How Many Oxygen Absorbers Are Needed For Mylar Bags?

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To give a little context, Oxygen absorbers are those little iron powder packets you find in packages that are non-edible. They are designed to extend the shelf life of food by preventing oxidation within the Mylar bags and other storage items.

Generally, the gallon-sized Mylar bags would do well with a pair of iron-based oxygen absorbers. Any smaller and single packet should do the trick.

This can be followed accordingly as the size of the Mylar bags increases; add an absorber for every half gallon more carrying capacity per bag.

How do you know how many Oxygen Absorbers to use?

As mentioned above, there is a general consensus when it comes to the number of oxygen absorbers needed per bag, and that is two iron-based packets per gallon. This will cover most items typically stored within a mylar bag, including food and herbal items.

This does not mean that certain products might require more; consider adding an additional packet for dry-powered goods like flour or other dehydrated foods.

There is no danger to having too many in a package; the only con is that some of the additional packet material will go unused.

 

Is it the same for all Types of Absorbers?

There are multiple types of oxygen absorbers; the two main types, ‘B’ and ‘D,’ are the ones you will find in the food bag, like Jerky products. The ‘B’ type will require some moisture to activate the packet and allow it to perform its action.

In short, specialized oxygen absorption materials for different products will require specific elemental requirements to work. Mylar bags will often find these two types of oxygen absorbers within, helping keep products fresh and free from decay.

 

Can you use Too Many Oxygen Absorbers?

There is no danger to the health of anyone when there are additional oxygen absorbers added to the packaging, for they are not made with anything toxic.

There will be, however, a cost-effective route to using the precise amount of oxygen absorbers from a business perspective. Therefore, this question will have two answers depending on the person’s perspective.

As a reminder, the standard guidelines state that one should use two iron-based packets per gallon when using Mylar bags to efficiently use the oxygen absorber to better ration any supply of the packets.

 

How Can You Tell If You Need More of them?

There will be many ways to check for the effectiveness of the oxygen absorption of the packets, but there will be a few obvious things that will be a tell. The first will be the presence of oxygen in the package, if there is a bulge, there is space for another packet.

The other will be when opening the mylar bag and there is moisture on the inside of the package. A type ‘B’ packet could be the solution for this issue. The job of the packets is to take out air and moisture from the inner compartment to prevent spoiling.

 

Do you Need Oxygen Absorbers if you Vacuum Seal?

There is a certain percentage of air that can be, and it’s nearly one hundred. The small percent of error will be made up for by a small packet of Oxygen Absorbers, which are more of a backup to the vacuum seal process.

There will also be other reasons to use the packets, including having sliced fruits that need to be dehydrated even after packaging.

As far as needing these convenient packets, no procedures will do the job, but saving money and having a surety of the product being safe from mold or oxidation.

 

Final Thoughts on How many Oxygen Absorbers are needed for Mylar Bags

There are many different types of oxygen absorbers that can be utilized for all the various types of products that will be stored in a Mylar bag. First, consider the product you would like to package in these bags and consider the item’s moisture content and shelf storage needs.

Most products will only need to be helped with oxygen getting into the package and keeping dehydrated foods. These will be covered by your essential ‘B’ and ‘D’ packets, which will help with both air and moisture inside the Mylar bag.

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