wanted to be able to use heavy duty bags (especially for sporting goods that can puncture normal food bags).
5) I'm a big fan of overkill.

The package comes with a couple of "filler plates" (basically cutting boards that fill up part of the vacuum chamber when you are sealing smaller volumes -- by filling the chamber they reduce the amount of air that must be pumped out and cut wear and time), power cord, some maintenance material (heater replacement materials, gasket material, etc), some basic tools, and 100 bags (25 each in 4 sizes), plus of course the machine itself.

The machine isn't nearly as big as amazon says. The shipping box is 24"x19"x19". The machine itself is roughly 13" wide, 19" deep, and 15" tall. It's still very big (and heavy) but it will fit on a standard kitchen counter and, unlike the bag-out vacuum baggers, it doesn't need counter space in front to support the bag.

Once you have it dialed in the VP210 is extremely easy to use. Fill a bag, set it in the chamber (making sure the open end is smooth over the heater bar), lower the lid, and the machine kicks in and runs a vacuum-and-seal cycle. About 40 seconds later the lid pops open to reveal a perfectly sealed bag.

Once you have it dialed in.

Because the VP210 is designed to work with different types of bags, and with different volumes of food (or whatever you are bagging), it leaves a lot of control in the hands of the operator. You can adjust pump run time, sealing heat time, and after-sealing cool-down time. The benefit is that you can tune the machine to work perfectly in your kitchen with your bags. The cost is that you will need to get it set up for your bags. Set the seal heat time too high and it will melt though your bags. Set it too short and your bags won't seal at all.

The instructions point you in the general direction you need to go but aren't comprehensive. For example, the machine has three heat levels available but no guidance is given as to when or why you would adjust the temperature instead of seal time. I have burned through (sometimes literally) a lot of the included bags figuring out how the machine should be adjusted.

So, is it worth it? It's very very expensive (easily 7 times the price of a standard vacuum bagger), takes up a lot of space, is kinda fiddly to dial in, and it weighs about 90 pounds. That's a big pile of negatives to overcome...and I'm not sure how many people could honestly answer, "yes."

A few items to consider:
Because you can bag liquids with this machine, you can easily add marinades to meats. There are tricks to do the same with a standard vacuum machine including freezing marinade ice cubes, using dry rubs, or using a canister or jar to vacuum marinate, but it's handy to be able to put a bit of meat in a bag, squirt some marinade on top, seal the bag, and toss it in the fridge or freezer. This is an even bigger factor if you are trying sous-vide techniques.

Unlike the common household machines, this sealer doesn't have any provisions for evacuating canisters or jars. Just playing around I figured out that you can vacuum seal about nine 8oz canning jars at a pass by putting standard canning lids and rings on them, loading them into the chamber, dialing the seal heat time down to zero, and cycling the machine. This also works with some other containers (I tried an old pipe tobacco tin and it vacuum sealed up tight) but you've got to be able to fit the entire container in the chamber. A standard quart jar won't fit. You can buy hand-held units just for evacuating canisters to cover this gap if you care.

Amazon sells a box of 28 6"x9" foodsaver bags, the sort you need for a bag-out machine, for about 36 cents per bag. You can find 1000 6"x10" vacuum bags for this machine for about 3.5 cents per bag. That difference holds for larger bags as well. However, you've got to use a LOT of bags -- somewhere around 2000 -- to overcome the base price difference of the machines. It's doable -- use one bag a day for five or six years you are there -- but you may never use that many bags.

I think this will work best for most people if they buy 1000 or so standard sized bags, set the machine up to seal those bags, and then just keep using that one type and size bag even if it isn't quite the ideal size. To the extent you can do that, this machine is extremely easy to use and seems to produce very consistent results. If you must use different bags you will spend a lot more time adjusting the machine...time you would not spend with a more home-oriented machine.

I'm really pleased with my VP210. It works as well as I hoped and I expect it to last many years of light but regular use...but I can see where it would be too much for most home kitchens.

Update: I have now owned this unit for about a year and I thought I would add to my initial review with a few lessons learned.

First, the important bit: It's still awesome. I've used it steadily for a year and it has delivered consistently great results, tightly sealed bags with plenty of vacuum, without fail in my home kitchen. I took a vacation up to Alaska late this summer and was tickled to see exactly this unit on the shelves at Costco in Anchorage. Costco is pretty savvy about what they stock so it was good validation to see this unit sold in an area where food preservation can be more than an academic issue.

Second, posting this review has been a real downer for me. I bought a great product, gave it an honest review listing pros and cons, and suddenly shills for competing products start spamming the comments and, in a classic maneuver, accusing everyone else of being shills, insulting me, and in general putting me off of reviewing products for Amazon. Frankly it's depressing to even look at the comments now. Bummer.

The great thing about this machine is that I can leave it "ready to go" under a stainless steel table (picked up from Costco) in my kitchen and seal as I go. I seal 1-3 bags in a "run", and do a "run" every day or two. I've gone through a BUNCH of the small (6x10 if I remember - perfect size for my needs) bags that way but that's OK because they come 1000 to the box.
I have sealed a bunch of bags all in one go but frankly I don't think that's a realistic use most of the time. Not in my kitchen anyway. Most of us go to the grocery store once a week, right? You find a special or sale you might get 20lbs of something. A pound per bag and you've got only 20 bags. To me, if I needed to do much more than that, I would spread it over multiple days. For a home user like me, owning this machine is about quality, not high volume bagging. Quality meaning that a bag of spices sealed with this machine has far less air than when sealed with a Tilla. Quality meaning that I can cook a more succulent turkey dinner by sealing the meat with liquid and spices without having to freeze the liquids or play other tricks. Quality meaning I can count on the machine chugging to life and doing a great job every time I lower the lid. Can it seal 100 bags in an hour? Who cares? I mean honestly? Do you need to seal 100 bags? It'll still do a better job than any other machine I've used, but how often are you actually going to need to do that?

This is a quality machine that stretches the absolute outer limit, in my opinion, of what a home kitchen needs or what a home cook should want. For me it has gone through a year of regular service, expanded my sous vide repertoire immensely (seriously, ability to add liquids, c'est magnifique!), sealed spices, meats, and everything else I've needed to seal, and has done it without a single glitch or hiccup. However, it's HUGE. It's heavy. I think my microwave has it beat as the largest freestanding appliance in my kitchen but it certainly wins the "heaviest" prize. It's also expensive, more expensive now than when I got mine. All of that said, I'm extremely happy with my purchase and would do it again in a heartbeat.

Thumbs up again.

Brian Pomykacz : Great working unit however over time the bin does rust.

K. Fancher : Love this thing

This is a big heavy commercial chamber vacuum. I purchased one for use with sous vide cooking and love it. Best of all, it handles liquids with ease. There are many technical reviews here that are very informative. I also purchased a rolling cart so I can wheel this thing away to a storage room when not in use. The cart has a couple shelves that I use for bags and sous vide equipment.

Amazon Customer : Now I have 3!

We are big into food storage and this Vacuum Packer is invaluable when it comes to food storage. It actually pays for it's self when you finally realize how much you spend on bags. Food saver bags are 6x more expensive than the ones used with this machine.

Danny Kim : I am satisfied

after 6months of usage, I am satisfied

Stephen D Camp : Second one I have bought two (two houses) and they work awesome!

I have one in Alaska and one in Houston. They work very well, easy to use. I buy the 4mil bags (6X8) which last at least a year (So far). I packaged some 300+ bags of Halibut this summer by doing 150-175 in a single run. No problems with any of the bags or the machine. The seal is a double seal. I sealed raspberries (Fresh) which totally collapsed them into a jam substance but none of the juices were sucked into the machine and it sealed perfectly.

J. Hutson : Awesome

This performs exactly as described. Very easy to use, maintain and operate. Great for any type of food.

We did have issues with the shipping (item had been dropped and lid was cracked), but Amazon did a great job to resolve it. We sent it back (about 100 dollars) and they sent a new one 1-day overnight shipping (probably cost a lot since it's 100 pounds). We were re-reimbursed for the shipping expenses within 5 days.

Overall, great experience and love using this on everything.

Update July 2011

The product is still running strong. We only use it lightly for home use, meaning about twice per week.

The comment for this post asks for more information, which can be found at the manufacturer's site here: [...]

Melinda Boudreau : Five Stars

parfait

Eric M. Schloegel Jr. : Finally got a Bad A55 Chamber Vacuum sealer and it was worth every penny

I have been threw a couple vacuum sealers and they never last or they suck as sucking. I saved up my money and got this beast and damn it sucks. It comes with 75 bag 25 of the 3 most used, and i probably used them all up within 4 days. I ordered a bunch more and have been sealing everything. Don't do marshmallow in a bag they flatten and never pop back up lol. i sealed water, Sweet iced tea, raw foods, cooked foods, Coffee, brined foods, lunch, dog treats, drink koozie, other bags, air, lost souls.
It might sound like its allot of money and it is, but after awhile it pays off, the cost of bags end up being under 10 cents per, they seal perfectly air tight and water tight. Quick and you can buy in bulk and portion size out to save on money and many things in your frig or pantry that could go bad after sealing they last allot longer saving money. My wife nagged me saying this would be to much money, but now she loves it and i actually got her to say i was right i even made it her ringtone. Yea this mother sucka is awesome.

KohalaTom : Great for packing fresh caught fish!

No learning curve necessary after following the easy to understand setup instructions. Perfect airtight seals on the heavier 4-mil chamber pouches. This unit lives in my motor home, and I am using it to vacuum pack Salmon and Halibut prior to freezing and airfreight shipment. I am really pleased with the performance, reliability, and ease of use. No problems here.

Genesis Rodriguez : Five Stars

Very good

Ernest Frank : Four Stars

so far so good

Geri : Good Product

At first I was a little hesitant about buying this one but after receiving it and using it, found it to be so much better than our old one. It is very versatile and we can do a lot with it.

Canonli : Very happy with the VacMaster VP210!!!

I bought this item January 2015 and I’m reviewing it August 2019
I packed more than 5000 products with it and it keeps going!!!
I’m very happy with it!!!

Tpeak : Great semi-commercial sealer

While you probably won't run this machine in a commercial shop, I've used it for 3-4 hours at a time and it worked perfectly. As others have said, there is a bit of a learning curve and keep in mind you need to buy specific bags to suit the machine, but it is highly recommended. If you are a hunter or even a home cook who cooks in large batches, you will not be disappointed.

Amazon Customer : Works great, better than anticipated

This is a very heavy machine so please use caution lifting it!! We do not use this for a company, we use it at home.

This is so much better than the ones you can buy at the department stores etc. We order meat in bulk and have to re-package it for freezing. This is fast, quiet, efficient, and does the job without any issues. We got this one for home seeing that there were quite a number of reviews from businesses that use it every day. We use it every several months to re-package 30-40 pounds of meat at a time into 0.5 - 1.0 pound packages. We have gone through 3 foodsaver machines because they just can't keep up. We anticipate this being used for many years to come!

UPDATE: We have been using this regularly and still love it. So very easy to use. The only downside is the weight and size for keeping in the house. But for what you get, it is still well worth it! In the home we have this sitting on the dining room table until we need it.

Frank Ziegler : This model Sealing bar machine not accepting 12X14in bags! Beware!

Beware all as this is a small vacuum machine! You must know that bags 12X14in and up does not sealed! As the sealing bar is small and does not cover the entire bag! The machine is ok sofar, but I wish they could tell us about this before I would have buying this size of machine. Why the bags 12X14in are promoted when purchasing this machine size if they cannot even fit the sealing bar size?! Sucks....

Alan S. : This thing rocks. There are more than enough 5 ...

This thing rocks. There are more than enough 5 star reviews here so I won't belabor the point. But consider these use cases .....

- Sealing documents: Sometimes when the chamber re-pressurizes the documents shift or wrinkle. Solution? Remove the top filler plate, lay document(s) (in pouch) down, place filler plate back on top, align as usual, and fire it up. Result is flat, in-place document(s) sealed up. Probably photo-copiable thru the pouch. Also, notary stamps are still clearly visible. IMPORTANT: Be sure there's enough 'head space' between docs and end of bag because the 90 degree turn the bag makes may create a crease...not what you want on your document(s).

- Pull a vacuum, no seal: Set the seal time to 0. Use to vacuum seal canning jars, degas fluids, etc. Remember to adjust the vacuum time appropriately for the intended purpose.

- Seal w/o pulling a vacuum: Set vacuum time to as low as it goes (6 sec) w/ seal time set to whatever you've been using.

Gene M. : This thing is awesome! I love the fact that bags for this ...

This thing is awesome! I love the fact that bags for this are cheap. I have used it to make my own re-freezable water bladders, seal fish and rabbit, and to vacuum out mason jars with dry goods. I've only had one sealing failure out of around 60 bags and that was due to a sharp bone. I caught the failure right away and re-bagged. If you are on the fence about purchasing this sealer, I highly recommend it as it does a much better job than any Food Saver type sealer I've used and it is more versatile. ((I have used many food saver sealers and most have worked great for short term storage. After 8 or more months, I have had air get into about 20% of my food saver sealed bags. I'm going on a year with this vacmaster with no failures aside from the single bone incident.))

Update: 12/26/18 over 3 years later we still use this often. The savings in bags vs the foodsavers has made this a financially smart long term purchase. We have upgraded to the thicker bags, which are still a fraction of the cost of the food saver bags, and so far we have not had but that one bone puncture.

MGSWS : Worth every penny

I got my vacuum chamber sealer about a month ago and have used it extensively. If you are serious about experimenting with sous vide cooking, this machine, or one like it, is indispensable. The ability to vacuum pack foods which contain significant liquid is hard to overstate. You cannot do this with traditional home machines like the FoodSaver; as you suck the air out of the bag, it migrates up the bag and can interfere with the seal. This is not so with the VacMaster - you get a perfect seal every time without liquid running out of the bag. You can modify the settings extensively to suit different volumes and water content of foods. I have also tried compressing items like melons and pineapple. This is fun, and after vacuum packing and chilling the fruit for a while, you get more intense tasting fruit.

Some caveats. This is a large item with a large footprint. You need to place it where you are going to use it because it weighs 90 lbs. You will need sufficient space over the machine because the top swings open when the vacuum cycle is done. When you buy bags for vacuum packing, you need to remember the sealing electrode is 10 inches wide. Assuming you need something like this, you will not regret purchasing it. I have used it almost every day; it is one of my most used kitchen appliances.

I'll bet that if the manufacturer came up with a somewhat more consumer friendly version of this machine, it would sell well.

Douglas Shorb : It's a professional tool. It works -period-

Us getting one of these for home use is kind of silly. It's very expensive, but we do large batches of sauce and seal-a-meal 2-cup portions and freeze them. So we decided to get this. It's large, heavy and works so much better than a seal-meal that it will blow your socks off. For one thing. it doesn't suck air out of the bag, if creates a vacuum in the entire chamber. The fist time we used it it seemed strange. The vacuum pump was running but nothing seemed to be happening. The bag stayed unchanged. Then the seal happened (BTW it's a double seal) and boom the chamber released the vacuum, the bag compressed tightly against the sauce (no air bubbles) and the job was done. Later we did 15 quarts of a hardy soup. No problems with liquids becasue the bad isn't compressed until the seal is done.

If you need a professional tool, this is worth looking at.

Kindle Customer : One Star

Paid almost $1000 for this and it quit working less than a year after purchase.

Douglas Shorb : It's a professional tool. It works -period-

Tia N. : Update to 5 stars!!

Glostafisher : Efficient chamber vacuum sealer.

This machine is worth the money. Took very little time to review the instructions, plug it in and begin using the chamber vac. Very easy to adjust the settings. Processed over 100 pounds of fish fillets in about an hour and a half, at my leisure. The machine remembers the last programmed settings so no buttons to push to start once set. Just place your product in the bag, place bag in the chamber and push the lid down. The compressor starts immediately and within a couple of seconds, holds the lid shut. You can be filling the next bag to be processed while the machine is performing its duty. The lid opens automatically at the completion of the vacuum cycle which saves a step and time during the process. The sealed product looks amazing. Excellent commercial grade machine. Will buy a rugged stand with casters to permanently mount this machine on as it weighs around 80 pounds.

dcmb : Still wowed!

I've packed fresh fish fillets, squid, sliced up bulk pancetta into 1/4 lb. packages. Very happy with this purchase.

Dustin P : 100%

Should have got one years ago!!

Amazon Customer : Vac Master 210

Did not seal bags you would think they test them before selling had to return

Amazon Customer : Vac Master 210

Did not seal bags you would think they test them before selling had to return

L.E. Quaranta : This weighs 90 pounds

This is what you use to vacuum seal and do sous vide cooking. Only issues is it weighs 90 pounds and make sure you oil the motor or you will have problems. This is a chamber vacuum and you must use 3 mil bags you cannot use foodsaver bags as those are channel vacuum bags completely different

I returned the item because I cannot lift 90 pounds so using it would be a problem as I have no permanent spot for it

Douglas Shorb : It's a professional tool. It works -period-

Alan S. : This thing rocks. There are more than enough 5 ...

Mary Basballe : Five Stars

Works great!

you can compare the product price from Costco, wayfair, bestbuy, lowes, target, homedepot, Walmart, ebay, amazon to find the best price for you