Insulating Polypropylene Ball Blanket

I saw a video in the MC labs and in their water baths they were using Polyscience's Insulating Polypropylene Balls. I just wanted to know the advantages of the balls versus a lid or some plastic wrap over your bath. What do they offer that the other two don't?

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Brendan_Lee_56950

Basically it acts like a lid but with the convenience of you being able to put/pull things out/in frequently without fussing with the lid.

Chris_Young_80640

Exactly correct. They work by reducing the surface area that evaporation can occur from, but have the advantage of making it easy to add or remove packages of food from the bath. Unfortunately, they're kind of expensive.

Jack_Mayer_85396

@Chris - how much? would ping pong balls work? I hate the way that the condensation drips all over the counter when I lift the lid on my SVS. Thanks to ChefSteps, my PolyScience circulator, tank and lid are on the way, hopefully be here Wednesday, but more likely Thursday.

Brendan_Lee_56950

I personally used ping pong balls for a long time until I decided to just go with a lid, not sure about the balls from polyscience though.

ParkerCook_66639

I'd totally use ping pong balls if they do the same thing. That way I can get even more weird looks from the people in my family that think I'm weird for cooking things in bags and a water bath, haha.

ParkerCook_66639

I think Polyscience sells 400 balls for $90-ish.

Sumit__65166

ping pong balls do smell funky when they crack. i've never used ping pong balls in sous vide but i've smashed few. they may have chemicals which could contaminate water, and might eventually find a way to your food. i doubt ping pong balls would be bpa free.

i don't know for sure but it might worth investing before using them... i'm just speculating here.

borgech

I use ping pong balls and haven't had any issues! I got them dirt cheap from here:

http://www.amazon.com/Practice-Ping-Pong-Balls-balls/dp/B000ILDDSM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1364332309&sr=8-1&keywords=ping+pong+balls

dpietranczyk_49940

I currently have some ping pong balls on top of the ribs I'm cooking. I don't mind them. I doubt they are BPA free. I left them on top of the corned beef I did for 72 hrs and they discolored a bit. Personally I am a fan of the cut lid. I find the balls to be not practical for a fast paced restaurant service. If those balls come out of the water with the bag onto the floor of a busy line, that's going to be an angry kitchen lol. The polypropelene balls are also much smaller than you'd think. They are actually about the size of paintballs.

Brendan_Lee_56950

Yeah I just noticed that after seeing them in a video, I always thought they were bigger. Guess that's why they come in packs of 400

ParkerCook_66639

I'm just sticking with a lid, haha.

Jack_Mayer_85396

@Parker - looks like you'll have your circulator by Friday, congrats!

Johan_Edstrom_5586

I just got my lids from the shop yesterday, they are a great fit and there is fascinatingly little water loss compared to the 10 cm opening I had prior, been running the baths at 62C since yesterday and had no noticeable water loss really.

Sumit__65166

just wondering if anyone tried to use dremel to cut the lid?

Johan_Edstrom_5586

I think @Brendan did just that.

Brendan_Lee_56950

yup, I did that. I would recommend using a reciprocating saw though because with the cutting bits on a dremel the plastic will melt along the edges and look kind of messy but it still does the trick.

Sumit__65166

@Brendan thanks!

Tim_Sutherland_52834

A flush cut hand saw works the best for cutting lids. The frame of a hacksaw gets in the way. A reciprocating saw has a too large a blade and is too powerful a tool for cutting the plastic - it tears/splinters rather than cuts. What ever you use to cut, drill out the inside corners of the lid with a large enough drill bit so you can turn the blade.

Shannon_Barnes_68642

I just upgraded to a polyscience circulator, and WOW is the water loss without a lid crazy! I bought a lid for the container, and am going to try cutting a hole for the circulator this weekend. I have a jigsaw, and found a fine-toothed metal blade that will hopefully work. I should have ordered several lids in case I screw them up.

Luther_Kroman_2778

Here is another option. I am using a piece of 2.2lb Ethafoam (2") as a lid. I did this partly because I thought it would insilate better than the lid and also, I really didn't want to cut my lid as I like to be able to close it up for storage. I get mine from work, but any foam supply would have it.

http://www.ashleydistributors.com/foam.php

Luther_Kroman_2778

Photo

DiggingDogFarm_65362

I bought 1,000 20mm Polypropylene Balls from U.S. Plastic Corp. for $67.28 plus $9.17 shipping.....total $76.45

PolyScience wants $102.00 for 400 same spec balls plus $10.68 shipping....$112.68 total. Yikes!!!

I read somewhere some time ago that 20mm polypropylene balls limit evaporation better and insulate better because they sit lower in the water which means coverage is better.

Is that true? Dunno! It sounds plausible.

I bought them anyway! : )

Bengoshi_24963

Anyone have a thought about these? I notice rated only to 180F, but they float and a lot cheaper

http://www.amazon.com/Polypropylene-Sphere-Grade-Opaque-Diameter/dp/B000FN0MSC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1391047365&sr=8-1&keywords=polypropylene+balls

DiggingDogFarm_65362

They are solid and it'd take a heck of a lot of them.....100 will only cover ~ 5" x 5"

You'd be better of with the U.S.Plastics balls linked above.

Brandon_Byrd_40557

I'm very happy with the polycarbonate lid to my Cambro and can't imagine that using these balls would be that much better (especially given how expensive they are). Anyone think they're really worth the extra $$$?

Johan_Edstrom_5586

Nope.

reub_50398

I used a hacksaw to cut a standard lid and it works very well. Haven't measured heat loss but I just did a three day cook and there was at most 1.5" of evaporation.

Brandon_Byrd_40557

I used a Dremel rotary tool to cut a standard lid and it works very well... especially for the low-low price of $6.59.

DiggingDogFarm_65362

It's difficult to know if they're really worth it.

Here are some of the reasons I decided to get the balls:

Since they're hollow they do provide a bit of insulation.

They're hefty and should last almost indefinitely.

1000 of them is enough for at least two small baths.

1000 of them can be used cover a large bath where a lid isn't available for retrofitting.

I don't have a Dremel tool or another good way to cut a polycarbonate lid...so that would have cost me some bucks anyway.

PedroG's post #17 in the following thread shows what kind of difference an insulated cover can make in terms energy consumption...

http://forums.egullet.org/topic/139754-the-electrical-cost-of-doing-sous-vide/

I'm currently using the balls in a double layer with the Anova.

George_347644

Polypropylene balls are fantastic for covering a water bath and reducing evap while helping maintain water temp. Best price ones I found on amazon by Sous Vide Boss for a pack of 250. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01DLQD9ES

Paul_Devereux_148963

Only $4.47 if you don't care about color. https://www.amazon.com/Fairly-Odd-Novelties-Table-Tennis/dp/B00LI5RYNM/ref=sr_1_1?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1476673302&sr=1-1&keywords=small%2Bwhite%2Bballs&th=1

hasdayweb

This is a great find and seems to be the exact same thing that PolySci is selling. Thanks!

DiggingDogFarm_65362

They're now available for less via Amazon.