Using Grocery-Store Mason Jars For Canning
I thought I would stir up a little controversy with this topic!
j/k, I just find it interesting. Below are a couple of excerpts from articles that I cut and pasted, but have long ago lost the links. So take anything in them with a grain of salt.
I’m not the author of either of these so if you have questions maybe we can figure out answers among ourselves.
Article 1 - using jars other than pasta mason jars for canning
In place of mason jars you can use other glass jars, such as ones that held commercial mayonnaise, provided that the mouths fit the two-piece mason jar caps. If you use such jars, though, expect more failed seals and occasional jar breakage, since these jars have narrower rims and are less tempered. Some people use mayonnaise jars for pickles and jams, and reserve their mason jars for pressure canning, which puts more stress on the glass.”
North Dakota Extension agrees. You can use them for water bathing, but avoid for pressure canning:
Some people like to re-use glass mayonnaise or salad dressing jars. The National Center for Home Food Preservation says that is OK if new two-piece lids are used. However, they have a narrower sealing surface and are tempered less than Mason jars, so expect more seal failures and breakage when reusing jars that once held commercial products. Don’t process mayo jars in a pressure canner, though.”6
Article 2 - using pasta mason jars for canning (I liked this one because of all the math. However wait alone is probably fairly useless, it’s the quality and the tempering of the glass that matters. And like the article said above, something about the rim and how the lids fit. I’ve never used pasta jars myself for canning.)
So I gathered up some jars of each brand and repeated the numbers. For reference I weighed each jar, empty (obviously) on my kitchen scale in grams. The scale is an “Escali” brand. Sorry, no $5,000 dollar lab scale. I think for our purposes it will do just fine.
I weighed Ball, Golden Harvest, Kerr and Classico/Atlas Mason.
Ball Pint: 240 g.
Ball Quart: 442 g.
Ball Half Gallon: 709 g. (just for fun )
GH Pint: 239 g.
GH Quart: 397 g.
Kerr Pint: 262 g.
Kerr Quart: 379 g.
As you can see, each brand is different.. Now for the difference between a Pint and a Quart (in the respective brand):
Ball: 202 g.
GH: 158 g.
Kerr: 117g.
The average difference being 159 g.
So.. when you go from pint UPTO a quart, the jars do not increase in weight by 100%. Which is what I would expect, or darn close. So with each brand, when increasing in glass weight, from pint to quart:
Ball: 84% (pretty good)
GH: 66%
Kerr: 44% (what? yes I double checked this number)
So, essentially the Kerr brand jars, don’t increase by even half.
So, I decided to estimate what a 1 1/2 pint (Atlas Mason size) would theoretically weigh, based on the law of averages. So if the “brand” made a 1 1/2 pint it should weigh:
Ball: 341 g.
GH: 319 g.
Kerr: 321 g.
The average between those is 327 g.
Ok, where does that leave us? The Classico/Atlas Mason pint and a half or 1 1/2 pint (whichever you prefer) weighs:
363 g.
Far more then what the average should be. On another note it weighs almost as much as the Kerr Quart. Weighing only 16 g. less. It weighs 34 grams less then a Golden Harvest brand.
Just for fun, and not included in the picture I also weighed a Classico/Atlas Mason quart. It weighs 458 g. That is more then any other brand of quart I have.
So there you have it. On averages, the Atlas Mason jar weighs more then it needs to based on the weight of the glass. I realize that this is not the most scientific test... I do feel though that they don’t want us to use the jars for misc. legal reasons, and to sell more empty jars.
I find it hard to beleive that these jars are not acceptable for home use. And if im not mistaken at one time these jars WERE available from Jarden Home brands. Which makes all of these brands. Essentially they fell out of favor due to the odd size. Jarden did have an FAQ that stated if the consumer interest was high enough, they would make them available again for consumer purchase. That is yet to be seen.
I have zero intentions to stop using the Atlas Mason jars. You candecide for your self.
Oh yeah, remember I said that the Atlas weighs 34 g. less then the GH Quart? Just how much, in weight, is 34 g.? I took a picture of a salad fork from my kitchen drawer. It weighs 32 g. Keep that in mind.
Great Post!
Thanks for taking the time to do such a detailed analysis and sharing your findings on the prepper thread.
Two things I might add:
Factory jars such as Classico pasta jars have already been through the heating and cooling down process to preserve the contents.
So we can say that the individual jars we reuse have already successfully passed the test of the lids sealing and the glass jar itself surviving the heating and cooling process without breaking.
Secondly, as most How-To-Preserve books advise, the best technique to minimize breakage with all jars is too avoid sudden drastic changes in temperature that places stress on the glass.
Do not put cold jars full of cold food into boiling hot water.
Bringing the jars slowly up to temperature gives the glass time to adjust to high temperatures and avoids stress cracks.
So, are you telling us to 'stick a fork in it' CB? LOL! :)
I have always used Ball or Kerr canning jars. I've had exactly ONE jar fail in decades, so I'm sticking with what works.
I DO save any 'pretty' commercial jars I happen to come across and use those for Freezer Jams that I'm going to give as gifts. They're pretty abundant at my local Thrift Shops, too, and Dollar Tree usually has some interesting jars for cheap.
When I can find any 'Bonne Maman' jars, I grab them! So pretty!
And if you're trying to stop using plastic food containers and switching over to glass, those screw-on lids for Mason jars are great. Yes, they're plastic, but they're not touching your food and they are convenient. Check Walmart or Amazon.