music-city-missy
Well-known member
Where do you get your jars and such? They are so expensive that I know there has to be a better cheaper source than the grocery store which is about the only place I find them.
Question for those that do a lot of canning - cheap place to get supplies?
- Thread starter music-city-missy
- Start date
Wal-mart has them....I will pick up jars second hand sometimes
but you have to be careful that there are no cracks or chips on the rim. I like to buy the lids new and just enough for the year so the sealing stuff isn't dried out. It is part of my love/hate thing with Wal-Mart. I love to get the new Ball canning book when that comes out.
but you have to be careful that there are no cracks or chips on the rim. I like to buy the lids new and just enough for the year so the sealing stuff isn't dried out. It is part of my love/hate thing with Wal-Mart. I love to get the new Ball canning book when that comes out.
steve2-in-la
Well-known member
I buy jars and sugar at Smart & Final. I buy Sure-Jell on-line by the case. Much cheaper that way.
cynupstateny
Well-known member
Big Lots and other discount type stores, too.
I have stored jar lids in my house for several years. . .
and they really keep well, as long as you are not storing the old-style Kerr gray-compound lids.
The Ball and such brand lids with the red sealing compound store very well. I just bought a full case of small and a full case of wide-mouth lids to split with some other people. I should have lids for several years. I have used lids several years old, inspecting them for cracks, scratches, rust and etc. in the compound and lid. I have never had an old "red-sealing-compound" lid fail--but to make sure, I use older lids for boiling-water bath canning only, like for jams and jellies and such.
All of the above lids were purchased at the same time/same place and I got the small lids with free shipping and wide-mouth with shipping. When I averaged out the lid cost, including shipping, it came out to $1.71 per box of 12 lids, regular or wide-mouth, which is much better than I can get around here, and they were shipped directly to me.
The link below is the place I bought the lids from, but you need to buy a lot to get the best price, I had found a "reasonable" price elsewhere, but when I told my husband the price, he found a better price! (If I am sick, he is sicker, and if I find a good price he can find a better price; I wonder if I start to paint the living room, he will paint it better?--one could but only hope. . .but I am thinkin' fat chance. )
As for jars, Wal-Mart is supposed to have good prices, but from what I am told, they carry the jars and such seasonally and regionally, so check by phone first?
I usually try to hit thrift stores and I always ask if they have any jars in the back. A lot of the time thrift stores do not want to put the jars out because (in my area at least) they are not big sellers, but if you ask they will bring jars out. Thrift stores are best for Pint and Quart lids--you will not have much luck finding half pints or 4-oz jars.
I was in Vons Supermarked recently and started laughing at the price they had on Ball Canning jars: $16.00 (!!!!) for 12 pint jars. . . I have found MUCH better prices at Big Lots, Smart-N-Final, Stater Brothers Markets, and "real" hardware stores like OSH and smaller stores in my area, but you are still looking at about $10 + for new jars. Big Hardware Stores like Lowe's and Home Despot (this is what my husband calls it!) just will not carry canning jars.
You might want to join your local Freecycler group and put a message in looking for canning jars. You can also check you local Craigslist towns for jars and you can put adds in looking for jars also.
I would advice haunting yard sales in your local more rural areas for jars also--you might hit the jack-pot. Church rummage sales are also good and make sure you ask if they have jars or if they know anyone who has jars to sell, give away or trade.
And make sure you ask everyone you know if they might have some old jars or if they know someone who has some jars that you might have or buy or trade for. People often get the wild hair up the you-know-what about making jellies or canning something, but then lose interest and then stuff all the stuff in the garage.
http://www.acehardwareoutlet.com/(zdvuox55su1kkg3dmidsmcby)/SearchResults.aspx?SimpleSearchValue=canning+lids
and they really keep well, as long as you are not storing the old-style Kerr gray-compound lids.
The Ball and such brand lids with the red sealing compound store very well. I just bought a full case of small and a full case of wide-mouth lids to split with some other people. I should have lids for several years. I have used lids several years old, inspecting them for cracks, scratches, rust and etc. in the compound and lid. I have never had an old "red-sealing-compound" lid fail--but to make sure, I use older lids for boiling-water bath canning only, like for jams and jellies and such.
All of the above lids were purchased at the same time/same place and I got the small lids with free shipping and wide-mouth with shipping. When I averaged out the lid cost, including shipping, it came out to $1.71 per box of 12 lids, regular or wide-mouth, which is much better than I can get around here, and they were shipped directly to me.
The link below is the place I bought the lids from, but you need to buy a lot to get the best price, I had found a "reasonable" price elsewhere, but when I told my husband the price, he found a better price! (If I am sick, he is sicker, and if I find a good price he can find a better price; I wonder if I start to paint the living room, he will paint it better?--one could but only hope. . .but I am thinkin' fat chance. )
As for jars, Wal-Mart is supposed to have good prices, but from what I am told, they carry the jars and such seasonally and regionally, so check by phone first?
I usually try to hit thrift stores and I always ask if they have any jars in the back. A lot of the time thrift stores do not want to put the jars out because (in my area at least) they are not big sellers, but if you ask they will bring jars out. Thrift stores are best for Pint and Quart lids--you will not have much luck finding half pints or 4-oz jars.
I was in Vons Supermarked recently and started laughing at the price they had on Ball Canning jars: $16.00 (!!!!) for 12 pint jars. . . I have found MUCH better prices at Big Lots, Smart-N-Final, Stater Brothers Markets, and "real" hardware stores like OSH and smaller stores in my area, but you are still looking at about $10 + for new jars. Big Hardware Stores like Lowe's and Home Despot (this is what my husband calls it!) just will not carry canning jars.
You might want to join your local Freecycler group and put a message in looking for canning jars. You can also check you local Craigslist towns for jars and you can put adds in looking for jars also.
I would advice haunting yard sales in your local more rural areas for jars also--you might hit the jack-pot. Church rummage sales are also good and make sure you ask if they have jars or if they know anyone who has jars to sell, give away or trade.
And make sure you ask everyone you know if they might have some old jars or if they know someone who has some jars that you might have or buy or trade for. People often get the wild hair up the you-know-what about making jellies or canning something, but then lose interest and then stuff all the stuff in the garage.
http://www.acehardwareoutlet.com/(zdvuox55su1kkg3dmidsmcby)/SearchResults.aspx?SimpleSearchValue=canning+lids
steve2-in-la
Well-known member
OSH? I got my canning pot and lids there once as well. (LA - Los Angeles or LA - Louisiana?)
