Which immersion circulator to buy?

I'm looking to buy a new immersion circulator. With so many on the market, can anyone recommend a good brand and model?

I've come across the below brands/models but not quite sure which one to go with, or whether there are any other, better recommended models based on other people's experience with circulators.

I'm happy to spend more money on the right one.

Thanks for the help.

http://www.sousvidetools.com/sous-vide/professional/sous-vide-thermal-circulators/polyscience-sous-vide-classic-thermal-circulator

http://www.sousvidetools.com/sous-vide/professional/sous-vide-thermal-circulators/foodtektm-thermal-circulator

http://www.sousvidetools.com/sous-vide/professional/sous-vide-thermal-circulators/sous-vide-chef-thermal-circulator

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Comments

Johan_Edstrom_5586

The first one is the classic Ps, doubt you need that for other than cool form factor, the second I've never used, the third is a second gen vacstar.

I think the most commonly used in the US are for chefs the Ps chef series with the Anova and sansaire picking up speed in the consumer market.

tshewman

Uncertain if looking for restaurant use or personal? Am in the USA and have the creative series by PS and the recent Anova. I have been pleased with the PS and it hsa been a work horse. Having tested the Anova, it is good, but does not have the finite adjustment of the PS. The power is slightly less if I recall as well and is great for smaller cooks. The PS has been solid. Admittedly have to put the anova through more "work", and no real complaints so far, but doesn't have the same industrial feel (or reputation).

DiggingDogFarm_65362

If I were in your situation I'd seriously consider the Anova Pro...220v units are more expensive though.

http://anovaculinary.com/products/anova-precision-cooker-pro

Bouha_112811

Thanks very much for the advice. I'd be buying one for personal use. I was considering a SVS but everyone's feedback seems to be the same: the bath/container is too small and constricting - that's why I'm instead considering a circulator.

Is this the Ps chef series you're referring to?

http://www.sousvidetools.com/sous-vide/professional/sous-vide-thermal-circulators/polyscience-sous-vide-professional-thermal-circulator-bag

me0969

The sansaire sous vide isn't not too shabby as well.

tshewman

That is the chef series however, they also have a creative series whic is a small step down but still works well (could not find it on that website). See here http://www.polyscienceculinary.com/sousvide-creative.php

T__2156

I adore my SVS, but why buy a whole huge box when you can get a stick to put in the stock pot you already own?

Bouha_112811

All very helpful advice thanks again. This is somewhat off topic - has anyone worked with liquid-handling vacuum sealers that won't break the bank? The ones I've seen in the video classes and on some review sites are well over £1K/$2K.

Matthew_Snyder_68770

I have two Anova Ones, and they're pretty excellent. The only problem I've encountered is they tend to rattle if you don't put the metal shroud on correctly, and sometimes that rattling can be obnoxious. Takes a few moments of jiggering the thing to get it to stop. But I've only had them a month or so and I've already used them for 48- and 72-hour cooks. (I named them 'Zeus' and 'Apollo' to alternate duty cycles)

lucasbodd

Hi @Bouha_112811 I would highly recommend the polyscience chefs series professional model. I have two of those and the are absolutely fantastic. Before I bought the polyscience chef series I considered the

vac-star model, but because I use those machines for commercial use I went with polyscience.

my circulators are on all the time cooking on average 100 pax per day. so if you are looking for heavy duty piece of equipment. thats the one! hope that helps.

happy shopping

http://www.sousvidetools.com/sous-vide/professional/sous-vide-thermal-circulators/polyscience-sous-vide-professional-thermal-circulator-bag

mike-chefsteps

Mine had this problem too. I solved it by, uh, manually adjusting the impeller paddles slightly.

Matthew_Snyder_68770

Can you detail that a bit? I can't figure out what is causing the rattle.

mike-chefsteps

Sure. In my case, the tops of the impeller paddles were bent slightly upwards, and shifting the shroud could bring the tops of the paddles into contact with the bottom of the shroud, which produced an unpleasant screeching, and would stop the impeller motor. Wear marks on the shroud confirmed what was happening.

I just bent the paddles downward a little bit, and now they clear the shroud regardless of its position.

Luis_58461

i ordered the anova pro beacause i wanted to get either the real deal or nothing. i think its the nicest and most powerful gadget in these pricecategory. i had quite a struggle until i finally got it but can just recommend anova.

I have the anova one too and think its is perfect in size and capacity if you are doing "smaller batches" of stuff. I did 6 kilos of shortrib 60 hours without a problem, so its not just for one little bag.

The anova pro is obviously higher in power, nicer looking (in my opinion) and more precise. The watercirculation is pretty high, if you are doing it in a deep (150) 1/2 GN-Container its quite bubbely and strong.

so you got to ask yourself what you need. If you want a circulater for quantities at home, i would buy the anova one. its handy, light, nicelooking, easy to control and precise enough.

i saw the sansaire too and think its the same as the anova one but just bigger and ugglier.

if you want a tool for big ammounts of really super precise controlled food in a big tank of water the anova pro is maybe better. for a start the anova one is seriously doing the trick. let me know if i can help you with more information...