# Pressure canner - the difference 30 yrs makes!



## Ohio dreamer (Apr 6, 2006)

:bouncy:

WOW, I now see how you guys get so much canning done in a day!! I got a new caner for my birthday a few weeks back. I've been using my MIL's pressure caner which is likely from the 60's or 70's. The first thing I noticed about my new one was how light it was! It holds twice the other other but only about 1/3 he weight. It heated up about as fast as I'm use to, but the pressure down was SO FAST! My MIL's caner takes about 5-6 HOURS to cool down to the point you can open it....this one depressurized in less then a hour!!!! I think have a new best friend.


----------



## Just Cliff (Nov 27, 2008)

Happy Birthday!

Pretty soon people will be looking at you funny when you talk about what you have canned..You will run out of normal things and start with unusual stuff. You should see the look on peoples faces when I tell them I canned meatloaf....


----------



## judylou (Jun 19, 2009)

Good heavens! what canner brand/model takes 5-6 hours to cool down??? I'd be really suspicious of the gauge accuracy on that one.

I have 2 oldies - a Presto and a Mirro that are both at least that old or older and both of them cool down within 20-30 mins. just like my newer Presto and AA do. The AA takes the longest just because it is the heaviest and largest.


----------



## Ohio dreamer (Apr 6, 2006)

Judylou, my old one is a Mirro - I think it might be steel (about 7 pounds empty). It doesn't have a gauge (I hate gauges) but a weight. If I don't jiggle the weight to make it depressurize faster, it takes 5-6 hrs. I'm not that good at waiting so I usually jiggle it enough to make it come down in 3. My MIL is no longer with us, but DH says that it's always taken that long - his mom canned after lunch and opened the caner sometime after dinner was cleaned up.

This may explain why I've had problem getting my Tattler's to seal when I pressure caned with them.....after 5-6 hours it was a bit late to tighten the rings down. But even then I had only about 20% failure rate - no failures when water bath caning.


----------



## mullberry (May 3, 2009)

Just Cliff said:


> Happy Birthday!
> 
> Pretty soon people will be looking at you funny when you talk about what you have canned..You will run out of normal things and start with unusual stuff. You should see the look on peoples faces when I tell them I canned meatloaf....


I thought it was just me... I had jars coolung one day & a older lady asked me why. I had no answer


----------



## Ohio dreamer (Apr 6, 2006)

Oh, I know why I can the "not normal". Today, DH is fully employed so we can afford a bit of extra meat, veg, fruit, etc. With the way things have gone the last few years what I can today mat be all we have to eat tomorrow. 401K's aren't climbing as fast as food prices....so I'm going invest in the sure bet.


----------



## suitcase_sally (Mar 20, 2006)

Ohio dreamer, I too, have a Mirro that's 30 years old. Like Judylou, mine only takes 20-30 minutes to cool and depressurize. Something must be wrong with the weight or the seal. I can't imagine it taking 5-6 hours to depressurize. Don't misunderstand, I'm not saying "you must be wrong", only that _something_ is wrong with that canner.

Try this - switch the seals from the new canner to the old one. See if that changes anything. But I have to say, the new black seals don't seal as well as the older gray ones.

If that makes no difference, switch the weights (if the stem in the canner lid is the same) and see if that makes a difference.

Last, but not least, pack it up and send to me!!


----------



## po boy (Jul 12, 2010)

I have my mothers national # 7 that she bought in 1938 (?) and a seven year old presto. The cool down in close to the same amount of time.


----------



## Osiris (Jun 9, 2010)

I've only used a pressure canner once. But it was great. The carrots lasted 5 years, so did the potatoes. Tasted just as fresh as when i canned them. I've taken to collecting canners now because.... well let's face it, it takes a long time to can one batch and you only get 6-8 quarts. So I figured, if I have 3 or 4 of them going I can get 24 quarts in the same amount of time. Now THAT's a years worth all at once. 

Patience is not one of my virtues. I want to do corn this year. Lots and lots of corn.


----------



## suitcase_sally (Mar 20, 2006)

Ohio dreamer, I drug out the manual that came with my circa 1981 Mirro canner and found some information that my help with your depressurizing problem. This is a quote from the Q&A section:

*It takes several hours for pressure to go down in cooker when it is used for canning. What can be done to cut down this time?*

For pressure to drop, as a rule, it takes only 25-35 min. in a small cooker, or 40-45 minutes in a large canner filled with jars. You are probably misjudging the test for steam pressure. In order to test for presence of steam, directions state to nudge the control and, if steam spurts out pressure is not yet down; if no steam spurts out, remove control. The important thing is to SEE steam, not hear it. Whenever control is nudged, you may hear a hissing noise. This is either steam escaping from the vent tube or, if pressure is down, it is the sound of air rushing _into_ cooker to fill the vacuum inside. Therefore, if you do not actually SEE steam when control is nudged, control may be removed. Also, when lock lever unlocks, pressure is down.

I would suggest canning a few pints or quarts of water and use the info above and see if it makes a difference. You could reuse old lids for this test. I realize you have a new canner, but it's always good to have extras.


----------



## Ohio dreamer (Apr 6, 2006)

SS - I never checked for steam....just hear the same sound as when it's caning. Next time I'll pull the weight off at 1 hour and see if I see steam. If there isn't any steam I'll pull off the lid and see what I have. I'll make sure it's not a vital load....a few jars of beans or something. Thanks!

I have no intentions of getting rid of it, I use it too much. I can still "force" two loads through a day if need be (unless the above works out and I can unload in an hour) and get 3-4 loads out of the new one...which would give me my freezer back quickly if need be (a deer coming home or a power outage).


----------



## judylou (Jun 19, 2009)

Excellent info from Sally and once you determine the time required for it to be opened you can just use that as the future reference point.

Another thought - in some classes the question of how much water to put into the canner often comes up. We discovered that many were using far more water than is necessary. Some were filling it almost over the jars. Doing that, using excessive amount of water, means it will much longer for the canner to cool down enough. So make sure you are only using the 3-4 inches (prior to putting the jar measurement) required. If the processing time is especially long such as for some meats, a bit more water is no problem but with a properly working canner 3-4" is more than sufficient.


----------



## jmtinmi (Feb 25, 2009)

If I am reading correctly, you are determining the built up pressure by what you hear inside the canner?? I have a Mirro also and I've always determined whether the pressure has been 'equalized' by nudging the weight. If moving the weight accompanies a 'hiss' or 'sputter' then I know that the pressure is still built up. I usually can remove the weight without pressure after about 30 minutes with no visible steam present. Your saying that you have lots of seal failures would also fall in line with determining pressure. If you allow your canned goods to cool too much within the heated atmosphere of the canner, you can run the risk of more failures. It is my understanding that when the jars are removed from the canner and place in a draft-free location that the heat difference causes the vacuum. 

I hope my insight helps.



Ohio dreamer said:


> SS - I never checked for steam....just hear the same sound as when it's caning. Next time I'll pull the weight off at 1 hour and see if I see steam. If there isn't any steam I'll pull off the lid and see what I have. I'll make sure it's not a vital load....a few jars of beans or something. Thanks!
> 
> I have no intentions of getting rid of it, I use it too much. I can still "force" two loads through a day if need be (unless the above works out and I can unload in an hour) and get 3-4 loads out of the new one...which would give me my freezer back quickly if need be (a deer coming home or a power outage).


----------



## Ohio dreamer (Apr 6, 2006)

jmtinmi - no that's not what I meant. When I nudge the weight and it is still "hissing" at me 5 hours after the heat is off. I usually start picking up the weight about a hour after it's off and let some steam/pressure out to speed up the process. Then put it back on. If I do it too much I definitely get "juice" seeping out of the jars and into the caner - a sign of depressurizing too fast. The only seal failures I have had is with the Tattler's that you have to tighten down after you take them out of the caner (most of which occurred when I let it cool down over night then opened - forgetting that some of the lids were Tattler's). I never have had a failure with the metal lids.

Judylou - good point with the too much water possibility. At least in my case, that's not the problem.


----------



## judylou (Jun 19, 2009)

Hmmm so we know there is definitely something wrong with it but we still don't know what. If it was anyone but Mirro I'd say contact the manufacturer but that won't do any good with Mirro as they have been sold.

But for future reference, leave processed foods in any canner for that long of a period of time after processing is complete sure isn't recommended for several reasons, not the least of which is the possibility of food contamination from a reverse vacuum. Honestly, I think I'd shelf that canner until you can figure out why it is taking it so long to de-pressurize. Something just isn't right with it.


----------



## Ohio dreamer (Apr 6, 2006)

I think I'll try calling the extension office and see if they test caners. Not sure how deep budget cuts have hit us.


----------



## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

A long cool-down time depends upon the amount of everything that will hold the temperature. I see 3" and 4" water mentioned BEFORE the jars are placed in it. My Presto instructions call for 3 quarts which turns out to be 1Â½". Water and the jar contents will hold the heat much longer than a void which the steam is. I canned 10 pints of corn this afternoon and it took a full hour for it to unlock on its own from about 12 pounds. 

Oh, a hint about something else I learned. Don't just shift it to another burner. That burner will heat up and slow down the cooling process. Shift it to a towel or pad which won't conduct and store heat.

Martin


----------

