Vacuum sealing Kilner jars with a Foodsaver Jar sealer

[ukpreppergrrl]

So...buoyed up by my dehydrating prowess over the summer I got even more excited when I discovered that you could vacuum seal the dehydrated veggies in canning jars using the Foodsaver jar sealer. Slight dip in excitement when I realised how much Foodsaver vacuum machines were in this country, but then excitement mounted again when I discovered you could produce the vacuum using a bog standard (clean) brake bleeder. Have I mentioned that I'm easily pleased!? After checking online that the Foodsaver regular-mouth jar sealer would work with British Kilner jars, I dutifully ordered one from the US via fleabay and a load of Kilner jars via the other well-known online shopping place. After a couple of weeks of fun tracking the progress of my jar sealer all the way from Kentucky to London it finally arrived! My excitement knew no bounds.

I followed the instructions, both that came with the jar sealer and the ubiquitous YouTube videos. I put the metal lid (minus the band) on the jar, pushed the jar sealer firmly on top, attached the brake bleeder to the hole in the top and pumped for about 30-40 seconds. The little pressure gauge climbed and I stopped at about 20 in Hg which, I am told, is about what the Foodsaver vacuum machine vacuums to. I released the pressure in the brake bleeder and removed the hose. But no matter how I tried to take off the jar sealer, the metal lid came off the jar with it! I've tried pumping higher than 20 inHg but I still never hear the metal lid "pop" as the dimple goes in like folks say you should.

Can anyone confirm that the Foodsaver regular-mouth jar sealer does indeed work with Kilner jars? And has anyone managed successfully to seal jars using a brake bleeder? Does anyone have any tips? Feeling very deflated.

[Brambles]

That's A bu$$er. I was hoping you would write about the foodsaver lid sealer, just not in the negative!

When I'm doing stuff up for storage and by that I mean to put at the back of the queue to be used within a couple of years, I usually just pop a small oxygen absorber in my jars of dehydrated stuff. I had looked with envy at the foodsaver jar sealer and have often thought of getting one.

From my experience kilner sealing discs are crap. Their quality control is awful, some time a go I bought a couple of boxes and out of 2 dozen, only 11 were usable. Yes I complained and was offered a repalcement box. Whoopee. So now I use Ball sealing discs. I buy in bulk from USA as I do a lot of canning and preserving and not once have I had a problem. So I would say don't give up on the thing yet. It may be that even though Kilner lids are OK to use, the quality is so poor they just are not sealing.
I can confirm with you that Ball regular mouth products do indeed fit Kilner Jars.

If you PM me an address, I will happily send you a pack of Ball lids to try with the sealer.

[pseudonym]

Mine works fine.

My method:

Pump it up to the level required.

Don't bleed the pressure.

Pull the connection fitting and hose from the lid fitting end.

Jar sealed.

Remove jar sealer.

HTH

[Plymtom]

I tried a few I got the foodsaver gadget, kilner jars but an Andrew James commercial vac sealer, had the same problem, some of the lids don't stick but I believe they can be teased with hot water to soften the seally stuff up, I vac sealed some flour in the heavy duty bags that it makes and put it in the freezer for a week (kills those little weaver bug eggs)before storing it in the cupboard and intend to open it next year to see if it stayed fresh.

[ukpreppergrrl]

Don't bleed the pressure.
Pull the connection fitting and hose from the lid fitting end.

Aha!!! That seems to be the johnny!!! Looks like it's the rapid decompression of yanking the hose off rather than the slightly slower valve release that causes the lid to shlump on! When removing the jar sealer I seem to be dislodging the silicon seal ring each time and have to put it back inside the sealer, dunno if that will shorten its life, but yaaaay!!!! It's working! I have sealed Kilner jars! Happy bunny!! Thank you so much!!!! Now...must allow time for my right hand to recover....all that pumping and yanking is taking its toll!!!! (It's a gift...go on!!)

Brambles I am now in love again with my Foodsaver lid sealer! If you have someone in the US who can get one for you it's about $10, otherwise it's about £10 plus £12 postage from fleabay. It's about £40 on Amazon! I paid about 50p more because I picked a seller that did the whole Global Shipping Program which meant a) it was tracked every step of the way; b) it didn't get held up in customs. You can get both a regular-mouth and wide-mouth lid sealer for another £5. I didn't go with the wide-mouth sealer on account of the fact that I don't have, or expect to get, the Mason Ball wide mouth jars. I might give the Ball sealing discs a try, now I know they are the same size! Brake bleeders are about £15. It does require quite a bit of "grip" for the pumping hand (ooer missus), particularly on the litre jars so perhaps not for the arthritic of those with very small hands (I have small hands, I can barely grip the bleeder! - but perhaps a different bleeder would fit me better). Follow Pseudonym's instructions and all should be good!

Update: just bought a load of Ball Mason regular mouth lids from the US which end up cheaper, even including postage, than buying Kilner lids here! Now if only I could find cheap postage on an All American Canner....!

[pseudonym]

When removing the jar sealer I seem to be dislodging the silicon seal ring each time and have to put it back inside the sealer, dunno if that will shorten its life.

Yep, happened to me as well, with practice I've cut that out too.

Aha!!! That seems to be the johnny!!!

Glad that it worked for you.

Always good to have a non-electric method available.