Officially, shelf storage isn't recommended unless the food is heat processed. But many fermented foods require only BWB processing not pressure canning. Personally, since yeasts and molds are the main concern, I would be comfortable with some fermented foods stored in a pantry IF it is a really cool-temp pantry like a root cellar but that's JMO. Dave

Welcome Trish. That only works if your sealer has an adjustible heat controller. Zipper bags are made of a different plastic, and require lower heat to work. At high heat you just burn through them. BTW, to achieve a vacumn seal in a zipper bag that's even better than the machines, close all but about a half inch of the zipper. Then submerge the bag in water right up to the zipper line. Seal the last half inch. You will have forced _all_ the air out by doing that.

1. Universal Lid can be sealed with the hand-held FreshSaver - no hose or lid sealer needed. I'm glad you asked, I've never tried using the FreshSaver for that task. The Universal Lids come in two sizes and you can use them on any "solid" container that has a smooth rim. I do have one concern using the FreshSaver instead of the FoodSaver with hose and jar sealer. When all the air is out of the container, the FoodSaver stops. You're never really sure that's true using the hand-held FreshSaver. You might want to call FoodSaver and talk to them for more information. 2. From FoodSaver user manual: To Vacuum with Mason Jar - Always pre-soak new metal lids. Bring water to boil, then turn off. Pre-soak lids 5-10 minutes. Helpful hint: Make sure your lids are separated during this process. When you do several lids at a time they tend to stack. I love my little Lid Sterilizing Rack for this process. You can put 12 regular or wide-mouth lids in the rack, which keeps the lids separated for maximum exposure to the hot water 3. It works great for salad greens, just make sure you do NOT vacuum-seal strong smelling vegetables, such as cabbage, broccoli, and cauliflower. Do not vacuum package whole avocados with their pits, but I do vacuum-seal guacamole and it will stay fresh much longer. 4. If you have a Tuesday Morning store near you, you might want to look there for FoodSaver items. That's where I got my FreshSaver. I also bought a FoodSaver there for $60 (included bags, rolls of bags, 1 canister, jar sealer and hose). 5. One thing to keep in mind with a new dehydrator, make sure it has a variable temperature thermostat. Check out the link below for more general information. Sounds like you are ready for a new food adventure! ;-) -Grainlady Here is a link that might be useful: NCHFP - Dehydrators

I bought the cannisters at Sears. I quickly found that if you tried sealing, say, coffee grounds then little grounds would get stuck on the rubber seal on the lid, and they wouldn't seal. Now there seems to be something gumming up the "valve" part you press to let air back in. They don't seal there. They were great for the first three months. Then they stopped holding a vacuum. On the other hand, I've had vacuum in the wide-mouth mason jars for months without a problem.