Canning with Weck Jars?

[Italiamom]

I was so proud of all the food that I put up this summer for the coming winter. And after seeing all my hard work, DH even agreed that we could purchase our very own pressure canner... But I found out that the hundred or so Ball jars that I so lovingly toiled over in my kitchen this year all have BPA in their lids. AHHHHH One of the major reasons I canned all that food is so that we wouldn't have to buy BPA lined cans from the grocery store this summer. It's certainly not been cheaper to can at home. Sigh...

I've been reading today about Weck jars, but I was wanting to find out if anyone has used them regularly? What did you think of them? Have you pressure canned with them? Do you just follow the instructions for your regular Ball/Kerr jars? I should be able to get them online, but I'm just wondering if people love/hate them, and how the process compares to canning with the regular old Ball/Kerr's.

Thanks!

[cristeen]

There is bpa in the lids, yes. You can get lids that dont have it. But you also have to remember that if youre following proper procedure re headspace, the food isnt actually touching the lid.

[Arduinna]

I have some weck jars, I love them but I've never boiling water bath or pressure canned with them. The lids are all glass but you need to use the rubber gaskets to get them to fully seal. The clips are interesting.

[Llyra]

Originally Posted by cristeen

There is bpa in the lids, yes. You can get lids that dont have it. But you also have to remember that if youre following proper procedure re headspace, the food isnt actually touching the lid.

Yeah, this is why I don't worry much about the BPA in the lids of canning jars. The contents really don't have much contact with the underside of the lid.

Edited to change BPS to BPA. I'm like the queen of typos today.

[mamadelbosque]

Just another vote for having weighed my options and decided that ball lids/jars are just fine for my family... I'd love it if ball came out w/ bpa free lids, but I'm not holding my breath nor dumping all the jars/food I have stored!!

[Italiamom]

Originally Posted by mamadelbosque

I'd love it if ball came out w/ bpa free lids

I've seen quite a few folks mention that Ball is working on a BPA free lid. Write them a quick note and tell them you'd be excited for it!

And yes, I'm trying to remind myself that my food isn't touching the lid, and that a lid's worth of BPA is probably a heck of a lot better than an entire can lined with the stuff...

I also found these reusable lids from Tattler, which I'll probably try if the Weck jars aren't in the budget next canning season. I'm still not thrilled about them being plastic, but anything I can do, I suppose...

I've read plenty about bath canning with the Weck jars, and it seems to be pretty much the same as bath canning with Ball/Kerr jars (except for a difference in headspace), but I was curious if anyone had pressure canned with them, or had any actual first-hand knowledge of bath canning with them...

[mamadelbosque]

Yeah, I've looked at the tattler lids for the last couple yrs... I'm just well, nervous... wonder how well they really work an all that, yk? I'd hate to can a ton of stuff and then have all the jars go bad after a couple months.

And, the weck jars are simply *FAR* out of budget - especially considering I already have literally *hundreds* of ball/kerr jars!!!

[elanorh]

There would be some contact between the jar's contents and the lids during the processing itself, in terms of BPA/food contact. They are in a boiling water canner or pressure canner, after all. But, it's certainly not the same as an entire can lined in BPA.....

I haven't used Weck jars. I have a TON of Ball/Kerr jars. But I did tell dh that Santa will be bringing me Weck jars this Christmas. I think I'll start with small jam/jelly jars and then move to jars for fruits/pickles. It would take me awhile to gain confidence with canning low-acid foods in the pressure canner with them. People in Europe do all the time,though, you know?

Even if I switch entirely to Weck jars, I will continue to can some items in my Ball/Kerr jars. I give away jams/jellies as gifts - there's NO WAY I'd give away Weck jars, given their cost.

I just have no idea why they have BPA in the Ball/Kerr lids. Seriously. They didn't used to have it, why not just take it out and put plain metal lids like they used to.

[robugmum]

I tried the Weck jars for the first time last night. They sealed beautifully. They are a bit tricky to work with as I am so accustomed to the snap lid/screw ring type closures but I can see that they will get easier. One thing I noticed is that they do not fit well into my canner's rack. I only have 1 dozen jars as they are pretty pricey - especially here in Canada. I bought them because I am trying to avoid the BPA (and all other plastics, really) and I will probably buy more but I'm not going to throw out the 100's of mason jars I already have either.

[Arduinna]

I'm glad you liked canning with them I've only used mine for storage, I have the deco jars and the juice jars so far. I use my deco's for marmalade and apple butter so far but was just doing small batches and so I let it cool and put in the fridge without BWB canning them since I'd have opened them immediately anyway.

[Arduinna]

I was looking for something online and ran across this blog by a woman that has canned extensively with her weck jars.

http://livintheoffgriddream.blogspot...ning-jars.html the comments section is interesting too. It seems that some people have sealing issues and some don't.