Plastic bags for food

[22lr]

Who has seen the Hyperlight Gear RePack? So the concept is, you repack your freeze dried meals in ziploc baggies and then put the baggies in this RePack after you add the boiling water to let them cook.

Doing all my weights and calculations I will save 10oz by doing this for a 12day sheep trip. That's going off Heathers Choice meals for breakfast and dinner (so 2 a day x 12 days). Tried it out for dinner this evening and the concept works brilliantly. Different brands of meals will vary on the weight savings so your milage will vary. That is lighter store brand sandwich bag (not a heavier duty Ziploc bag).

Anyone use this setup in the field and have any good/negative feedback? My trial run was flawless and seems way too good to be true...

 

[sweetroll]

We’ve found that you need the freezer baggies for the food or they end up with holes due to the dry food while being thrown around all week or they fail with the hot water. I’d definitely use the freezer type. And you can buy a lot of them for $45 if you just use a sweater or jacket rather than the ReBoil.


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[22lr]

We’ve found that you need the freezer baggies for the food or they end up with holes due to the dry food while being thrown around all week or they fail with the hot water. I’d definitely use the freezer type. And you can buy a lot of them for $45 if you just use a sweater or jacket rather than the ReBoil.


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Good point, will find something a bit heavier to stay safe there. Was building daily food kits in quart size bags with the days food to help keep me organized and on track. Hopefully the second bag helps with the protection.

 

[Dirtydan]

It's worth it to buy the Ziplock brand of freezer bags over something like Great Value. They are of better quality and don't puncture as easy. You can make your own warmer bag out of Reflectix. I've been doing it this way for quite a few years. Another benefit is packabilty. Way smaller than those MH packs that have the hard corners when you fold over the top.

 

[Bryanboss429]

I use Zip-lock brand freezer bags and a cozy thing from Arrowhead Equipment, for weight savings and pack space. works pretty well.

The Ultimate meal rehydration cozy available anywhere.

The Dinner Bivy is the original cozy to use premium Climashield APEX insulation. It retains more warmth and packs smaller than any other meal cozy on the market. Keep your Backpacking dinner warm.

www.arrowhead-equipment.com

 

[tdot]

I use the Hyperlight Repack and the Ziploc Freezer bags. I've been super happy with it, probably 70-80 meals from it, never a leak.

I find I split my Peak Refuel meals into 2 bags, add 20g to 30g of dehydrated pasta, 3 tablespoons of Olive oil, S&P to taste and I have 2 meals that taste great, packed with calories and only about 130-150g each. Alot cheaper in the end too.

I've also started to rehydrate much earlier then when I plan to eat. I either pour in 1/2 the water cold and let it rehydrate for better part of an hour, then top up with boiling water 5+ minutes before I eat, or I pour in the full amount of hot, not boiling, water and let rehydrate for 20-30 minutes. Both methods rehydrate as well or better then the recommendation on the pkg, plus you save fuel and time. I only do this because I've never had a Ziploc bag leak and the Repack retains the heat so well.

 

[Jotis]

I use the Hyperlight Repack and the Ziploc Freezer bags. I've been super happy with it, probably 70-80 meals from it, never a leak.

I find I split my Peak Refuel meals into 2 bags, add 20g to 30g of dehydrated pasta, 3 tablespoons of Olive oil, S&P to taste and I have 2 meals that taste great, packed with calories and only about 130-150g each. Alot cheaper in the end too.

I've also started to rehydrate much earlier then when I plan to eat. I either pour in 1/2 the water cold and let it rehydrate for better part of an hour, then top up with boiling water 5+ minutes before I eat, or I pour in the full amount of hot, not boiling, water and let rehydrate for 20-30 minutes. Both methods rehydrate as well or better then the recommendation on the pkg, plus you save fuel and time. I only do this because I've never had a Ziploc bag leak and the Repack retains the heat so well.

Do you add olive at home when you put them in the zip lock bags

 

[Brendan]

For anyone doing this - weight isn't really my primary concern, but does it save a good amount of space over the individual mylar bags?

Do you add olive at home when you put them in the zip lock bags

I make my own meals - but carry olive oil single serve packets and add to each meal.

 

[tdot]

Do you add olive at home when you put them in the zip lock bags

I have added the oil at home on day hikes, I haven't yet tried it on an overnighter. I feel like the food doesn't rehydrate quite as well. But this also may be more in my mind, then reality, as it is barely noticeable.

I carry my oil in a small Nalgene bottle. They are white, round, square or rectangular in cross section. I have a few in 75ml, 125ml and 250ml. They weigh only a few grams and most importantly have oil proof threads, so don't leak.

 

[sweetroll]

We carry the single serve oil packets too, and add them after rehydrating the meal.

Another option that is good in some meals is coconut oil if you’re looking for some variety.


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[tdot]

For anyone doing this - weight isn't really my primary concern, but does it save a good amount of space over the individual mylar bags?

Yes, there is a considerable space savings, and the ziploc bags just pack down easier then the stiff mylar

 

[BBob]

For anyone doing this - weight isn't really my primary concern, but does it save a good amount of space over the individual mylar bags?

Packing out the plastic bag trash is much smaller than the original bags as well.

 

[stumpy waters]

Just another plus +1 for the Ziploc freezer bags. We transfer all of our meals into freezer bags and that’s all we use. The bags are microwavable so you can pour the hot water right in the bag. Tremendously smaller coming out too than those foil pouches.

 

[22lr]

I've been repacking my Heather's Choice meals and found that the bag labels peal off nice amd easy, so I keep it classy amd cut off the piece of label with the meal I'm eating. So I get the weight savings and I get to know what I'm eating! Haha.

I'll be starting to explore with making my own meals for my next trip, but I got a super late start to prep thanks to the Rona. Ideally I'll be using this system with some good homemade dehydrated meals!

Also, on the comment from @BBob, absolutely agree. I started repacking most of my snack bars for this reason as well. Almost no weight savings but way less hassle with trash. I'll put my days stash of bars into 1 bag just to help reduce the trash in the field.

 

[OXN939]

I've been repacking my Heather's Choice meals and found that the bag labels peal off nice amd easy, so I keep it classy amd cut off the piece of label with the meal I'm eating. So I get the weight savings and I get to know what I'm eating! Haha.

Just something to consider- heating food in plastic bags releases a lot of chemicals, all of which are pretty bad for you. I generally bring a small backpacking pot and empty my freeze dried meals into it before adding hot water.

 

[lonedave]

Just something to consider- heating food in plastic bags releases a lot of chemicals, all of which are pretty bad for you. I generally bring a small backpacking pot and empty my freeze dried meals into it before adding hot water.

I don't doubt you one bit, but I bet it's like a lot of things....in moderation, it probably isn't as bad as it's made out to be. In the scheme of things, the few meals I would normally eat this way is a pretty small number. That said, I usually do as you do, not because of the plastic issue, but because I've always done it this way and I'm an "old dog/new tricks" kind of guy!

 

[22lr]

Just an update, system was absolutely worth it on my recent 6 day trip. The reheat bag is super convenient to hold, kept food piping hot for 30min while it was rehydrating (id have to open it up and let it cool for a few min), and I was able to burn all my trash with no foil left to pack out. Not to mention my food bag was alot more compact than with the foil bags.

For the chemicals, ziploc is/or at least has bags that are BPA free. I was concerned the bags would affect taste and leave the food tasting like plastic, but I never could tell a difference. Even if saving weight wasn't a factor, the convenience of the reheat bag is enough to make me bring it on every trip in the future.

The one downside, once repackaged your committed to eating that food in about 30days. You probably don't want to keep dehydrated meals in the bag much longer without risking some spoilage. So if you bring extra food bag, eat it at the office for lunch because its not gonna last another month (or I guess you could vac seal it back up if you were that dedicated).

BL: I love this system

 

[j33]

Bumping this thread from last year as I'm looking to cut weight on my sheep pack.

Have @22lr you tried comparing this bag vs simply pouring water into your ziploc bag that contains your freeze dried meal and simply putting that into your pot and closing the lid? Gonna see how that works next time I'm out scouting. We'll see if the bag sticks at all to the pot.

 

[22lr]

Bumping this thread from last year as I'm looking to cut weight on my sheep pack.

Have @22lr you tried comparing this bag vs simply pouring water into your ziploc bag that contains your freeze dried meal and simply putting that into your pot and closing the lid? Gonna see how that works next time I'm out scouting. We'll see if the bag sticks at all to the pot.

I haven't tried that yet. I have tried a few times now where I just used the ziploc with no insulation/holder. It semi-works in a pinch but naturally it losses alot of heat and is hot to hold.

Well... tried / was forced to try when I forgot my bag... I think trying to stick it back in the pot would be a good idea. The single wall titanium pots don't holt heat, so once done boiling water it would be easy to let it cool for a few seconds before adding the bag. That would at least be better than no insulation at all... im theory...

 

[nettereo16]

It's worth it to buy the Ziplock brand of freezer bags over something like Great Value. They are of better quality and don't puncture as easy. You can make your own warmer bag out of Reflectix. I've been doing it this way for quite a few years. Another benefit is packabilty. Way smaller than those MH packs that have the hard corners when you fold over the top.

Agreed. I use the freezer bags. I used to bring a reheating reflective foil pouch. Now I use an empty mtn house pouch with all extra material trimmed to put my freezer bag in to reheat