Part of Our Homebrew Tips and Tricks Series.  Check out the complete list – Homebrewing Tips, Tricks & Shortcuts!

Why Mylar?

Mylar bags block oxygen and are a great way to store hops and other oxygen sensitive materials.  As a testament to this, many hop distributors and sellers distribute hops in Mylar type bags.  Sometimes those are vacuum sealed and sometimes they are nitrogen flushed.

Mylar bags are not generally expensive, so that’s great!  The problem is vacuum sealers that can seal Mylar bags ARE expensive.  Sometimes very expensive.  That’s not great!

The “Snorkel” Method for Sealing Mylar Bags

• Cut a 1″ strip off the top of a vacuum bag.
• Fill the Mylar bag with hops or whatever you’re going to store.
• Insert the 1″ strip into the filled bag so that the strip sticks out of the Mylar bag.
• Trim the end of this strip so that about 1/2″ is sticking out of the Mylar bag.
• Insert the top of the Mylar bag into the vacuum sealer bag, ensuring that the 1″ strip of vacuum bag is sticking slightly out of the top of the Mylar bag.  This acts as a channel.
• Vacuum and Seal.
• Because Mylar bags can be thicker that standard vacuum sealer bags, you may need to double seal the top with your vacuum sealer’s heat strip.
• Trim the excess vacuum bag strip.
• Trick Required: There is a trick here.  Notice I didn’t say FoodSaver bag.  I, initially, tried this with a FoodSaver bag and it wouldn’t seal correctly.  FoodSaver bags  are a bit thicker than most others on the market.  Look for a thinner style bag to try with this technique.
• See Tip 11 for another method
• In my opinion, this is the second easiest way to seal a Mylar Bag using a traditional type vacuum sealer.
• Shop Around, Search Amazon for “mylar bags for food storage”
• Shop Around, Search Amazon for “vacuum sealer bags”
• Review: Hands on Review: FoodSaver V2244 Vacuum Sealer
• Top Post: Vacuum Sealing Mylar Bags Using Traditional Vacuum Sealers
• Related Categories: FoodSaver, Vacuum Sealing, Hops

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Make sure the components you use are compatible and rated for your intended application.  Contact manufacturer with questions about suitability or a specific application.  Always read and follow manufacturer directions.

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