Stainless steel flat sealing strip for vacuum packing machines, 5 mm high, 0.3 mm thick. Sold by the metre. It is the flat band that heats up and seals the vacuum bag.

What it does. Fitted on the machine's sealing bar, the strip heats up as current passes through it and melts the edge of the bag, creating the airtight seal. It is a wear part: over repeated cycles it oxidises, warps or breaks and the seal no longer holds.

When to replace it. When the bags no longer seal properly, stay open, or the strip is burnt/broken. Cut it to the length of your sealing bar.

Size. Height 5 mm, thickness 0.3 mm. The strip is also available in 3 mm and 6 mm heights: measure the one fitted on your bar before ordering.