Industry
Part of Fermentation Jars Comparison: 5 Vessel Differences
5 details of no brand origin stories people miss
Five details from no-brand origin stories that home fermenters miss, from the 1858 Mason shoulder to the wire bail gasket that cannot be reused.
What to take away
- Five details of no brand origin stories that readers skipthe 1858 Mason thread, the 1869 two-piece closure, rubber bail gaskets, porcelain-lined zinc caps, and single-use lids.
- The Mason jar's real invention was the threaded shoulder, patented in 1858 by John Landis Mason, not the glass itself.
- The two-piece lid arrived in 1869 because a solid zinc cap could not vent air during processing.
- Wire bail gaskets are rubber and perishable. Reuse one on a Le Parfait Super or a Weck jar and the seal fails quietly.
- A jar can look sealed and not be sealed. Hot fill without processing, dirty rims and wrong fill levels all produce false seals.
- Open kettle canning, the method most heritage recipes describe, is not recommended.
The hard safety limit is pH 4.6. Only high-acid food at pH 4.6 or less can be processed in a boiling water bath. Above that, Clostridium botulinum spores survive boiling and grow. The National Center for Home Food Preservation at the University of Georgia draws the same line.
The five details that changed the equipment
These five facts are what actually changed the equipment on your shelf.
- The 1858 Mason patent covered the shoulder, not the jar.Origin stories sell a feeling, but the patent is what changed the equipment. John Landis Mason, an American tinsmith, patented a threaded neck that took a matching screw cap. Before it, closures were wax, cork or wire. The thread is the invention.
- The two-piece closure arrived in 1869.A solid zinc cap sealed well but trapped air during processing. Splitting the closure into a flat disc and a screw band let air escape, then let the band hold the disc down as the jar cooled.
- Wire bail gaskets are rubber, and rubber perishes.Le Parfait Super jars in France and Weck jars in Germany seal by clamping a rubber ring between glass and lid. The ring hardens, cracks and takes a set. A jar that sealed last season can fail this season with the same ring.
- Porcelain-lined zinc caps went out for a reason.The porcelain lining on a zinc cap chips. Once it chips, the zinc sits against the food. The USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning and university extension services name two-piece metal lids as the standard closure, not zinc.
- The modern two-piece lid is single use for canning.The sealing compound on the disc, a plastisol gasket, deforms to the rim once. Ball and Kerr lids carry single-use instructions, and Bernardin in Canada does the same. Reusing a disc is the most common cause of a false seal in a home kitchen.
The two-piece pattern reached American shelves through Ball Brothers, founded in Buffalo, New York, in 1880 and moved to Muncie, Indiana, in 1887, and Kerr, started in Portland, Oregon, in 1903.
The other three names carry origin stories of their own. John Landis Mason took the 1858 patent on the threaded neck. Le Parfait in France has sold glass bail jars for generations, and Weck in Germany has made clip jars for more than a century.
Replacement rubber rings for bail and clip jars typically cost a few dollars for a pack of ten. In the US, replacement gaskets and lids are stocked by hardware stores, farm supply stores and canning suppliers; in Canada, Bernardin lids and rings are the standard stock item.
What the closure is doing
Virginia Cooperative Extension's boiling water bath canning guide explains the process. Pack jars, cover them completely with water, and heat to boiling at 212 F.
Boiling water bath limits
- 212 FBoiling point for processing
- 5 to 85 minutesProcessing time range
- pH 4.6 or lessOnly safe acidity level
Processing runs 5 to 85 minutes, based on the food, the pack and the jar size. Boiling drives out leftover oxygen and kills vegetative bacterial cells.
The failure the old methods produce
Penn State Extension's explanation of what happens when a jar becomes unsealed describes the vacuum. Heat expands the contents and drives air from the jar. Heated air escapes from under the lid.
As the jar cools, the lid contracts and the seal forms, which you see as the lid curving down.
A false seal is a weak seal. Its most common cause is the method heritage recipes describe: pour hot food into jars, apply lids, skip heat processing. That is open kettle canning, or the hot fill method. It is not recommended and not safe. Dirty rims and wrong fill levels produce the same result.
Old equipment, judged on its parts
| Item | Verdict |
|---|---|
| Wire bail jar with rubber gasket (Le Parfait Super, Weck) | Fermenting and refrigerated storage only, new gasket each time |
| Porcelain-lined zinc cap (original Mason closure) | Not recommended for canning |
| Pre-1970s glazed crock | Unknown glaze, so not for long acidic ferments |
| Atlas E-Z Seal jar (Hazel-Atlas Glass, Wheeling, West Virginia) | A collectible, and the original gasket is not reusable |
| Modern two-piece lid (Ball, Kerr, Bernardin) | The current standard, single use for canning |
What to keep from the tradition
The vessels, where they are sound, and the habit of making things in season. Not the processes. Our comparison of fermenting vessels covers what to look for in a crock or jar today. The supply guide covers which parts are worth spending on.
Common questions
Is my grandmother's canning method safe?
If it is open kettle, no. Any method that skips heat processing in a canner sits outside current recommendations. For a specific batch, check the pH with a meter or send a sample to a laboratory.
Can I still use her crocks?
For fermenting, if the glaze is known to be lead free and the crock is unchipped. Otherwise use it for dry storage. Glaze composition varies by maker and decade, so a test kit or a laboratory is the only way to know.
How do I test a seal?
Press the center of the lid. A sealed lid is curved down and does not flex. A sound seal will hold the jar's weight when lifted by the lid.
A jar unsealed in storage. Is the food usable?
Treat it as spoiled. A lost seal means the jar is no longer shelf stable, whatever it looks like. If you have already eaten from it and feel unwell, contact your public health unit or a physician.
