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resealing mylar hop bags

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  • resealing mylar hop bags

    can anyone recommend a small vacuum sealer to reseal 44 lb mylar hop bags that are partially full? i am hoping to buy it for $1000 or less.

    cheers,

    sam

  • #2
    mylar

    Jeff at IDD has a lot of experience with Mylar, he can probably give you some good advice.
    IDD Process & Packaging, Inc.
    5450 Tech Circle
    Moorpark CA 93021
    Phone: 805/529-9890
    Fax: 805/529-9282
    Email: idd2jeff@aol.com
    Web Site: www.iddeas.com
    Cheers!
    Banjo Bandolas
    Probrewer.com
    v- 541-284-5500
    banjo@probrewer.com

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    • #3
      Food Saver

      I dont know of any inexpensive mylar sealers, so if that doesn't pan out run to costco and get a "food saver" for under $200. Then break up your big bag of hops into smaller (batch size) more maneagble bags. The bags are not mylar, so keep your hops in a dark place. I keep mine in a box in the cooler. This seems to work really well for me.

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      • #4
        Couldn't you use a corny keg and purge with CO2?

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        • #5
          Some (maybe most or all, I'm not sure, but I know mine does) "food savers" will seal mylar as well, if you can get a hold of the bags.

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          • #6
            grs,

            we use corny kegs now, but no matter what you do, they leak a lot of gas. in the past we filled the kegs with hops and purged, but the kegs lost pressure. now i am keeping a 2 psi head pressure on them and we are draining n2 quite quickly form the tank.

            sam

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            • #7
              Why keep them under pressure? If you purge all the air out with CO2 (or N2) and there was a slight leak in the gasket at the lid I don't think it would cause air to enter the keg. Maybe if you're in a hurricane with 150 mph winds blowing directly on the lid of the keg but sitting in a chest freezer with no air movement...

              Just to note, I don't use corny kegs for hop storage but will probably some time down the road. If I'm out to lunch about not requiring positive pressure someone fill me in.

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              • #8
                150 miles wind

                Sam is right. By keeping the positive pressure you make it sure that the air does not enter the keg. 150 miles wind may not be as bad as the temperature changes in the freezer. Even the slight+ - 1 deg (depending on freezer thermostat ) temperature changes cause the gas in the keg expand and contract. This causes a breathing effect (negative - positive pressure in the keg). After a while the gas in the keg will be replaced by air and with all the smell an moisture of your freezer too.
                You are out to lunch GRS. Recommended reading Mid Grade school physics, chapter on "Properties of gas"

                Cheers

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                • #9
                  The best answer to leaking corny kegs is to fix them so they don't leak. You can get all the gaskets from Foxx equipment, change them out, then pressure test the kegs.

                  It is true the lid is hard to seal with only a couple of pounds of pressure. You should use at least 15 psi to get the best seal.

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                  • #10
                    Thanks for the info sloppy.

                    I'll grab that book but right now I'm struggling through 'See Spot Run'...

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                    • #11
                      cornys leak no matter what you do.

                      i've tried everything with cornys. high pressure, low pressure, new gaskets, new fittings. my experience is that they just dont hold pressure that well.

                      cheers,

                      sam

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                      • #12
                        all the homebrewers can't be wrong! I seat my lids between 30 and 40 psi. they'll hold pressure from then on with no problems. When you open them you have to reseat them.

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                        • #13
                          Sweet!

                          Originally posted by grs
                          Thanks for the info sloppy.

                          I'll grab that book but right now I'm struggling through 'See Spot Run'...

                          Can I borrow that Spot book when you're done?
                          Cheers & I'm out!
                          David R. Pierce
                          NABC & Bank Street Brewhouse
                          POB 343
                          New Albany, IN 47151

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                          • #14
                            Originally posted by redlodge.sam
                            i've tried everything with cornys. high pressure, low pressure, new gaskets, new fittings. my experience is that they just dont hold pressure that well.

                            cheers,

                            sam
                            Well all I can say is Coke and Pepsi used them for decades, in huge numbers. I doubt they'd have used them if there was a fundamental design flaw that prevented them from holding pressure.

                            I own several hundred that I use for lagering and dispense. The key is to replace all the gaskets and to pressure test. In my experience the failure rate is under 5% (and these are well-used, older cornys).

                            ---Guy
                            Last edited by pennbrew2; 02-24-2008, 07:38 PM.

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                            • #15
                              Sealing Cornies

                              In a pinch, you can use a paste (like vaseline) around the gaskets that usually seals them right up. Not ideal when it may come in contact with beer (vaseline and head retention don't seem to like each other) but for storing hops you'll be fine.

                              David

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