Links to more oxygen absorber videos: Is Your Oxygen Absorber Doing it's Job? - th-cam.com/users/live-HIdI58qRtQ?si=O3rLL9ylFdR9q4vR Short Version - Simple Test: Using a Pickle Jar and a Soda Bottle to Test Oxygen Absorbers - th-cam.com/video/zCKh0gtg28k/w-d-xo.htmlsi=IW4KSm-brBDz5RxL Oxygen Absorber Testing (For our freeze dried food) - th-cam.com/video/x30h6lxfcHc/w-d-xo.htmlsi=u4hCGk3OvqLH3NcZ Vacuum Sealing Jars in the Freeze Dryer - How Much Air is Left? Too Much! - th-cam.com/video/JJqCHYoylDE/w-d-xo.htmlsi=oojpQWO_wmEPfXwn Want to support this channel? Buy me a coffee :-) www.buymeacoffee.com/DanZm AFFILIATE LINKS & REFERRALS - I earn from qualifying purchases from the links provided ─────────────── As an Amazon Affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases from the links provided. By clicking on the links, you can explore the products and tools I use. www.amazon.com/shop/schoolreports --------------------------------------------------- PackFreshUSA We have been buying oxygen absorbers and 7 mil Mylar bags from PackFreshUSA since early 2018. During all that time (1000's of bag and oxygen absorbers, and about 6 year before before we added this affiliate link) we have been happy with the products and service we have received from them. I earn from qualifying purchases from the links provided. - packfreshusa.com/?rfsn=7877576.a54e2a Use the discount code "SchoolReports5" to get 10% off your first purchase when using the link. --------------------------------------------------- Harvest Right - If you are thinking of buying a freeze dryer, please consider supporting us by purchasing through our link. It helps us and costs you nothing! affiliates.harvestright.com/995.html ─────────────── Before buying a freeze dryer, perhaps research to find out more about the downside of the machine; some people have problems with their machine and it's big and heavy and hard to return!
That's really great to hear how well the oxygen absorber performed, even after 7 years... thanks for the video. If we had a way to add a nitrogen absorber we could generate fairly good vacuum, hehe.
Thanks! Interesting idea. Nitrogen is so non-reactive, I don't know if a simple, room temperature nitrogen absorber could be a thing. 🤔 The only time I tend to vacuum the bags is if space is an issue. One of the reasons I don't bother vacuuming the bags is because I don't want to increase the pressure difference between the outside of the bag and the inside. (Plus, food crushing:) If we could make the inside of the bag an absolute vacuum, there would be almost 15 psi trying to push air into the bag. (I know there is still a partial pressure issue with the oxygen deficit inside the bag)
@@SchoolReports I can see how not having a complete vacuum might help protect some contents... for example, a pressurized potato chips bag has less issue with broken chips. If you get some sharp surfaced freeze dried foods, I suppose it is theoretically possible for a crimp to be more susceptible to the risk of a hole. Tho, I am not sure if that happens very often. And with freeze dried foods, if you did have a hole for "years" you would notice a problem with the food once you opened the bag. Also, if you had a hole, you would probably notice that the bag was no longer squished, so it would be similar to how the pressure lids work to indicate loss of vacuum. I would probably still add an oxygen absorber tho.
@@marcfruchtman9473 All I can say is that I agree with everything you said there! With a vacuumed bag (or any other container) the oxygen absorber can be very small. A vacuumed one liter container might be fine with a 50 cc absorber, or even smaller.
Have you done any research and sourcing on the following? Any links you can provide appreciated: 1. Rosemary extract for preventing oil/fat rancidity. Where to find the right extract in the right concentration, how to use it and how much to use. 2. Where to find O2 absorbers in case quantities but in packs of 10. 3. Where to find the gusseted single and double meal pouches for backpacking meals in bulk. I've only found them at Top Mylar, but their pricing is rather high. Pack Fresh USA doesn't sell these.
Sorry, I'm not going be of much help for you. 1) I'm not a food scientist (not close:) and I've been having a hard time understanding everything they have in the papers (organic chemistry is not something I know), but I have found a good number of papers. The more I read, the more of it that sinks in. Here are a few, and at least one has some amounts they used during testing - www.mdpi.com/2305-6320/5/3/98 www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10572867/pdf/foods-12-03583.pdf dpointernational.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Short-Review-of-Extracts-of-Rosemary-as-Food-Additive.pdf www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0926669015305434 2) We've always been buying ours in 10 packs from PackFreshUSA. 300cc Oxygen Absorbers in 10-Packs (1000) - Wholesale - packfreshusa.com/300cc-oxygen-absorbers-in-10-packs-1000-wholesale/ 3) I've never looked for those bags. I've found bags that work for us, and I'd hate to switch and have to start testing from scratch again.
Have you tried any tests on bags that didn't shrink after being sealed? I have some like that and they freak me out. Good idea testing one out of each bag. Looking to see what containers I have to set something like that up for piece of mind.
That shouldn't happen. My sister once had one bag out of a freeze dryer batch (1 out of 10 or 15 bags?) that didn't shrink like the others, so she re-bagged it in a new bag with a new absorber and it shrunk down like all the others. It must have been a bad bag, a bad seal, or a bad oxygen absorber. I don't know what else it could have been. I wish I had thought to test the absorber at the time, but I didn't. If it ever happens again I'll try to remember to do testing. All bags should get about 21% smaller as the oxygen is absorbed, but with some bags it might be a little hard to notice it depending on how it's packed. With the absorbers we used 7 years ago, it could even take a few days. With the one we get now it only takes a few hours to a day. If I had one that didn't get smaller, I would assume that something failed. We don't test one absorber per bag, we test about 3 per box of 1000 absorbers; one when the box is new, one about half through the box, and one when it's almost empty. (We usually buy the ones that are packed 10 absorbers in a bag, 100 bags in a box)
@@SchoolReports To be fair, I mainly use pint bags and squish as much air out as I can. So it might not be as noticeable as the larger bags. I found a container for testing, just need to mark it up and start testing. Looking forward to finally finding out.
@@shaunnichols4664 Yes, under those circumstances it may be hard to see! This is the video I made show the details of what we do. (I was pretty proud with my "Step One" getting the container right at the beginning:) Oxygen Absorber Testing (For our freeze dried food) - th-cam.com/video/x30h6lxfcHc/w-d-xo.htmlsi=cJj3rye3_KCQfGap Also this one shows a very simple method (I will probably start doing it this way more often) - Short Version - Simple Test: Using a Pickle Jar and a Soda Bottle to Test Oxygen Absorbers - th-cam.com/video/zCKh0gtg28k/w-d-xo.htmlsi=ZnQdC2ATuzKFFp6E
Thanks! These pizzas were just for the freezer for quick meals. We are going to be doing a batch for freeze drying later. The biggest difference with the ones for freeze drying is that we make them with a thinner crust (3 oz of dough instead of 5.5 oz for each 8" crust) and slightly less toppings so they are less likely to fall off when dry. We think of them as pizza crackers.
Excellent test! Thank you for doing this. Very valuable information, and reassures that both the oxygen absorbers and bags are doing their jobs despite years of inactivity (or extremely little activity if you factor in the OTR of the bag). This answered my question of will an oxygen absorber continue to “scavenge” the measly 1cc or less of oxygen that makes it through the bag each year even after years of storage. You’re testing proves that they’re very much alive 👍🏼
Thanks. I'll be starting the "dry" test you suggested soon using the OA from a bag from 9-20-17. I probably won't video it, but I'll let you know have it works out.
Great video. I finally got my medium harvest right a few weeks ago. I have done some candy for the kids and fruit for the wife. Can't wait to get to building my long-term storage. Dumb question i quess after this great video, but some people say that if you dont use an unopened pack of o2 absorbers they expire 6 months to a year. That doesn't sound right to me. I have some pack fresh still sealed from two years ago. Would they still be good to use? Dot is still pink.
Thanks! That's in no way a dumb question. (I've seen dumb questions, and that's not what they look like:) My question to someone saying that a pack of unopened oxygen absorbers would go bad in just 6 months would be - How? Seriously, "they" are saying that it will work for 30 years in the Mylar bag with the food in it, but only 6 months unused, in the factory bag. The bags that the OA's are shipped in may not be as good of an oxygen barrier as the metallized Mylar, but it also has a very small surface area. Oxygen transmission rate is calculated on an amount of oxygen, over time, multiplied by the surface area of the film (bag size). With the bags the OA's are shipped in, there is a tiny amount of surface, with a (relative) huge amount of oxygen absorbing capacity. Even if the OA's absorbing capacity dropped by 10% (which would huge, considering the small surface area of the bags), they would still be capable of absorbing far more than the rated amount. I would just give one a test. Bottom line: I have not measured a loss (with my crude measuring) of capacity with the older unused, sealed OA packs. In this videos test I used a used one, I have some 6+ year old unused, sealed ones that look the same as the one tested here. I'll run another on one of those and if they don't still do as well I'll let you know. We've just never had any of this brand test anything lower than 1 1/2 to 2 times the cc rating. But that's why we keep doing the testing multiple times on every shipment of 1000 we get. - Something could go wrong, and I don't like to take chances.
Good question. We check the sensor that comes in each bag of oxygen absorbers to make sure it's still pink before using, and we also test each shipment of OA's before we use them. I've started making a playlist about oxygen absorbers, including this video: Short Version - Simple Test - th-cam.com/video/zCKh0gtg28k/w-d-xo.htmlsi=vG1dkroXnzroKZaC
Links to more oxygen absorber videos:
Is Your Oxygen Absorber Doing it's Job? - th-cam.com/users/live-HIdI58qRtQ?si=O3rLL9ylFdR9q4vR
Short Version - Simple Test: Using a Pickle Jar and a Soda Bottle to Test Oxygen Absorbers - th-cam.com/video/zCKh0gtg28k/w-d-xo.htmlsi=IW4KSm-brBDz5RxL
Oxygen Absorber Testing (For our freeze dried food) - th-cam.com/video/x30h6lxfcHc/w-d-xo.htmlsi=u4hCGk3OvqLH3NcZ
Vacuum Sealing Jars in the Freeze Dryer - How Much Air is Left? Too Much! - th-cam.com/video/JJqCHYoylDE/w-d-xo.htmlsi=oojpQWO_wmEPfXwn
Want to support this channel? Buy me a coffee :-) www.buymeacoffee.com/DanZm
AFFILIATE LINKS & REFERRALS - I earn from qualifying purchases from the links provided
───────────────
As an Amazon Affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases from the links provided. By clicking on the links, you can explore the products and tools I use.
www.amazon.com/shop/schoolreports
---------------------------------------------------
PackFreshUSA
We have been buying oxygen absorbers and 7 mil Mylar bags from PackFreshUSA since early 2018. During all that time (1000's of bag and oxygen absorbers, and about 6 year before before we added this affiliate link) we have been happy with the products and service we have received from them.
I earn from qualifying purchases from the links provided. - packfreshusa.com/?rfsn=7877576.a54e2a
Use the discount code "SchoolReports5" to get 10% off your first purchase when using the link.
---------------------------------------------------
Harvest Right - If you are thinking of buying a freeze dryer, please consider supporting us by purchasing through our link. It helps us and costs you nothing!
affiliates.harvestright.com/995.html
───────────────
Before buying a freeze dryer, perhaps research to find out more about the downside of the machine; some people have problems with their machine and it's big and heavy and hard to return!
Thanks, that is what I call very useful information.
Thanks!
That's really great to hear how well the oxygen absorber performed, even after 7 years... thanks for the video. If we had a way to add a nitrogen absorber we could generate fairly good vacuum, hehe.
Thanks! Interesting idea. Nitrogen is so non-reactive, I don't know if a simple, room temperature nitrogen absorber could be a thing. 🤔
The only time I tend to vacuum the bags is if space is an issue. One of the reasons I don't bother vacuuming the bags is because I don't want to increase the pressure difference between the outside of the bag and the inside. (Plus, food crushing:) If we could make the inside of the bag an absolute vacuum, there would be almost 15 psi trying to push air into the bag. (I know there is still a partial pressure issue with the oxygen deficit inside the bag)
@@SchoolReports I can see how not having a complete vacuum might help protect some contents... for example, a pressurized potato chips bag has less issue with broken chips.
If you get some sharp surfaced freeze dried foods, I suppose it is theoretically possible for a crimp to be more susceptible to the risk of a hole.
Tho, I am not sure if that happens very often. And with freeze dried foods, if you did have a hole for "years" you would notice a problem with the food once you opened the bag. Also, if you had a hole, you would probably notice that the bag was no longer squished, so it would be similar to how the pressure lids work to indicate loss of vacuum.
I would probably still add an oxygen absorber tho.
@@marcfruchtman9473 All I can say is that I agree with everything you said there!
With a vacuumed bag (or any other container) the oxygen absorber can be very small. A vacuumed one liter container might be fine with a 50 cc absorber, or even smaller.
It was a great video and is reassuring to know they are capable of working after 7 years! Thank you
Thanks for watching and for taking the time to comment!
Have you done any research and sourcing on the following? Any links you can provide appreciated:
1. Rosemary extract for preventing oil/fat rancidity. Where to find the right extract in the right concentration, how to use it and how much to use.
2. Where to find O2 absorbers in case quantities but in packs of 10.
3. Where to find the gusseted single and double meal pouches for backpacking meals in bulk. I've only found them at Top Mylar, but their pricing is rather high. Pack Fresh USA doesn't sell these.
Sorry, I'm not going be of much help for you.
1) I'm not a food scientist (not close:) and I've been having a hard time understanding everything they have in the papers (organic chemistry is not something I know), but I have found a good number of papers. The more I read, the more of it that sinks in. Here are a few, and at least one has some amounts they used during testing -
www.mdpi.com/2305-6320/5/3/98
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10572867/pdf/foods-12-03583.pdf
dpointernational.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Short-Review-of-Extracts-of-Rosemary-as-Food-Additive.pdf
www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0926669015305434
2) We've always been buying ours in 10 packs from PackFreshUSA.
300cc Oxygen Absorbers in 10-Packs (1000) - Wholesale - packfreshusa.com/300cc-oxygen-absorbers-in-10-packs-1000-wholesale/
3) I've never looked for those bags. I've found bags that work for us, and I'd hate to switch and have to start testing from scratch again.
Have you tried any tests on bags that didn't shrink after being sealed? I have some like that and they freak me out. Good idea testing one out of each bag. Looking to see what containers I have to set something like that up for piece of mind.
That shouldn't happen.
My sister once had one bag out of a freeze dryer batch (1 out of 10 or 15 bags?) that didn't shrink like the others, so she re-bagged it in a new bag with a new absorber and it shrunk down like all the others. It must have been a bad bag, a bad seal, or a bad oxygen absorber. I don't know what else it could have been. I wish I had thought to test the absorber at the time, but I didn't. If it ever happens again I'll try to remember to do testing.
All bags should get about 21% smaller as the oxygen is absorbed, but with some bags it might be a little hard to notice it depending on how it's packed. With the absorbers we used 7 years ago, it could even take a few days. With the one we get now it only takes a few hours to a day. If I had one that didn't get smaller, I would assume that something failed.
We don't test one absorber per bag, we test about 3 per box of 1000 absorbers; one when the box is new, one about half through the box, and one when it's almost empty. (We usually buy the ones that are packed 10 absorbers in a bag, 100 bags in a box)
@@SchoolReports To be fair, I mainly use pint bags and squish as much air out as I can. So it might not be as noticeable as the larger bags. I found a container for testing, just need to mark it up and start testing. Looking forward to finally finding out.
@@shaunnichols4664 Yes, under those circumstances it may be hard to see!
This is the video I made show the details of what we do. (I was pretty proud with my "Step One" getting the container right at the beginning:) Oxygen Absorber Testing (For our freeze dried food) - th-cam.com/video/x30h6lxfcHc/w-d-xo.htmlsi=cJj3rye3_KCQfGap
Also this one shows a very simple method (I will probably start doing it this way more often) - Short Version - Simple Test: Using a Pickle Jar and a Soda Bottle to Test Oxygen Absorbers - th-cam.com/video/zCKh0gtg28k/w-d-xo.htmlsi=ZnQdC2ATuzKFFp6E
Great video!!!
Great results on your test. Makes me feel good about our food storage. Was distracted by your delicious looking pizzas. Were they for freeze drying?
Thanks!
These pizzas were just for the freezer for quick meals. We are going to be doing a batch for freeze drying later. The biggest difference with the ones for freeze drying is that we make them with a thinner crust (3 oz of dough instead of 5.5 oz for each 8" crust) and slightly less toppings so they are less likely to fall off when dry. We think of them as pizza crackers.
@@SchoolReports Please do a video on those both ways. I'm very interested!😁
Haha same! I was quite interested in the test but I also got distracted by pizzas
@@AddictOfLearning They looked delicious!
Excellent test! Thank you for doing this. Very valuable information, and reassures that both the oxygen absorbers and bags are doing their jobs despite years of inactivity (or extremely little activity if you factor in the OTR of the bag).
This answered my question of will an oxygen absorber continue to “scavenge” the measly 1cc or less of oxygen that makes it through the bag each year even after years of storage. You’re testing proves that they’re very much alive 👍🏼
Thanks. I'll be starting the "dry" test you suggested soon using the OA from a bag from 9-20-17. I probably won't video it, but I'll let you know have it works out.
@@SchoolReports Sounds good 👍🏼
Great video. I finally got my medium harvest right a few weeks ago. I have done some candy for the kids and fruit for the wife. Can't wait to get to building my long-term storage. Dumb question i quess after this great video, but some people say that if you dont use an unopened pack of o2 absorbers they expire 6 months to a year. That doesn't sound right to me. I have some pack fresh still sealed from two years ago. Would they still be good to use? Dot is still pink.
Thanks! That's in no way a dumb question. (I've seen dumb questions, and that's not what they look like:)
My question to someone saying that a pack of unopened oxygen absorbers would go bad in just 6 months would be - How?
Seriously, "they" are saying that it will work for 30 years in the Mylar bag with the food in it, but only 6 months unused, in the factory bag. The bags that the OA's are shipped in may not be as good of an oxygen barrier as the metallized Mylar, but it also has a very small surface area. Oxygen transmission rate is calculated on an amount of oxygen, over time, multiplied by the surface area of the film (bag size). With the bags the OA's are shipped in, there is a tiny amount of surface, with a (relative) huge amount of oxygen absorbing capacity. Even if the OA's absorbing capacity dropped by 10% (which would huge, considering the small surface area of the bags), they would still be capable of absorbing far more than the rated amount. I would just give one a test.
Bottom line: I have not measured a loss (with my crude measuring) of capacity with the older unused, sealed OA packs. In this videos test I used a used one, I have some 6+ year old unused, sealed ones that look the same as the one tested here. I'll run another on one of those and if they don't still do as well I'll let you know. We've just never had any of this brand test anything lower than 1 1/2 to 2 times the cc rating. But that's why we keep doing the testing multiple times on every shipment of 1000 we get. - Something could go wrong, and I don't like to take chances.
Okay, I am super interested in pizza making day!
👍👍👍👍👍
So how do you tell if your oxygen absorber is spent? Someone said they become hard and crunchy but mine never do that.
Good question.
We check the sensor that comes in each bag of oxygen absorbers to make sure it's still pink before using, and we also test each shipment of OA's before we use them.
I've started making a playlist about oxygen absorbers, including this video: Short Version - Simple Test - th-cam.com/video/zCKh0gtg28k/w-d-xo.htmlsi=vG1dkroXnzroKZaC
now test a vacuum sealer
In what way?