# freezable mason jars



## steff bugielski (Nov 10, 2003)

I see at the store that some mason jars are freezable. Is there really a difference between the pints and quarts? Are they made differently?


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## jmtinmi (Feb 25, 2009)

I freeze in wide mouth all the time~~pint and quart.


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## oneokie (Aug 14, 2009)

Yep, the quarts hold twice as much as the pints.


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

Combination freezer-canner jars have tapered sides and are narrower at the bottom. They are available in regular mouth half pints and widemouth pints. Haven't seen any quarts since the 1950s. If they have a shoulder, they are designed just for canning. 

Martin


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## steff bugielski (Nov 10, 2003)

They sell pints with shoulders for freezing, look just like the others except the package is blue. I can't for the life of me come up with a link but I see them at the hardware store all the time. Never in quarts or 1/2 gallons though.


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## beaglebiz (Aug 5, 2008)

Im way to clumsy to even consider freezing in glass


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

Steff, you might want to look at those wide mouth pints a little closer. There are no wide mouth pints with shoulders and I don't ever recall seeing one. Ball's half pint "Can-or-Freeze" jars have long been packaged in blue boxes. Ball and Kerr both currently have the same packaging but different overall colors. However, the basic product information on the front lower right is the same. Both have wide mouth pints and both indicate "Freezer Safe" in blue. Regular mouth pints will not have that. Look for that key on the packaging. 

Martin


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## Marilyn (Aug 2, 2006)

I have pints and "shy" quarts, as mentioned above, they are wide-mouthed with no shoulder. I believe the "shy" quarts are probably about 1 1/2 pt. I try to have one washed and scalded whenever I'm canning in qts. It often comes in handy if I don't have quite enough to fill that last quart jar.

I seldom freeze in them, but it's nice to know that I could if I needed to.


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

Marilyn said:


> I have pints and "shy" quarts, as mentioned above, they are wide-mouthed with no shoulder. I believe the "shy" quarts are probably about 1 1/2 pt. I try to have one washed and scalded whenever I'm canning in qts. It often comes in handy if I don't have quite enough to fill that last quart jar.
> 
> I seldom freeze in them, but it's nice to know that I could if I needed to.


If they say "Ball Freezer Jar" on the jar and no other markings, they would be those made just for freezing. They came out about the same time as home freezers and were only made for a short time in the late 1940s and early 1950s. They indeed are about 1Â½ pint and originally came with an unlined zinc cap. The zinc, being soft, could expand if the jar were filled too full. I've got about a dozen and most currently have cooked rhubarb pulp and in the freezer. The in-between size if just right for a pie. 

Martin


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## suitcase_sally (Mar 20, 2006)

When water freezes it expands. Even if you have beans or soup, it still has water and will expand in all directions when frozen. The taper in the sides allows the contents to be pushed upwards as it freezes rather than sideways as would happen with a regular canning jar. There is a mark just below the threads on the jar that is a "maximum fill here" mark. The product will not push out of the jar if you don't fill above that mark.

If your jars don't say "can or freeze" they are just regular canning jars. You can still put them in the freezer as long as you are not putting liquid in them. You can use them for herbs or anything dry. I stuff dill heads in them when they are in season. They last forever looking fresh.


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