*Shape up your vacuum sealing*
How to shape your vacuum sealed foods
If you have the good fortune of owning or being able to use a vacuum sealer you know they are one of the modern day survivalist’s greatest tools. You can store and preserve a multitude of items with them for a very long time because they remove and keep air, as well as, moisture out of your sealed goods.
The major problem I found with sealing things in the past was the shapes I ended up with when using the bags. We have limited space here to store items and the lumpy masses the sealed items left me with did not optimize my space to its fullest potential. I decided there had to be a way to shape the sealed bags so I could stack them.
The method I came up with was by pure luck. Our kids have a multiple game set up that comes in a three-sided box. It looks much like a small dresser drawer without the face and with a wooden top instead of an open area. I played with it a couple of times and found out that I can put a bag that has been double sealed (I prefer double sealing them in case one seal is not complete) into the box and fill it with whatever product I am trying to preserve. I measure each bag the same length, which includes some extra bag material for resealing after the original has been opened. I was surprised to see that I could seal a bag of sugar, coffee, salt, rice, or even beans into a nice block that can be stacked to utilize my storage space.
My shape is square but I have since seen where people make their molds in triangles so they can place one triangle with each food group represented in layers for easy storage and meal supply logging. I suppose you could make your molds in any size and shape so as to have smaller bags of things we do not store as much of such as spices. I am betting that you could build your own box with paneling or even using a small drawer to make this shape. Double thick cardboard might even work as well. The possibilities are nearly endless if you use your imagination.
The pictures below are samples of my block sealed bags of sugar, corn meal, beans, rice, salt, oatmeal, brown sugar, and several other items I buy in bulk and store here. I more than tripled my storage capabilities using a regular shape and size. I hope this article helps you do the same.
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