Canner questions???

[lesa]

Did some carrots today- I filled the jars with boiling water and when I removed them, some of them were still full of liquid and others were half empty? What did I do wrong? Also, two jars broke. When we went to lift them out, the bottom of the glass broke right off. I really want to like this, but I am feeling a little discouraged!

 

[bid]

It's impossible to say for sure, but did you maybe overfill the jars? That could possibly lead to both liquid loss and breakage.

 

[Kim_NC]

Two things most likely to cause jars to end up short of liquid

- Incorrect Headspace - the "gap" between the top of the veggies/water and the top of the jar. It's important to use the right headspace for each product - 1/4", 1/2" or etc.

Headspace allows the jar to pressurize correctly based on the density of the food in the jar. This is why recommended headspace varies based on the veg being canned.

- Varying Pressure in the canner - It's important not to let pressure drop/rise/drop when processing. That's caused by adjusting the heat down/up/down.

Try to raise the canner to required pressure, then reduce heat only in very small increments if pressure starts rising too high. It's OK if the pressure rises a little too high and you reduce the heat to bring it back down. What you do not want is to drop it, then raise it again.

Broken jars....

- Release air bubbles with a wooden or plastic utensil. Never use metal utensils. Metal causes unseen "scarring", sort of like a stress line. Glass has memory, under the right circumstances, it'll break along those unseen lines.

- What brand of jars? Golden Harvest? I try to avoid pressure canning in that brand. They're cheaper and thinner, the same thickness as commercial mayonnaise jars. Every time I've ever had a jar break, it's a GH jar or a recycled mayo jar (or a very old jar). I keep those for water bath canning only.

Although the thickness of mayo jars (and GH jars) is obviously suitable for commercial canning, their equipment is way, way different than ours. It's just not the same. The thinner walled jars are more likely to break in my experience.

Hope this helps. Don't be discouraged. It's a learning experience like anything new.

 

[Ridgerunner]

You might look through this link from Clemson. It gives some of the possible problems and solutions. Certainly more than I would have thought of.

http://www.clemson.edu/extension/hgic/food/food_safety/preservation/hgic3050.html

The things I really try to watch are releasing the air bubbles, correct headspace, don't get the lids too tight or too loose, and don't release the pressure too fast.

Definitely don't give up. Canning is doable. Even I can do it.

 

[lesa]

Thanks, Ridgerunner! So, according to that article, it could be anything!!! Yikes! I probably didn't leave enough head room. My jars are old- who knows how old?? That is the problem with picking jars up here and there, for cheap! I did get the air bubbles out- but, I used a metal knife-which was a no-no. I didn't harvest all the carrots, so we'll give another go around!

 

[hoodat]

When buying used jars look for two things. The glass should be clear and have no deep scratches. Of course no chips around the mouth and no cracks. Other than that jars that have been used several times should be less likely to break. Each time the glass is heated and cooled properly the crystals get refined and the jar becomes more tempered. I've used jars so old that they had the old fashioned metal bail handle on them with no trouble.
Be sure to let the canner cool down before removing the weight so that the pressure doesn't suddenly change.
Jars that lose the liquid have boiled out, usually because the lid either wasn't tight enough or the rim had something like a tomato seed between the rim and the seal. There could have also been too little head space for expansion. Once a jar begins to boil out the seal at the lid is broken and they will continue till most of the liquid is gone.