How to Seal Plastic Bags Without a Sealer

If you make your own crafts, bag your own veggies or just want to protect some paperwork you can easily seal the plastic bags you’ve stored them in without using a heat sealer. Heat sealers work best, but if you’re still saving to buy one, you can still seal your plastic bags. Although many people use zipper lock bags sometimes they’re just not appropriate for selling crafts and other circumstances. With the self-sealing plastic bags, or even homemade cellophane pouches, you’ll have the exact size bag you need and you won’t have to purchase expensive equipment just to seal them.

For flat items that you want to seal, such as papers or money, place them in the bag and put the bag in a book. The very edge of the plastic or cellophane should protrude from the pages of the book. Use a lighter to go across the edge, sealing it completely. Don’t hold the lighter in a certain spot for more than a split second. Instead, go steadily across the edge of the bag with the lighter. You can go back and forth a couple of times to make sure the bag is sealed completely.

It helps to pinch the plastic after it has melted. Go across the edges with the lighter then come back while pinching the edges. The plastic melts cools rapidly after melting and will not likely burn you. To be sure not to get burned try folding a piece of cardboard in half and using it to pinch the edges.

Many people think the book would burn or scorch but not true. The lighter is not held up against the pages of the book, and even if it were, a stack of pages crammed together doesn’t easily catch fire. Instead of a book you can use two slats of wood, two books, or two other flat items that are wooden or metallic.

The slat method is best for bags that won’t lay flat. Items that have dimension won’t lie inside of a book while you melt the edges. For these bags just lay the bag on a table and trap the edges of the bag between two slats of wood. Hold them together tightly while you use the disposable lighter to melt the edges. Go back immediately and pinch the edges together to secure.

Making your own bags for crafts can save you lots of money. The sealed bags look much more professional than a zipper lock baggie. You can purchase cellophane on a roll and make a package for most any product you make. Use stickers to make your label if you need one.

Use zipper lock bags, with the zipper cut off, to make different bags that you can seal. With the zipper removed the package no longer looks like a simple baggie. Make your own bags by purchasing plastic at a home improvement or craft store and cutting them to the size you need. Package and seal then add your label.

You’ll find plastic in various thicknesses where you purchase it. If you need really thick plastic for storage you can use a grill lighter to seal the edges. The thick plastics are much more difficult to seal completely. It’s important to melt, pinch, melt and pinch all the way across. Since this method leaves the plastic too hot to touch, and since thick plastics stay hotter longer, use the folded cardboard to pinch the edges. This will ensure you that your fingers won’t get burned.

The sealed bags can be used to store food, craft supplies, baby needs, travel needs and much more. To open the bags just cut across the edge or pull the two sides apart. Reseal with the lighter method once more, if needed. It’s easy to make your own bags and you’ll save money by purchasing plastic by the roll or by the yard. You’ll find that the lighter technique works well for most of your sealing needs.