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OSU
Extension Darke County...
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Gauge Testing Time
By Diane
Barga
May 2, 2012
Planning to
do some canning this year to take advantage of your garden produce? That means it’s time to
get your home canning
equipment in working order. OSU
Extension, Darke County, will check dial type pressure canner gauges
beginning
on May 1, 2012, and continue through September 28th, 2012.
There is a
$5.00 charge for each gauge tested.
You
will need to bring your dial gauge into our office and we will test it,
or call
you to pick it up after it has been tested.
In addition, you will receive the most recent
materials available on
home food preservation.
Please
bring your canner lid with the gauge attached to be tested. We will also check the
gasket on your canner
to make sure that too is in working order.
OSU
Extension, Darke County, is located at 603 Wagner Avenue, Greenville,
on the
north side of Edison State College.
If
you have any questions, please call 937-548-5215.
Before your
produce is ready to preserve, be certain that you check the jars you
plan to
use. Inspect them
for cracks. Run
your finger around the rim of each jar to
inspect for chips, nicks and bumps in the glass.
Any irregularities can cause seals to fail,
so discard jars that don’t meet the standard for canning, or use them
for decorative
or other purposes.
Also,
mayonnaise jars, or similar commercial food jars, are considered
“one-trip”
jars. These jars
are not thick enough to
withstand the repeated use in home canning.
So make sure your jar supply is ready for the
task, as well as the rest
of your canning equipment.
Remember,
pressure canning is the only safe method of canning low acid
vegetables, meats,
poultry and seafood. The
240 degree
temperature required to preserve these foods safely can only be reached
in a
pressure canner.
Canning
is not the place for creativity. Use
only scientifically tested recipes,
instructions and recommendations for home preserving foods. Home food preservation is
easy and safe, but
only if you follow safe guidelines for each particular food you are
canning. Freezing
is a safe method to
preserve any food, so when in doubt, freeze it.
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