Misc PEVA or Silcone Freezer bags

kyrsyan

Has No Life - Lives on TB
Like canning supplies, freezer bags and other storage items are running in short supply around here. All I can get in Ziploc bags, bulk, is variety packs. And I can't/don't use half of those. Fortunately for my sanity I already had laid in a good supply but now I'm running out.
I've been looking at alternates for a while but they are expensive. A few months back I got a couple of sampler sets for cheap from WW. I like them. They are sturdy and seal well. They clean pretty easily and are no harder to clean than ziploc bags. And they survive my son. They survive him opening them. They survive him digging in them. They just hold up.
Having said all of that, before I go spending money on them I decided to research. Apparently there are two types, silicone and PEVA. They both have their pros and cons. The silicone bags are not sized to measurements that come close to matching ziplocs or hefty bags. Not great but honestly my favorite ziploc size is the half gallon. And I get good use out of quarts. So I can live with that. PEVA bags come sized almost exactly to ziploc sizes but reviews say that they tend to only last about a year and can hold on to smells. Silicone is expensive. The bigger the bag the more expensive. PEVA is about half the price.
So, has anyone else used these or switched over to them? Would you please share your experiences? This is going to have to be done gradually because neither is cheap but I don't want to spend that money and then regret it.
 

kyrsyan

Has No Life - Lives on TB
I have to watch this thread. This is totally new to me. We buy ALDI bags or zip lock if we have to. I go for lowest price.
I used to, a long time ago. Too many ripped bags and freezer burn. When I discovered that I could get ziploc bulk at Sam's Club for decent prices, I switched. I looked at the stores to refill but at today's prices for bags, getting the reusable bags is not much more expensive. I can go through a lot of freezer bags at this time of year.
Foodsaver bags/rolls can get pricey as well. And when I was in stores this past weekend, the shelves were cleared of those too.
So like it or not, I'm switching. I can't see not doing it after this. Especially with the way things are going. The less I need to get at the stores, the better.
 

Hickory7

Senior Member
Thanks. I am watching this thread. I hadn't even thought of this as we use alot of glass containers with plastic lids.
 

kyrsyan

Has No Life - Lives on TB
Got both sets in today. It seems that regardless of what I thought, the bags I got originally at WW are PEVA, not silicone.

First impressions. Silicone bags are really heavy duty and may be overkill for what I need. The bags are really, really thick. If you rip through these than you were being really careless. But when they arrived they were sticking to each other badly. And regardless of the fact that I tried to get close to the ziploc sizes I prefer, I basically have high priced quart and slightly larger sandwich bags. Not that I won't use them, but pricey for those sizes and quantity. And lastly, they come with clips that you must have to seal them. If you don't have the clips, those pricey bags are worthless. And I couldn't find replacement clips listed anywhere. On the flip side, you can cook in these bags. So if you want to make "cook in bag"/"boil in bag meals" these should work fine. And I may use these for exactly that or reheating leftovers in an easy way.

PEVA bags. They don't feel thicker than ziplocs to the touch but they definitely feel sturdier. The gallon size PEVA bags I ordered are only about an inch smaller than the ziplocs. The ones from WW have a sturdy 1/8 seam. The ones I ordered from Amazon have a 1/4" seam. You can get them with patterns. Two of the samplers I got from WW are patterned. But the rest I got are frosted. Some come with clips to help zip them but you really don't need them unless you have issues with finger strength. You can definitely zip them just fine without the clips. The ones I ordered do not have clips. And they seal tight. They have the double zipper design that ziploc uses.
These cannot be used for cooking and the recommendations are to wash them in warm, not hot water. I use hot but it's hand hot so I doubt it will be a problem for these. But I don't recommend dishwasher. They can be used in the freezer which is where I want them for.
All in all, unless the PEVA bags throw some major flaw at me in the next few weeks, these are the bags I'm going to get. They run close to the sizes I'm used to. They are about double the current price of ziplocs. And about half or more cheaper than the silicone. So even if I only get two or three uses out of them, I've broken even. And I'm pretty sure I'll get more uses than that. I'm also pretty sure that as long as I get as much air out of the back as possible, these are going to handle any possible freezer burn issues. That will reduce my usage of the Foodsaver bags as well.
The real test, I'll have to start it this week, is how do they do with containing the smell of frozen, freshly cut onions. If they can contain that without triple bagging I'll be amazed. So far nothing can do that.
 
Top