Quote Originally Posted by rbeau30 View Post
There are "layers of security" that I like to call em.

The seal is just the first layer. When you go to consume the stored food:
- have you followed a proven recipe? (USDA, Ball Blue Book of Canning, etc) Let them take the risk.
- have you stored the jars without the rings cinched down on them? or anything stacked on top of them? (if something is to go the least bit bad it creates gas. gas "un-pops" the lid) anything on top of the jars could create a resistance to that lid. I don't know about you but I want to know if something is going bad in the jar as oon as possible.
- you inspect the seal--is the "button" still down? See the above reason why I check this.
- When you open the jar do you smell it? (does it smell good?) If it smells bad throw it away. It should smell like Canned Food and not off-putting.
- have you reheated the food? (botulism is not in itself is not toxic. The product it produces is. Heat destroys the toxin.) If everything you did above lets a little bit of bad stuff in, this should be your last layer of defense.

Until we are in a "5HTF" scenario I am not reusing lids ... ever... they are not engineered to be re-used. I can afford the <<$2 for more lids so It is good insurance. Tattler Lids to me are experimental. Plastic is not air tight. Over years it will let oxygen in. I use them on stuff that I go through over the year (stock, tomato sauce, etc) It is just me, but I do not trust them past a year... "5HTF" scenario? I'll do what I can to survive.

EDIT:


I have noticed that the "Golden Harvest" lids that I have gotten from Big Lots from time to time do not "ping" as much as the "Kerr" or "Ball" ones that I normally use. Inspect the a few hours after they are processed. If they are not sealed, reprocess or put in fridge.
Smelling the food is a good start, but botulism is like iocaine powder- it's odorless and tasteless. If you see mold in your jars, you can bet that the seal has been broken somehow. You'll also want to check your jars before you begin canning; the tiniest chip in the rim can mean lost food.

I have read on the internet that the amount of heat required for killing possible botulism toxins is the equivalent of boiling the food at a hard boil, for twenty minutes. I can't verify this, but I can check with the various county extension offices and see what they say.

This is an excellent site for safe canning protocols: http://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/pu...ions_usda.html

I haven't gone over everything there yet, but what I've read so far makes a lot of sense.