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Mylar Bags for Tobacco Storage

I decided to start a fresh thread on this topic, given a bit of discussion in the What Brown leaf 'good stuff' are you waiting on to be delivered? thread.

I use bags from GUSSETED POUCHES. - https://www.topmylar.com/gusseted-pouches , obviously the the gusseted pouches.
I prefer the pint size, I think it is the smallest they sell, as they are primarily a bulk dried food bag provider.

The 7 mil bags are more substantial than some Mylar bags you will see. The zip-locks are sturdy and the bags seal quite easily. I use a hair straightening iron as my heat source, it works perfectly and I bought it at a second hand store for three bucks.

I like the gusseted bags because the stand up when filling them. I set the bag on my kitchen scale with a jar funnel in the neck, zero out the scale and fill the bag. I use a screwdriver handle to tamp the tobacco slightly. I put around 3 oz. of ribbon cut per bag and 4 oz of flake or cake. That is a good size for me, so I don't have to open a bigger jar/bag and shut down the aging process.

Currently my 80 pound cellar is stored 24% in Mylar bags; 47% in jars; 23% in tins; 4% in pouches, and the other 1.3% in Cans or VacBags.

All bulk purchases are now stored in Mylar bags for storage and jars for the smoking shelf stock.

We will see how it all goes. I have little doubt the Mylar bags will hold up over time.
 

Toothpick

Needs milk and a bidet!
Staff member
Any benefit besides just a personal preference?
Perhaps it will take up less space than a bunch of jars?

I assume they are reusable? but would you want to with different tobaccos?
 

AimlessWanderer

Remember to forget me!
Firstly...

Currently my 80 pound cellar ...

Yowser!!! :eek6: I will be completely maxed out at 30 tins, or 1.5kg (3.3lb) :lol:

I can see them being very useful for me, and possibly a better storage solution than jars... but not a total replacement.

I only expect to smoke around 6 tins per year, roughly 25g per month. Mylar bags would let me seal up 3 ~12.5g pouches once I crack a tin open, and put the remainder in a small jar. That way I can keep the rest of the tin fresh for smoking later in the year, and top up that jar with a fresh (but aged) half ounce, in old numbers, as and when needed.

Tins for ageing, a few jars for dipping into, and mylar for part tin storage.

I have seen some 10cm x 15cm pouches which look ideal for the job. Moderate cost, lightweight, lightproof, and without the bulkiness of glass jars. I won't be cracking open any tins this years, as I'm pretty sure I have enough in samples to see me through 2020, but I will be considering getting some next year.
 

Kentos

B&B's Dr. Doolittle.
Staff member
Mostly for storage space, but they don’t stack well at all so it needs to be in a box or something.
 

Kentos

B&B's Dr. Doolittle.
Staff member
Nevermind...I see it now. Whew! I was shaking my head...its $22/50 bags.

The smallest ones barely fit a square tin, so might order the one bigger on my next one.

Word to the wise: if the opening isn’t heat sealed it doesn’t do so well at moisture retention with just the ziplock.
 
The smallest ones barely fit a square tin, so might order the one bigger on my next one.

Word to the wise: if the opening isn’t heat sealed it doesn’t do so well at moisture retention with just the ziplock.
I do have some quart size for tin storage although I’ve only used a few.

And yes, heat sealing is advisable for longer term storage. I would think the ziplock on the 7 mil bags are better than the average plastic bag, but not for years.

They are less attractive than jars as well!
 
Any benefit besides just a personal preference?
Perhaps it will take up less space than a bunch of jars?

I assume they are reusable? but would you want to with different tobaccos?
Less weight for sure. They do require boxes or small totes if you have a bunch of bags, just to keep them somewhat organized.
As for reusing them, I guess you could, but the ziplock versions can only be heat sealed one time unless you are very careful with the first seal. At 50 cents per bag, I use them once.
 

Kentos

B&B's Dr. Doolittle.
Staff member
I do have some quart size for tin storage although I’ve only used a few.

And yes, heat sealing is advisable for longer term storage. I would think the ziplock on the 7 mil bags are better than the average plastic bag, but not for years.

They are less attractive than jars as well!

I left half an ounce of ribbon in a 7mm bag zipped and folded in half. After maybe a month in my Bugout bag it’s dry. Not crispy but no compression at all. Totally smokable, but I thought it would have lasted a lot longer. Might roll the top half down next time to see if that prolongs the moisture retention.
 

brandaves

With a great avatar comes great misidentification
I ordered some of these bags and put away a but of PS Cube Cut in 2 of them. Sealed them with a flat iron as @KellyG described and I'm pleased with the results. Each bag held a bit over 2 oz of tobacco and I'm optimistic they will hold up over the long haul. Thanks Kelly!
 

AimlessWanderer

Remember to forget me!
A few quick questions on mylar bags...

When heat sealing tobacco in these for long term storage, do you vacuum seal, or leave air in?
Also, does the tobacco go directly in the bag, or do you have to put another container in, to keep the tobacco from being in contact with the bag?
 

Kentos

B&B's Dr. Doolittle.
Staff member
A few quick questions on mylar bags...

When heat sealing tobacco in these for long term storage, do you vacuum seal, or leave air in?
Also, does the tobacco go directly in the bag, or do you have to put another container in, to keep the tobacco from being in contact with the bag?

I don’t know the long term effects of the Mylar in tobacco, but seeing how they were introduced to store food for long term I don’t think it’s a problem. I also am of the school of thought that the tobacco needs some oxygen to start up the aging process so I press out whatever excess air I can and just seal.
 
+1 on Kentos reply. If I'm bagging an aro or other tobacco that I'm concerned about the oxygen, I squeeze as much out as I can and seal. If it is a Virginia blend or a blend I want to age, I leave the air in the bag and seal. Frankly, after filling the bag with tobacco, there isn't much difference between the squeezed bags and the others. If one is concerned about the oxygen, the bag companies will sell you small oxygen absorbers that go in the bags.
From everything I've read, Mylar is non-reactive and should present no problems with tobacco. Like Kentos said, people have been storing food for the long term for years with no ill effect.
I also zip the bags before sealing, just to make sure. I also seal as narrow a strip as practical, so I can re-seal if I use a partial bag. I've thought also that it would be no problem to seal the bag below the zipper, once enough tobacco is removed. While the zip on these 7mil mylar bags is robust, I'm not sure I trust the zip alone to seal for the long term.
So far, I've had zero issues with the mylar bags; I started using them in September of 2019, so, not a lot of experience.
FWIW, I use the pint bags. They hold 3 - 4 oz, depending on the cut/press of the blend.
 
I don’t know the long term effects of the Mylar in tobacco, but seeing how they were introduced to store food for long term I don’t think it’s a problem. I also am of the school of thought that the tobacco needs some oxygen to start up the aging process so I press out whatever excess air I can and just seal.

That's similar to what I've always done. Ball/Mason jars are cheap and available in all sizes so I just grab those, stuff them, if they aren't full, they aren't full and I label and enjoy the aging. Plus it's fun decoration. Looks like an old apothecary shop in our military room. I've only had one jar that spoiled. Not sure what happened. It just had a pungent sweet smell that was clearly not right. Don't get me wrong, I'm not against the mylar bags. I really like the idea. It would free up so much space. Over time I do enjoy going into cabinet and grabbing a jar to read the date and contents, then see how it's changing over time.
 

Columbo

Mr. Codgers Neighborhood
These look like nice bags. Just one question: where are they made?

I agree that hard-packing is sufficient for an optimal air charge for the blends and cuts most likely to be cellared in these. Creating higher pressure differentials can cause long duration permeability issues with polymer barriers, including polyesters. But aluminized ones should be fine with tobacco, even if vacuum packed. The aluminized coating is the effective barrier layer. So unless you are cellaring helium in them, they should remain fairly impermeable over the long haul.
 

Kentos

B&B's Dr. Doolittle.
Staff member
That's similar to what I've always done. Ball/Mason jars are cheap and available in all sizes so I just grab those, stuff them, if they aren't full, they aren't full and I label and enjoy the aging. Plus it's fun decoration. Looks like an old apothecary shop in our military room. I've only had one jar that spoiled. Not sure what happened. It just had a pungent sweet smell that was clearly not right. Don't get me wrong, I'm not against the mylar bags. I really like the idea. It would free up so much space. Over time I do enjoy going into cabinet and grabbing a jar to read the date and contents, then see how it's changing over time.
The bags don’t stack nicely like jars, so at the end of the day they are strewn about the shelves or haphazardly piled into boxes. I’m still torn in which is better. I guess for guys like us either way storage is a challenge whether in jars or bags.
 

Columbo

Mr. Codgers Neighborhood
The bags don’t stack nicely like jars, so at the end of the day they are strewn about the shelves or haphazardly piled into boxes. I’m still torn in which is better. I guess for guys like us either way storage is a challenge whether in jars or bags.

Well ... it's funny that you mention that. I was thinking about the same conundrum.

I completely understand where bag advocates are coming from. The bags are much cheaper per unit, and the gross storage volume and weights are much more manageable. Storing many pounds of product in these bags is not going to stress a storage system like glass containers will. Glass is heavy. And polymer wins the fragility contest hands down. Drop a bag, and it doesn't shatter all over the floor.

Toss a bunch of bags in a labeled box, and you have a handy tobacco dispenser ... like those snack food variety packs. You only open what you plan to use at the moment. Convenient.

But I still use glass, for a number of reasons. One, they are more reusable. I can rinse out a mason jar and go from a stinky aromatic to a finicky English in ten minutes with a fresh lid. Two, they are easier to work with; tighten the sealing ring, and you're done. And three, even with the reduced permeability coefficients of metallized polyester over other simple polymer barriers (3-5,000% better), they still are not as impermeable as glass and metals. Permeability is just as important as reactivity for a container. Besides letting ambients through, permeability leaches the contained product into the container substrate, altering the product composition.

I recall one chemical engineer once telling me that the the mean effective storage duration of metallized polymer film barriers (depending on the contained element, but he was applying common non-volatile commercial and industrial gasses and fluids) to be calculable in many years (as in 10-25), but glass and some ceramics (provided it does not fracture) can be calculated in centuries. Will that make a difference to the average tobacco hoarder? Probably not. But it's an interesting conversation.

Both are relatively non-reactive to the storage of organics like processed tobacco. UV resistance is a red herring. Keep the glass out of sunlight ... close the storage cabinet door. The counter is that I can inspect my leaf from time to time as it ages in glass.

And the last reason I use glass jars? The most important one. Because I already have a lot of them on hand. My storage system is already paid for. New lids are cheap.

The only thing comparable to glass are metallic containers, but they can present their own long-term storage issues. Those 60 and 80 year old tins of tobacco that still pop up from time to time are still well-sealed and tidy inside with all-metal container technology. They work.

The reason I mentioned Helium tongue-in-cheek earlier because that is the ultimate permeability element. Not even common glass can stop that, and it literally seeps through most metals in weeks. At least we aren't dealing with that.

But I applaud the baggers. They are exploring new vistas and finding new solutions in what is generally a stodgy hobby.
 
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