Silk Road forums

Discussion => Shipping => Topic started by: 34tuforlunch on April 20, 2012, 03:13 am

Title: Fresh Saver Hand Held Vacuum Sealer
Post by: 34tuforlunch on April 20, 2012, 03:13 am
Finally got 150 bitcoins will be buying the ability to sell products in the next week and I need something to vacuum seal. I live in the middle of nowhere and the only vacuum sealer I have found is this thing
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drXN_1FbpR8

Any one have any success with this thing before?

Title: Re: Fresh Saver Hand Held Vacuum Sealer
Post by: FarmerBob on April 20, 2012, 07:14 am
this whole vacuum seal in plastic bagging is poor practice, do not bother with vacuum sealers, do not use food-grade plastic bagging or any simple plastic bagging for that matter.

the slight differential in air pressure you impart on your packaging will not help anything.  Diffusion of the organic molecules responsible for scent is based on the difference in partial pressure or vapor pressure of those scent molecules, not the absolute pressure.

even if you have a very strong vacuum (<10torr) there will still be much more volatile organics inside the packaging than out... it is that gradient that controls the direction of diffusion. the diffusion current will cause those molecules to flow outward.  I know it seems counter-intuitive but that is how it works.

Food grade plastic and vacuum sealers will control scents well enough to get past a human nose, but most plastics are permeable enough that a dog or an IMS gas sample scanner will easily pick up many drugs.

If you're bagging to control emission of compromising scents use a metal laminate moisture barrier bag, don't vacuum seal, instead leave air in so you can put in a bucket of water and squeeze and check for leaks, if there's no leaks clean the bag to deal with the surface contamination, maintain it at a molecularly clean state as you package it and ship.

if you're buying a heat sealer, find an industrial grade one with at least a 5mm wide seal line.   Just buy one mail-order

 I don't know how prolific IMS scanners are for customs to use on US mail but ever since the whole "mail bombs to america thing" I'd bet they're scanning more and more incoming mail and possibly domestic mail as well.  IMS scanners aren't as good as a dog's nose, but they're not far off, and even if they were originally deployed for explosives only the detection of drugs could be accomplished with nothing more than a software update.

Good luck

Bob