How many times can I reuse a bag?
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30 to 50-plus uses
That's the designed life of a Seal It bag, and in practice it's wide because it depends entirely on what you put in it. A bag used for dry pantry goods will outlast one used weekly for raw chicken several times over.
What actually kills a bag
Not the washing. In order:
- A damaged or lost valve cap. The small cap on the one-way valve is the part that fails. Once it's split or missing, the bag won't hold a vacuum. Nothing to be done — retire it.
- A stretched or contaminated zip. Overfilling stretches the seal. Oil and marinade work into it over time.
- Punctures. Bones, prawn heads, frozen edges. Wrap sharp things in paper towel first and you'll double the life of your large bags.
- Absorbed odour. Not a failure, but it's what makes people stop using a bag. See washing and de-odourising.
How to tell a bag is done
Seal it with nothing in it and leave it an hour. If it's still tight, the bag is fine and your problem is elsewhere — usually technique on the zip. If it's soft, the bag has gone.
What that works out to
A 5-pack of Medium bags is $14.00. At a conservative 30 uses per bag, that's 150 seals for $14 — a bit under 10 cents a seal. At 50 uses it's around 5.6 cents. Single-use rolls for a benchtop machine don't get close, and you're not buying them again every month.
Make them last longer
- Leave a few centimetres of clear bag above the food.
- Pat wet food dry; paper towel in the bottom for anything that weeps.
- Wipe the zip before closing.
- Dry fully before storing, open and upside down.
- Store flat, not crushed in a drawer with the valves under pressure.
Bag failed well inside 30 uses? That's not normal. Email hello@sealit.com.au with your order number and a photo.