Free tool
Oxygen Absorber Calculator
The short version: size the absorber to the air left in the container, not to the weight of the food. Pick your container and how airy the food is, and the calculator runs the arithmetic the manufacturers publish — then shows you every cc figure those same manufacturers print for that container, which range over eightfold and contradict each other.
Size the absorber
Pint · Dense — about 35% air
50ccthe smallest packet size these sources name that covers the calculated demand
473cc of air in the container × 35% air once the food is in it = 166cc of air left. At 21% oxygen, that is 35cc of oxygen for the packet to clear (33–35cc across the range of oxygen fractions the sources publish, 20% to 21%). [O1][O9]
This is arithmetic, not a manufacturer recommendation. It runs the same calculation the sources run, on the air fraction they publish for this class of food. What the manufacturers themselves say for this container is below, and they do not agree with each other.
What the manufacturers publish for a pint
- 94.6ccPackFreshUSA[O1]Calculated for an empty pint jar (473cc ÷ 5), not a filled one.
- 20cc / 50ccAGM O-Busters[O15]Indexed on void space, not food type: 20cc under 10% void, 50cc at 25% void or more. The 10–25% band is not published; do not interpolate it.
- 100ccDiscount Mylar Bags (OxyFree)[O25]No food class stated.
- 100ccDry & Dry[O27]No food class stated.
- 300ccWallaby Goods[O20]Wallaby disclaims its own chart: the figures are “only the average amount” and “you may need more or a smaller number.”
Pint · Powder — about 50% air
50ccthe smallest packet size these sources name that covers the calculated demand
473cc of air in the container × 50% air once the food is in it = 237cc of air left. At 21% oxygen, that is 50cc of oxygen for the packet to clear (47–50cc across the range of oxygen fractions the sources publish, 20% to 21%). [O1][O9]
This is arithmetic, not a manufacturer recommendation. It runs the same calculation the sources run, on the air fraction they publish for this class of food. What the manufacturers themselves say for this container is below, and they do not agree with each other.
What the manufacturers publish for a pint
- 94.6ccPackFreshUSA[O1]Calculated for an empty pint jar (473cc ÷ 5), not a filled one.
- 20cc / 50ccAGM O-Busters[O15]Indexed on void space, not food type: 20cc under 10% void, 50cc at 25% void or more. The 10–25% band is not published; do not interpolate it.
- 100ccDiscount Mylar Bags (OxyFree)[O25]No food class stated.
- 100ccDry & Dry[O27]No food class stated.
- 300ccWallaby Goods[O20]Wallaby disclaims its own chart: the figures are “only the average amount” and “you may need more or a smaller number.”
Pint · Bulky and porous — about 75% air
100ccthe smallest packet size these sources name that covers the calculated demand
473cc of air in the container × 75% air once the food is in it = 355cc of air left. At 21% oxygen, that is 74cc of oxygen for the packet to clear (71–74cc across the range of oxygen fractions the sources publish, 20% to 21%). [O1][O9]
This is arithmetic, not a manufacturer recommendation. It runs the same calculation the sources run, on the air fraction they publish for this class of food. What the manufacturers themselves say for this container is below, and they do not agree with each other.
What the manufacturers publish for a pint
- 94.6ccPackFreshUSA[O1]Calculated for an empty pint jar (473cc ÷ 5), not a filled one.
- 20cc / 50ccAGM O-Busters[O15]Indexed on void space, not food type: 20cc under 10% void, 50cc at 25% void or more. The 10–25% band is not published; do not interpolate it.
- 100ccDiscount Mylar Bags (OxyFree)[O25]No food class stated.
- 100ccDry & Dry[O27]No food class stated.
- 300ccWallaby Goods[O20]Wallaby disclaims its own chart: the figures are “only the average amount” and “you may need more or a smaller number.”
Quart · Dense — about 35% air
100ccthe smallest packet size these sources name that covers the calculated demand
946cc of air in the container × 35% air once the food is in it = 331cc of air left. At 21% oxygen, that is 70cc of oxygen for the packet to clear (66–70cc across the range of oxygen fractions the sources publish, 20% to 21%). [O1][O9]
This is arithmetic, not a manufacturer recommendation. It runs the same calculation the sources run, on the air fraction they publish for this class of food. What the manufacturers themselves say for this container is below, and they do not agree with each other.
The container volume here is derived. A quarter of PackFreshUSA’s published gallon figure of 3,785cc. No source in the pack prints a quart volume in cc directly.
What the manufacturers publish for a quart
- 200ccPackFreshUSA[O1]Their own arithmetic for a nominal quart. Their shipped quart sets use 300cc instead, because their quart bags hold more than a quart.
- 300ccPackFreshUSA[O1]As actually supplied in their Mylar sets, on the stated grounds that their quart bags hold more than a quart.
- 50cc / 100ccAGM O-Busters[O15]Indexed on void space: 50cc under 10% void, 100cc at 25% void or more. No intermediate band published.
- 300ccWallaby Goods[O20]Chart disclaimed by its publisher as average figures only.
- 100–300ccDiscount Mylar Bags (OxyFree)[O24][O25]No food class stated; the range is published as a range.
- 300ccDry & Dry[O27]No food class stated.
- 50ccUtah State University Extension[O30]Extension fact sheet dated October 2011; the current extension site publishes no cc figures at all.
Quart · Powder — about 50% air
100ccthe smallest packet size these sources name that covers the calculated demand
946cc of air in the container × 50% air once the food is in it = 473cc of air left. At 21% oxygen, that is 99cc of oxygen for the packet to clear (95–99cc across the range of oxygen fractions the sources publish, 20% to 21%). [O1][O9]
This is arithmetic, not a manufacturer recommendation. It runs the same calculation the sources run, on the air fraction they publish for this class of food. What the manufacturers themselves say for this container is below, and they do not agree with each other.
The container volume here is derived. A quarter of PackFreshUSA’s published gallon figure of 3,785cc. No source in the pack prints a quart volume in cc directly.
What the manufacturers publish for a quart
- 200ccPackFreshUSA[O1]Their own arithmetic for a nominal quart. Their shipped quart sets use 300cc instead, because their quart bags hold more than a quart.
- 300ccPackFreshUSA[O1]As actually supplied in their Mylar sets, on the stated grounds that their quart bags hold more than a quart.
- 50cc / 100ccAGM O-Busters[O15]Indexed on void space: 50cc under 10% void, 100cc at 25% void or more. No intermediate band published.
- 300ccWallaby Goods[O20]Chart disclaimed by its publisher as average figures only.
- 100–300ccDiscount Mylar Bags (OxyFree)[O24][O25]No food class stated; the range is published as a range.
- 300ccDry & Dry[O27]No food class stated.
- 50ccUtah State University Extension[O30]Extension fact sheet dated October 2011; the current extension site publishes no cc figures at all.
Quart · Bulky and porous — about 75% air
200ccthe smallest packet size these sources name that covers the calculated demand
946cc of air in the container × 75% air once the food is in it = 710cc of air left. At 21% oxygen, that is 149cc of oxygen for the packet to clear (142–149cc across the range of oxygen fractions the sources publish, 20% to 21%). [O1][O9]
This is arithmetic, not a manufacturer recommendation. It runs the same calculation the sources run, on the air fraction they publish for this class of food. What the manufacturers themselves say for this container is below, and they do not agree with each other.
The container volume here is derived. A quarter of PackFreshUSA’s published gallon figure of 3,785cc. No source in the pack prints a quart volume in cc directly.
What the manufacturers publish for a quart
- 200ccPackFreshUSA[O1]Their own arithmetic for a nominal quart. Their shipped quart sets use 300cc instead, because their quart bags hold more than a quart.
- 300ccPackFreshUSA[O1]As actually supplied in their Mylar sets, on the stated grounds that their quart bags hold more than a quart.
- 50cc / 100ccAGM O-Busters[O15]Indexed on void space: 50cc under 10% void, 100cc at 25% void or more. No intermediate band published.
- 300ccWallaby Goods[O20]Chart disclaimed by its publisher as average figures only.
- 100–300ccDiscount Mylar Bags (OxyFree)[O24][O25]No food class stated; the range is published as a range.
- 300ccDry & Dry[O27]No food class stated.
- 50ccUtah State University Extension[O30]Extension fact sheet dated October 2011; the current extension site publishes no cc figures at all.
Half-gallon · Dense — about 35% air
200ccthe smallest packet size these sources name that covers the calculated demand
1,893cc of air in the container × 35% air once the food is in it = 663cc of air left. At 21% oxygen, that is 139cc of oxygen for the packet to clear (133–139cc across the range of oxygen fractions the sources publish, 20% to 21%). [O1][O9]
This is arithmetic, not a manufacturer recommendation. It runs the same calculation the sources run, on the air fraction they publish for this class of food. What the manufacturers themselves say for this container is below, and they do not agree with each other.
The container volume here is derived. Half of PackFreshUSA’s published gallon figure of 3,785cc. No source in the pack prints a half-gallon volume, and no manufacturer in the pack publishes a half-gallon absorber recommendation at all.
No manufacturer or extension source in the research pack publishes a half-gallon recommendation. The quart and gallon rows below bracket it; the calculated figure above is arithmetic on a derived container volume, not a published rating.
Half-gallon · Powder — about 50% air
200ccthe smallest packet size these sources name that covers the calculated demand
1,893cc of air in the container × 50% air once the food is in it = 947cc of air left. At 21% oxygen, that is 199cc of oxygen for the packet to clear (189–199cc across the range of oxygen fractions the sources publish, 20% to 21%). [O1][O9]
This is arithmetic, not a manufacturer recommendation. It runs the same calculation the sources run, on the air fraction they publish for this class of food. What the manufacturers themselves say for this container is below, and they do not agree with each other.
The container volume here is derived. Half of PackFreshUSA’s published gallon figure of 3,785cc. No source in the pack prints a half-gallon volume, and no manufacturer in the pack publishes a half-gallon absorber recommendation at all.
No manufacturer or extension source in the research pack publishes a half-gallon recommendation. The quart and gallon rows below bracket it; the calculated figure above is arithmetic on a derived container volume, not a published rating.
Half-gallon · Bulky and porous — about 75% air
300ccthe smallest packet size these sources name that covers the calculated demand
1,893cc of air in the container × 75% air once the food is in it = 1,420cc of air left. At 21% oxygen, that is 298cc of oxygen for the packet to clear (284–298cc across the range of oxygen fractions the sources publish, 20% to 21%). [O1][O9]
This is arithmetic, not a manufacturer recommendation. It runs the same calculation the sources run, on the air fraction they publish for this class of food. What the manufacturers themselves say for this container is below, and they do not agree with each other.
The container volume here is derived. Half of PackFreshUSA’s published gallon figure of 3,785cc. No source in the pack prints a half-gallon volume, and no manufacturer in the pack publishes a half-gallon absorber recommendation at all.
No manufacturer or extension source in the research pack publishes a half-gallon recommendation. The quart and gallon rows below bracket it; the calculated figure above is arithmetic on a derived container volume, not a published rating.
Gallon · Dense — about 35% air
300ccthe smallest packet size these sources name that covers the calculated demand
3,785cc of air in the container × 35% air once the food is in it = 1,325cc of air left. At 21% oxygen, that is 278cc of oxygen for the packet to clear (265–278cc across the range of oxygen fractions the sources publish, 20% to 21%). [O1][O9]
This is arithmetic, not a manufacturer recommendation. It runs the same calculation the sources run, on the air fraction they publish for this class of food. What the manufacturers themselves say for this container is below, and they do not agree with each other.
What the manufacturers publish for a gallon
- 300ccPackFreshUSA · matches this food class[O3]Column A of their three-tier scheme: beans and rice, about 35% air.
- 300–400cc (3–4 × 100cc)Wallaby Goods · matches this food class[O19]Published as a count of 100cc packets for dense foods — which contradicts the same publisher’s own one-absorber-per-bag instruction.
- 300ccDiscount Mylar Bags · matches this food class[O23]Dense dry food below 10% moisture; the page also notes bag-to-bag OTR variation.
- 800ccPackFreshUSA[O1]Conditioned on an EMPTY gallon container. Their own text halves it to 400cc once the container is filled with flour.
- 100cc / 300ccAGM O-Busters[O15]Indexed on void space: 100cc under 10% void, 300cc at 25% void or more. No intermediate band published.
- 400cc (400–500cc gusseted)Wallaby Goods[O20]Chart disclaimed by its publisher as average figures only.
- 300ccDiscount Mylar Bags (OxyFree)[O24]No food class stated. A companion page gives 500cc for 1–2 gallons.
- 500ccDry & Dry[O27]No food class stated.
- 300ccUtah State University Extension[O30]Fact sheet dated October 2011.
- 700ccHarvest Right[O28]The only condition Harvest Right attaches is “for use in gallon-size Mylar bags.” No food class, no fill level. It is the highest gallon figure in the pack apart from PackFreshUSA’s empty-container 800cc, and the pack flags it as an outlier with a thin condition.
- 400ccPackFreshUSA[O3]Column B: flour and powders, about 50% air.
- 500ccPackFreshUSA[O3]Column C: freeze-dried, oats and pasta, about 75% air. The same page presents “a gallon should use 300cc” as a myth it rejects.
- 500ccDiscount Mylar Bags[O23]Published as “bulky / freeze-dried,” dry food below 10% moisture. The same page gives 500cc as the answer if you are unsure.
Gallon · Powder — about 50% air
500ccthe smallest packet size these sources name that covers the calculated demand
3,785cc of air in the container × 50% air once the food is in it = 1,893cc of air left. At 21% oxygen, that is 397cc of oxygen for the packet to clear (379–397cc across the range of oxygen fractions the sources publish, 20% to 21%). [O1][O9]
This is arithmetic, not a manufacturer recommendation. It runs the same calculation the sources run, on the air fraction they publish for this class of food. What the manufacturers themselves say for this container is below, and they do not agree with each other.
What the manufacturers publish for a gallon
- 400ccPackFreshUSA · matches this food class[O3]Column B: flour and powders, about 50% air.
- 800ccPackFreshUSA[O1]Conditioned on an EMPTY gallon container. Their own text halves it to 400cc once the container is filled with flour.
- 100cc / 300ccAGM O-Busters[O15]Indexed on void space: 100cc under 10% void, 300cc at 25% void or more. No intermediate band published.
- 400cc (400–500cc gusseted)Wallaby Goods[O20]Chart disclaimed by its publisher as average figures only.
- 300ccDiscount Mylar Bags (OxyFree)[O24]No food class stated. A companion page gives 500cc for 1–2 gallons.
- 500ccDry & Dry[O27]No food class stated.
- 300ccUtah State University Extension[O30]Fact sheet dated October 2011.
- 700ccHarvest Right[O28]The only condition Harvest Right attaches is “for use in gallon-size Mylar bags.” No food class, no fill level. It is the highest gallon figure in the pack apart from PackFreshUSA’s empty-container 800cc, and the pack flags it as an outlier with a thin condition.
- 300ccPackFreshUSA[O3]Column A of their three-tier scheme: beans and rice, about 35% air.
- 500ccPackFreshUSA[O3]Column C: freeze-dried, oats and pasta, about 75% air. The same page presents “a gallon should use 300cc” as a myth it rejects.
- 300–400cc (3–4 × 100cc)Wallaby Goods[O19]Published as a count of 100cc packets for dense foods — which contradicts the same publisher’s own one-absorber-per-bag instruction.
- 300ccDiscount Mylar Bags[O23]Dense dry food below 10% moisture; the page also notes bag-to-bag OTR variation.
- 500ccDiscount Mylar Bags[O23]Published as “bulky / freeze-dried,” dry food below 10% moisture. The same page gives 500cc as the answer if you are unsure.
Gallon · Bulky and porous — about 75% air
750ccthe smallest packet size these sources name that covers the calculated demand
3,785cc of air in the container × 75% air once the food is in it = 2,839cc of air left. At 21% oxygen, that is 596cc of oxygen for the packet to clear (568–596cc across the range of oxygen fractions the sources publish, 20% to 21%). [O1][O9]
This is arithmetic, not a manufacturer recommendation. It runs the same calculation the sources run, on the air fraction they publish for this class of food. What the manufacturers themselves say for this container is below, and they do not agree with each other.
What the manufacturers publish for a gallon
- 500ccPackFreshUSA · matches this food class[O3]Column C: freeze-dried, oats and pasta, about 75% air. The same page presents “a gallon should use 300cc” as a myth it rejects.
- 500ccDiscount Mylar Bags · matches this food class[O23]Published as “bulky / freeze-dried,” dry food below 10% moisture. The same page gives 500cc as the answer if you are unsure.
- 800ccPackFreshUSA[O1]Conditioned on an EMPTY gallon container. Their own text halves it to 400cc once the container is filled with flour.
- 100cc / 300ccAGM O-Busters[O15]Indexed on void space: 100cc under 10% void, 300cc at 25% void or more. No intermediate band published.
- 400cc (400–500cc gusseted)Wallaby Goods[O20]Chart disclaimed by its publisher as average figures only.
- 300ccDiscount Mylar Bags (OxyFree)[O24]No food class stated. A companion page gives 500cc for 1–2 gallons.
- 500ccDry & Dry[O27]No food class stated.
- 300ccUtah State University Extension[O30]Fact sheet dated October 2011.
- 700ccHarvest Right[O28]The only condition Harvest Right attaches is “for use in gallon-size Mylar bags.” No food class, no fill level. It is the highest gallon figure in the pack apart from PackFreshUSA’s empty-container 800cc, and the pack flags it as an outlier with a thin condition.
- 300ccPackFreshUSA[O3]Column A of their three-tier scheme: beans and rice, about 35% air.
- 400ccPackFreshUSA[O3]Column B: flour and powders, about 50% air.
- 300–400cc (3–4 × 100cc)Wallaby Goods[O19]Published as a count of 100cc packets for dense foods — which contradicts the same publisher’s own one-absorber-per-bag instruction.
- 300ccDiscount Mylar Bags[O23]Dense dry food below 10% moisture; the page also notes bag-to-bag OTR variation.
5-gallon · Dense — about 35% air
1,500ccthe smallest packet size these sources name that covers the calculated demand
18,942cc of air in the container × 35% air once the food is in it = 6,630cc of air left. At 21% oxygen, that is 1,392cc of oxygen for the packet to clear (1,326–1,392cc across the range of oxygen fractions the sources publish, 20% to 21%). [O1][O9]
This is arithmetic, not a manufacturer recommendation. It runs the same calculation the sources run, on the air fraction they publish for this class of food. What the manufacturers themselves say for this container is below, and they do not agree with each other.
What the manufacturers publish for a 5-gallon
- 2,000cc (20 × 100cc)Wallaby Goods · matches this food class[O19]Published as a packet count for dense foods; chart disclaimed as average figures.
- 750ccImpak / Sorbent Systems[O9]Not a 5-gallon rating. It is conditioned on 35 lb of rice filling the pail, leaving 3,066cc of residual air. Comparing it with a 2,000cc bucket recommendation is an error.
- 500cc / 750ccAGM O-Busters[O15]Indexed on void space: 500cc under 10% void, 750cc at 25% void or more. No intermediate band published.
- 2,000–2,500ccWallaby Goods[O20]Product-page figure, no food class stated.
- 2,000cc (or 7 × 300cc)Discount Mylar Bags (OxyFree)[O24]No food class stated.
- 2,000–2,500ccDiscount Mylar Bags[O23]Dry food below 10% moisture. The same publisher says to use one 2,000cc rather than splitting the load.
- 2,500ccDry & Dry[O27]No food class stated.
- 1,500cc (3 × 500cc)Utah State University Extension[O30]Fact sheet dated October 2011, with the note that lining PETE buckets with mylar decreases oxygen exchange. It is 67% below Dry & Dry’s figure for the same container.
- 2,500–3,000cc (25–30 × 100cc)Wallaby Goods[O19]Published for “less dense” foods — the publisher’s chart stops at beans and pasta and names no freeze-dried class.
5-gallon · Powder — about 50% air
2,000ccthe smallest packet size these sources name that covers the calculated demand
18,942cc of air in the container × 50% air once the food is in it = 9,471cc of air left. At 21% oxygen, that is 1,989cc of oxygen for the packet to clear (1,894–1,989cc across the range of oxygen fractions the sources publish, 20% to 21%). [O1][O9]
This is arithmetic, not a manufacturer recommendation. It runs the same calculation the sources run, on the air fraction they publish for this class of food. What the manufacturers themselves say for this container is below, and they do not agree with each other.
What the manufacturers publish for a 5-gallon
- 750ccImpak / Sorbent Systems[O9]Not a 5-gallon rating. It is conditioned on 35 lb of rice filling the pail, leaving 3,066cc of residual air. Comparing it with a 2,000cc bucket recommendation is an error.
- 500cc / 750ccAGM O-Busters[O15]Indexed on void space: 500cc under 10% void, 750cc at 25% void or more. No intermediate band published.
- 2,000–2,500ccWallaby Goods[O20]Product-page figure, no food class stated.
- 2,000cc (or 7 × 300cc)Discount Mylar Bags (OxyFree)[O24]No food class stated.
- 2,000–2,500ccDiscount Mylar Bags[O23]Dry food below 10% moisture. The same publisher says to use one 2,000cc rather than splitting the load.
- 2,500ccDry & Dry[O27]No food class stated.
- 1,500cc (3 × 500cc)Utah State University Extension[O30]Fact sheet dated October 2011, with the note that lining PETE buckets with mylar decreases oxygen exchange. It is 67% below Dry & Dry’s figure for the same container.
- 2,000cc (20 × 100cc)Wallaby Goods[O19]Published as a packet count for dense foods; chart disclaimed as average figures.
- 2,500–3,000cc (25–30 × 100cc)Wallaby Goods[O19]Published for “less dense” foods — the publisher’s chart stops at beans and pasta and names no freeze-dried class.
5-gallon · Bulky and porous — about 75% air
3,000ccthe smallest packet size these sources name that covers the calculated demand
18,942cc of air in the container × 75% air once the food is in it = 14,207cc of air left. At 21% oxygen, that is 2,983cc of oxygen for the packet to clear (2,841–2,983cc across the range of oxygen fractions the sources publish, 20% to 21%). [O1][O9]
This is arithmetic, not a manufacturer recommendation. It runs the same calculation the sources run, on the air fraction they publish for this class of food. What the manufacturers themselves say for this container is below, and they do not agree with each other.
What the manufacturers publish for a 5-gallon
- 2,500–3,000cc (25–30 × 100cc)Wallaby Goods · matches this food class[O19]Published for “less dense” foods — the publisher’s chart stops at beans and pasta and names no freeze-dried class.
- 750ccImpak / Sorbent Systems[O9]Not a 5-gallon rating. It is conditioned on 35 lb of rice filling the pail, leaving 3,066cc of residual air. Comparing it with a 2,000cc bucket recommendation is an error.
- 500cc / 750ccAGM O-Busters[O15]Indexed on void space: 500cc under 10% void, 750cc at 25% void or more. No intermediate band published.
- 2,000–2,500ccWallaby Goods[O20]Product-page figure, no food class stated.
- 2,000cc (or 7 × 300cc)Discount Mylar Bags (OxyFree)[O24]No food class stated.
- 2,000–2,500ccDiscount Mylar Bags[O23]Dry food below 10% moisture. The same publisher says to use one 2,000cc rather than splitting the load.
- 2,500ccDry & Dry[O27]No food class stated.
- 1,500cc (3 × 500cc)Utah State University Extension[O30]Fact sheet dated October 2011, with the note that lining PETE buckets with mylar decreases oxygen exchange. It is 67% below Dry & Dry’s figure for the same container.
- 2,000cc (20 × 100cc)Wallaby Goods[O19]Published as a packet count for dense foods; chart disclaimed as average figures.
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How the calculation works
Two multiplications, both of them the sources’ own. The container’s air volume times the share of that volume the food leaves as air gives the residual air. That times the oxygen fraction of air gives the oxygen the packet has to clear. Impak works the same sum for a rice-filled pail — “3,066 (cc) residual air volume x .21 (oxygen fraction in air) = 628.53 cc oxygen” [O9] — and PackFreshUSA works it for a gallon jar [O1].
The result is then rounded up to the smallest packet size somebody in this source set actually sells. It is never rounded down, and no size is invented.
The oxygen fraction of air is not a settled number
Five different values are in print across these manufacturers, and two of them contradict themselves across their own documents. The calculator uses 21%, because that is the figure the published worked examples use, and it shows you the spread.
- 21.0% Impak Corporation / Sorbent Systems [O9]
- 21% PackFreshUSA [O1] PackFreshUSA [O3] Discount Mylar Bags [O23]
- 20.95% Discount Mylar Bags [O23]
- 20.5% Impak Corporation / Sorbent Systems [O10]
- 20% AGM Container Controls [O15]
Two things PackFreshUSA says that change the answer
These are passages of body prose on PackFreshUSA’s learn page, above and below its sizing chart. The chart itself is an image with no caption and no notes attached, so these are not chart footnotes and should not be repeated as such.
Particle size does not reduce the air volume
A pool filled with marbles will have the same interstitial air volume as one filled with basketballs.
Grinding food finer, or choosing smaller pieces, does not shrink the air the absorber has to clear. The gaps between the pieces are what the absorber works on, and PackFreshUSA’s position is that those gaps do not change with particle size. The pack notes this holds geometrically only for identically shaped, similarly packed particles; mixed sizes let small pieces fill the gaps between large ones. No source in the pack tests the claim.
Their quart bags hold more than a quart, which is why quart sets ship 300cc
200cc worth of oxygen absorbers are actually enough for a quart container, but as our quart bags can hold more than a quart, we use 300ccs in our Mylar sets.
The nominal name on a bag is not its internal volume. PackFreshUSA’s own arithmetic gives 200cc for a quart, and it ships 300cc anyway because the bag it sells is larger than its label. Nobody in the pack publishes measured internal volumes for common mylar bag sizes, so the same gap may exist in any bag you own.
One absorber per bag, and why a second one does nothing
The practice several manufacturers state is one packet per bag, sized up rather than doubled. Wallaby: “Drop one absorber into each bag right before sealing” [O22]. PackFreshUSA: “If you’re unsure, use one slightly larger absorber — not doubling up.” [O4]
The reason a second packet buys nothing is that a packet is a capacity, not a rate setting. Once the oxygen in a sealed bag is gone, there is nothing left for a second packet to react with, so it sits there unreacted. Discount Mylar Bags puts it plainly: “Excess absorbers are harmless—they simply won’t fully react.” [O23] Dry & Dry agrees there is no harm in it [O27], and Impak notes the rated cc is a floor rather than a ceiling [O10]. Doubling up is neither dangerous nor useful; it is a wasted packet.
Not everyone holds the line. Three sources in this set recommend splitting the load or buying small and adding more:
- “For bags over 5 kg, consider using two smaller absorbers to ensure even oxygen removal.” — Oxygen-Absorbers.com (OxySorb) [O33]
- “if you are looking for a one size, get some 100cc or 200cc. These are more easily used and add more as needed” — PackFreshUSA [O3]
- “20 × 100cc packets for a 5-gallon bucket” — Wallaby Goods [O19]
No manufacturer in the research pack publishes a mechanism or a reason for the one-absorber rule. It exists in the sources only as a practice statement. Searches for a stated rationale are logged in the pack as unsourced.
One more thing an absorber will not do: pull the bag flat. It takes out the oxygen and leaves the nitrogen, so roughly four-fifths of the air stays where it is and the bag will not look vacuum-sealed [O8].
Why the input is a container, not a weight
- “The size of oxygen absorber you need depends on the volume of air in the package into which it is placed.” — Impak Corporation [O14]
- “Each bag size holds a different amount of air, so the absorber must match that volume.” — Wallaby Goods [O22]
- “CC rating = oxygen-removal capacity — how much oxygen the absorber can remove, not how much food it protects.” — PackFreshUSA [O4]
One source in this set does it the other way, indexing on kilograms of food with no container volume in the input at all [O33]. Both methods are shown here because both are published; this calculator uses volume.
Every published figure, side by side
These are the numbers the manufacturers and one university extension service actually print, transcribed with the condition each one attached. They disagree — the gallon row alone spans 100cc to 800cc. Nothing below has been averaged or reconciled, because doing that would invent a figure none of them published.
Pint
473cc of air when empty. PackFreshUSA publishes the pint jar directly: “a pint jar is roughly 473ml which is 473cc’s.”
| Published size | Publisher | Food class as published | Condition the publisher attached |
|---|---|---|---|
| 94.6cc | PackFreshUSA [O1] | none stated | Calculated for an empty pint jar (473cc ÷ 5), not a filled one. |
| 20cc / 50cc | AGM O-Busters [O15] | none stated | Indexed on void space, not food type: 20cc under 10% void, 50cc at 25% void or more. The 10–25% band is not published; do not interpolate it. |
| 100cc | Discount Mylar Bags (OxyFree) [O25] | none stated | No food class stated. |
| 100cc | Dry & Dry [O27] | none stated | No food class stated. |
| 300cc | Wallaby Goods [O20] | none stated | Wallaby disclaims its own chart: the figures are “only the average amount” and “you may need more or a smaller number.” |
Quart
946cc of air when empty. Derived, not published as such. A quarter of PackFreshUSA’s published gallon figure of 3,785cc. No source in the pack prints a quart volume in cc directly.
| Published size | Publisher | Food class as published | Condition the publisher attached |
|---|---|---|---|
| 200cc | PackFreshUSA [O1] | none stated | Their own arithmetic for a nominal quart. Their shipped quart sets use 300cc instead, because their quart bags hold more than a quart. |
| 300cc | PackFreshUSA [O1] | none stated | As actually supplied in their Mylar sets, on the stated grounds that their quart bags hold more than a quart. |
| 50cc / 100cc | AGM O-Busters [O15] | none stated | Indexed on void space: 50cc under 10% void, 100cc at 25% void or more. No intermediate band published. |
| 300cc | Wallaby Goods [O20] | none stated | Chart disclaimed by its publisher as average figures only. |
| 100–300cc | Discount Mylar Bags (OxyFree) [O24][O25] | none stated | No food class stated; the range is published as a range. |
| 300cc | Dry & Dry [O27] | none stated | No food class stated. |
| 50cc | Utah State University Extension [O30] | none stated | Extension fact sheet dated October 2011; the current extension site publishes no cc figures at all. |
Half-gallon
1,893cc of air when empty. Derived, not published as such. Half of PackFreshUSA’s published gallon figure of 3,785cc. No source in the pack prints a half-gallon volume, and no manufacturer in the pack publishes a half-gallon absorber recommendation at all.
No manufacturer or extension source in the research pack publishes a half-gallon recommendation. The quart and gallon rows below bracket it; the calculated figure above is arithmetic on a derived container volume, not a published rating.
Gallon
3,785cc of air when empty. PackFreshUSA publishes the gallon directly: “A gallon container holds 3785cc’s of air.”
| Published size | Publisher | Food class as published | Condition the publisher attached |
|---|---|---|---|
| 800cc | PackFreshUSA [O1] | none stated | Conditioned on an EMPTY gallon container. Their own text halves it to 400cc once the container is filled with flour. |
| 300cc | PackFreshUSA [O3] | dense | Column A of their three-tier scheme: beans and rice, about 35% air. |
| 400cc | PackFreshUSA [O3] | powder | Column B: flour and powders, about 50% air. |
| 500cc | PackFreshUSA [O3] | porous | Column C: freeze-dried, oats and pasta, about 75% air. The same page presents “a gallon should use 300cc” as a myth it rejects. |
| 100cc / 300cc | AGM O-Busters [O15] | none stated | Indexed on void space: 100cc under 10% void, 300cc at 25% void or more. No intermediate band published. |
| 400cc (400–500cc gusseted) | Wallaby Goods [O20] | none stated | Chart disclaimed by its publisher as average figures only. |
| 300–400cc (3–4 × 100cc) | Wallaby Goods [O19] | dense | Published as a count of 100cc packets for dense foods — which contradicts the same publisher’s own one-absorber-per-bag instruction. |
| 300cc | Discount Mylar Bags (OxyFree) [O24] | none stated | No food class stated. A companion page gives 500cc for 1–2 gallons. |
| 300cc | Discount Mylar Bags [O23] | dense | Dense dry food below 10% moisture; the page also notes bag-to-bag OTR variation. |
| 500cc | Discount Mylar Bags [O23] | porous | Published as “bulky / freeze-dried,” dry food below 10% moisture. The same page gives 500cc as the answer if you are unsure. |
| 500cc | Dry & Dry [O27] | none stated | No food class stated. |
| 300cc | Utah State University Extension [O30] | none stated | Fact sheet dated October 2011. |
| 700cc | Harvest Right [O28] | none stated | The only condition Harvest Right attaches is “for use in gallon-size Mylar bags.” No food class, no fill level. It is the highest gallon figure in the pack apart from PackFreshUSA’s empty-container 800cc, and the pack flags it as an outlier with a thin condition. |
5-gallon
18,942cc of air when empty. Impak/Sorbent Systems publishes 18,942cc for a 5-gallon plastic pail. A 5-gallon bag is not the same vessel; this is the only published 5-gallon volume in the pack.
| Published size | Publisher | Food class as published | Condition the publisher attached |
|---|---|---|---|
| 750cc | Impak / Sorbent Systems [O9] | none stated | Not a 5-gallon rating. It is conditioned on 35 lb of rice filling the pail, leaving 3,066cc of residual air. Comparing it with a 2,000cc bucket recommendation is an error. |
| 500cc / 750cc | AGM O-Busters [O15] | none stated | Indexed on void space: 500cc under 10% void, 750cc at 25% void or more. No intermediate band published. |
| 2,000cc (20 × 100cc) | Wallaby Goods [O19] | dense | Published as a packet count for dense foods; chart disclaimed as average figures. |
| 2,500–3,000cc (25–30 × 100cc) | Wallaby Goods [O19] | porous | Published for “less dense” foods — the publisher’s chart stops at beans and pasta and names no freeze-dried class. |
| 2,000–2,500cc | Wallaby Goods [O20] | none stated | Product-page figure, no food class stated. |
| 2,000cc (or 7 × 300cc) | Discount Mylar Bags (OxyFree) [O24] | none stated | No food class stated. |
| 2,000–2,500cc | Discount Mylar Bags [O23] | none stated | Dry food below 10% moisture. The same publisher says to use one 2,000cc rather than splitting the load. |
| 2,500cc | Dry & Dry [O27] | none stated | No food class stated. |
| 1,500cc (3 × 500cc) | Utah State University Extension [O30] | none stated | Fact sheet dated October 2011, with the note that lining PETE buckets with mylar decreases oxygen exchange. It is 67% below Dry & Dry’s figure for the same container. |
What the chart publishers say about their own charts
This Chart represents approximate cc sizes and should not be taken as a final authority.
Impak / Sorbent Systems [O11]The chart contains only the average amount of oxygen absorbers needed. Based on where you live and the atmosphere, you may need more or a smaller number.
Wallaby Goods [O19]
Neither publisher presents its chart as binding. No source in this set does. A page that showed you one canonical number would be contradicting every source it drew from.
All sources accessed 2026-09-06.
What we could not source
- A half-gallon absorber recommendation from any manufacturer or extension source.
- A cc figure for freeze-dried berries, or for any specific freeze-dried food. The closest published structures are PackFreshUSA’s 75%-air tier and Discount Mylar Bags’ “bulky / freeze-dried = 500cc” per gallon.
- A freeze-dried food class in the Impak, Wallaby or O-Busters charts. All three stop at pasta or “less dense” foods.
- A mechanism or stated reason for the one-absorber rule. It appears only as a practice statement.
- The 10–25% void-space band in the O-Busters chart. Only “under 10%” and “25% or more” are published; the middle is not, and interpolating it would be inventing a figure.
- A 20.9% oxygen figure. No manufacturer in the pack publishes it. The published values are 21%, 21.0%, 20.95%, 20.5% and 20%.
- Measured internal volumes for common mylar bag sizes. PackFreshUSA states its quart bags hold more than a quart; nobody publishes what any bag actually holds.
- Any freeze-dried-specific cc guidance from Harvest Right, despite it being the dominant home freeze-dryer manufacturer. Its only published figure is 700cc for gallon-size mylar bags.
- A regulator document naming oxygen absorber packets. The GRAS claim in the pack is a manufacturer assertion with no corroborating regulator source.
Where a figure is missing above, it is missing because nobody published it. Filling the gap by interpolating between neighbouring rows would produce a number no manufacturer stands behind.
Packaging
The calculator sizes the packet; the bag it goes into is a separate decision. Our Starter Set — 50 Bags, 50 Absorbers, Sealer includes flat snack bags, matched absorbers and a sealer — Sold by Sublime Pantry. Note PackFreshUSA’s point above: nominal bag names are not measured internal volumes, ours included.