The vacuum food sealer is the best option for people who want to significantly increase the shelf life of food, prevent the spread of foreign odors and the loss of beneficial vitamins and minerals. With this device, it will be possible to protect food from moisture, save usable space in the refrigerator. Today we present you the Sea-Maid GN-1108 Vacuum Cleaner.
Briefly about the manufacturer
Sea-Maid is a South Korean brand that has been developing and selling practical devices for home use with a wide range of functions for many years. In particular, all models of this company are equipped with a built-in knife, which allows you to form packages of the required length. If necessary, various products can be marinated in bags, for example, meat for barbecue. The bags that come with the kit are made of high quality plastic, which does not cause scratches. We liked them very much in terms of operation. All devices are equipped with a removable tray to drain excess liquid, they also have anti-slip feet.
In household appliances stores in our country, the products of this enterprise have been presented since 2018. Despite the fact that the brand has not been known to domestic consumers for too long, it has already gained wide popularity. Many people prefer this particular product, since in terms of functionality it is in no way inferior to more famous brands, and at a much lower cost.
The main distinguishing points of the vacuum cleaner
The model is equipped with all the necessary functions for constant and most convenient use. In particular, there is a built-in knife that allows you to form bags according to the overall dimensions of the product to be packed. The compressor is quite powerful, so the air is pumped out within a few seconds, after which the bag is thoroughly packed — any access of air from the outside is completely excluded. During testing, we really liked the possibility of gentle packaging of products that are prone to deformation during physical exertion.
If it is required to vacuumize products in a liquid state, then they can be placed in containers. All the main parts of the device are made of absolutely safe ABS plastic, which also has a high level of strength. In particular, there are no scratches on it. We also really liked the long warranty period — if for similar devices it is 1 year, then for this model it is increased to 2 years.
Sea Maid GN-1108
Appearance and equipment
Products are sold in a cardboard box, which shows the main characteristics of the product. Here you can find schematic drawings showing the purpose of the product. From the ends, the technical parameters and features of the device are indicated exclusively in English. Externally, the device makes the most pleasant impression. All elements are made of plastic, the design is quite standard: by and large, the device is a rectangular box, the top cover is hinged. It also has a control panel. The case is horizontal, and on the reverse side you can find four rubberized legs, as well as a cable storage compartment. The power cable itself is not very long, but its length is enough for comfortable use.
On the sides are release buttons that are used to flip the lid off after the vacuuming process is completed and the bag is sealed. On the inside, we found a special thermal tape, which is designed to seal bags with evacuated air. There you can also see the sealing tape, the vacuum chamber itself and several elements that monitor whether all the air has been pumped out.
Sea Maid GN-1108
Main characteristics of the device
Let’s start with the fact that this model arrived on the shelves this spring. The design differs in compact overall dimensions and very simple management. The pump has a maximum power of 125 W, thanks to which it has been possible to significantly increase the evacuation speed — up to 14 liters per minute. In a special compartment, you can place a roll of packaging film, the width of which is 30 cm. Parts of the required length are cut from it with a built-in knife. You can seal the package both manually and automatically.
Sea Maid GN-1108
How to use ?
Like most similar devices, this device has a fairly simple control system and does not require special skills. Here you can find six membrane buttons that are located on the flip cover. The whole vacuuming process includes three stages:
- Initially, in manual or automatic mode, the main parameters are set, which include general indicators of the moisture content of food products, on the basis of which the degree of air pumping intensity is calculated;
- Direct vacuuming;
- Product sealing.
This product has several modes of operation, designed for dry or wet products. You can activate the so-called delicate mode of air extraction — with its help it will be possible to avoid deformation of delicate products. Wet operation differs from dry operation in the time it takes to seal a seam on a plastic bag. In addition, the device has an LED indication indicating the intensity of air pumping.
There are three of them in total. When using the Turbo mode, it is best to work with dense products that either do not deform at all or very little. Having chosen such a function, it remains only to press the «Start» button, after which the vacuuming process begins with subsequent sealing. The user can stop this process at any time.
Due to the functions of this device, a bag can be made from rolled polyethylene. It is very easy to work with such a device, since all buttons have intuitive icons and are equipped with LED indicators. After the selected process is completed, the device informs the user about it and all LEDs go out.
No special preparation of the device for direct operation is required. As the instructions told us, it is enough to wipe the body of the device with a soft damp cloth and rinse with warm water with the addition of a small amount of soap all removable elements — here it is only the lower rubber band that acts as a seal. It does not come into direct contact with food, so we decided not to wash it.
Sea Maid GN-1108
Key requirements apply to products that are planned to be packaged. In principle, all these points are standard and spelled out in the instructions, so we did not find any difficulties in this regard either. They are as follows:
- The package should be filled to a maximum of two-thirds of its maximum volume;
- The width of the package should not exceed 30 cm;
- Wet food can slow down the sealing process;
- The vacuum chamber is removable here, which is convenient;
- If the products have sharp edges, they can break through the bag, so you should also refrain from vacuuming them. If you can’t do without it, then all sharp parts should be wrapped with paper napkins;
- Food must be stacked in such a way as to facilitate pumping air out of the bag. It is possible that this will not be achieved the first time, but we quickly learned this during testing;
- If you need to seal several products, there should be a pause of about one minute between them. This is necessary to cool the thermal tape. We decided to ignore this moment — it did not affect the results of the work.
Depending on the selected mode, the vacuuming speed changes.
How to take care of the product?
As we read in the instructions, after each use the vacuum cleaner should be wiped with a damp cloth. It is strictly forbidden to submerge it under water. To care for the case, do not use coarse or metallic sponges, as well as abrasive pastes. From time to time it is necessary to carefully wipe all the gaskets of the vacuum chamber. To make the seam as tight as possible, you need to carefully monitor that crumbs do not accumulate on the gaskets. The upper one is non-removable, but the lower one can be removed and rinsed thoroughly under running water.
Sea Maid GN-1108
Direct use experience
At the first stage, we decided to measure the amount of electricity consumed with a wattmeter — at rest, the device consumes about 0.3 W, when the pump is operating at the maximum level, this figure rises to 18 W, and when the bag with the product is sealed — up to 115 W. The vacuum unit is quite noisy: a rumble is heard when air is pumped out, as well as when sealing.
It is quite natural that when using the device, the shelf life of food becomes much longer. Testing was carried out as follows: we decided to take an apple, cut it in half — vacuum one half, and not the other. Then they put them on the windowsill and waited for the result. The operating mode was chosen «Turbo», as the product is quite hard, but without sharp edges. The result became noticeable literally two days later: the packed half of the apple looked fresh, but perspiration appeared on the cellophane, but the remaining one in the air began to wind. The cut has darkened, the skin along the cut diameter has begun to shrink.
It seemed to us that this was not enough, and we decided to conduct a couple more tests — with pieces of cheese and pieces of bread. The cheese at hand was of a hard variety, so they also decided to use the Turbo mode for it, but for bread they chose a softer mode of operation. In both cases, I had to wait a little longer — for a couple of days. As a result: the cheese placed in the package looked like it had spent all the days in the refrigerator, put in the bag. The piece left in the air noticeably shrank, turned stale and acquired a not very attractive appearance (and this is putting it mildly). The same can be said for bread. Only the effect was stronger. In particular, the piece left without packaging was completely dry, it was difficult to even break it. The packaged bread looked much more attractive.
Advantages, disadvantages and conclusions
If we turn to the positive and negative aspects of this device, then a number of pluses should be highlighted:
- High quality vacuuming;
- A knife designed to work with polyethylene cuts well — even a 6-year-old child did it;
- You can work with both dry and wet products;
- Cellophane compartment width is 30 cm;
- The function of marinating products is provided;
- There is a removable fluid reservoir.
In addition, there is a function for vacuuming containers and bottles. The kit comes with a removable sealing element that can be replaced within half a minute. Sufficiently long period of warranty service. Now it’s time to move on to the minuses of the device:
- Still, it makes a little noise, especially at the time of pumping out air;
- After use, it is not very convenient to lift the lid, as there is a chance to get your fingers on the elements heated after the package is sealed;
- Large overall dimensions, however, the ergonomics are well thought out;
- The buttons have English signatures, but thanks to the pictograms everything is clear, especially since after a couple of hours of work you get used to it,
- The instructions are hard to read due to poor prints and blue sheets.
As a conclusion, I would like to say the following: a fairly decent device that is capable of operating in various modes, provides high quality sealing of packages, and carefully pumps out air. The only thing that the manufacturer did not think through very well is that there is no convenient handle for raising the second half, so if you handle it carelessly, you can get burned. Otherwise, the device is recommended for use, besides, it is not too expensive compared to similar products.
Sea Maid GN-1108