Canning w/ limited water

[Skagitgal]

Because I was curious, I now know it takes 13 gallons of water to can a dozen qts. of applesauce. I measured..& that DOES NOT include prepping the jars in the dishwasher.

 

Canning what is in the freezer, [when the elect. goes off], has been on my mind.

 

What experiences do you'all have along these lines?

 

True, in the freezer, meats do not have peelings & dirt. But thawing, cooking, canning & cleanup...took way more water than I anticipated.

 

And all of this water has to be pure. Sure is gonna make me rethink my plans.

 

While canning, please keep track of the water you use. I'd like to know if it really takes that much, or do I have wasteful habits. THANKS Skagit

[Andrea]

Yes, canning does take an enormous amount of water and I've been trying to find ways to conserve in this area as well. One thing that I do is I only use one canner at a time and I reuse the boiling water from batch to batch. So say I made 18 pints of salsa, I would boiling water can them 6 pints at a time. Reusing the same water for the second batch & third batch. As the water level is reduced from steam, I refill from the pans I sterilized my supplies in. Then, at the end of the day, I dump the water from the canner and from the pots I used to sterilize jars, rings & lids in straight into the washing machine. And it gets used that way. Obviously this method would not work for large quantities. It would take way too long!

 

Another way I've started reducing my water usage in food storage is to dehydrate a lot more foods. Dehydrating is a lot less expensive (no jars,lids, etc) and it is so much less work! Dehydrated foods also take less room to store.

 

But then I'm not a hardcore canner like some of you ladies - I'm truly awed by some of your abilities and your stamina and work ethic - I only preserve the foods that I'm able to grow or forage.

 

But I too would love to hear more ways to reduce water usage.

[PoGo]

True, it does take a lot of water to can, but, the water isn't wasted if you use it for other things when you're done with that days canning.

[goatherder]

To conserve water when canning...

 

Run a sink or tub of water for washing the produce. If the items are very dirty (carrots for instance) use a brush to remove as much dirt as possible before washing. This uses less water than running the tap. When the water is too dirty to use, recycle it for plant watering. The idea is to remove dirt and (heaven forbid!) pesticides. The cooking and processing kill bacteria.

 

Don't use the dishwasher for preparing the jars. Wash them in a sink or tub if they are actually dirty (and why are you storing dirty jars???) then scald them with boiling water in another tub. This water can be boiled again and re-used. You can use leftover water to top up the canner or to water plants or wash dishes. You can use clean jars without scalding them since the heat of processing should sanitize everything.

 

When you are water bath canning, remove the pot from the heat as soon as processing is finished. If you aren't ready to start another batch right away, put a lid on the pot. This cuts down on losses through steam. Top up the water as needed and re-use what is left to water plants or do dishes.

[Nett]

Seems to me that mom and grandmas, after finishing canning for the day and all the preps for the next, allowed the water to cool to room temperature and then watered either the flowers or garden with it. Seems canning was alway hand in hand with dry weather.

[Skagitgal]

Thanks for the tips. I did/do most of the ideas mentioned. I do have to use the leftover water in the washer, I have vinegar in the canners.

 

It was the origional amount of water that dismayed me. I was thinking of SIP canning, perhaps without electricity; [ no elect-no well]

 

To find that much water through 1. generator use, 2. creek,3. condensation, 4. roof runoff. Sigh.

 

So I'm pondering, the ability to preserve precious food vs. water to drink, when it is scarce.

 

I'm not satisfied with my conclusions, ..still open to more ideas. Skagit

[HSmom]

Skagit, I don't think getting canning water from a creek is unreasonable. You're going to boil the dickens out of it anyway. Although toting it would be a pain.

 

What about a manual pump for the well? Is there such a thing as a 12-volt battery pump? What about a device to convert 12-volt battery power to juice that a pump can use.

 

Have roof runoff stored ahead of time.

 

This is one of the reasons I don't think we have enough tap water stored in barrels.

 

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Not a post-shtf tip, but a current one. Pour your no-longer-boiling, but still really hot water out on weeds, like in the cracks of the sidewalk or on a gravel driveway. The next day the weeds will be limp and brown. After a couple of days, you don't even have to pull hard to get them out.

 

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One other thought: pressure canning takes less water, as do more full loads. Fruits don't need pressure canning, but they can be pressure canned.

[Leah]

I just got a 10 gallon bucket full of water in about an hour-and-a-half from the canopy of the kid's motorhome. I know, because I had to put a new one out there - it was overflowing... You live in the PacificNW, Skagitgal - the rainwater is there even in August...

[Amishway Homesteaders]

here is a tip for what we do. . . .

you use a lot of water going down the drain when you turn on the tap to get hot water for something and we drink a lot of water but sometimes the half empty ( or half full) glass of water, or the bottles we took cold for a drive and are now warm and dump them down the drain.

well not any more! a few years ago I saw the waste and put a gallon jug on the counter by the sink (with a funnel in it) and when you are done with your water it goes in there and if we are running the tap for hot put the first bit in a jar and dunp that in the jug. When it is full we move it to the big water jug or water plants, can, feed cats or whatever. It does add up and you will be surprized at how much you save.

We also have rain barrels we could use in a pinch if the water stop here in town for a long time. We also have a spring that runs out of a hillside near bye - we do go there with our water jugs to water the garden at times when we don't get much rain.

that is all for now .................. byeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

 

~US~

[Skagitgal]

Good ideas ladies, & gents.

 

We here in north western Wa. are experiencing the 5th. wettest summer in recorded history. The water is there. For now.

 

In my experiment, I did not try to limit the water I used; I just kept track.

 

I had to wash the WB canner, [first use of the season]. Ditto on the fruit; tree is next to the neighbors dirt drive. Very dusty.

Summer apples are grainy, sometimes mushy, needed to swish hands & knife frequently in water. This I figured was a saftey precaution, so my extra sharp little knife didn't slip.

This is a disability caution. I do not have total muscle control in my right hand; [also am aware of my limits], so this takes precedence.

 

My conclusions;

1. this year, I will can more [all] the applesauce possible, as a hedge for the future. future SIP situtations would be drying only.

Drying is difficult here; but possible with work, and care.

 

Peaches are next. They are barely ripe, the rain we have been having has delayed harvest.

 

So, maybe this time I will be as conservative with water as possible. Measuring, and recording my findings.

 

Is anyone else challenging themselves?

 

 

[Jewlzm]

I never really even thought about this till you brought it up. Makes me kind of think about how much water I waste going and doing all my canning. I do reuse the water though so its not totally wasted. But I guess I dont need to use my biggest BWB canner to do everything.

Thanks guys and gals for the info.

[DoubleD]

I have thought about this alot... canning is very water AND energy intensive process. I have access to both right now - so I can and preserve accordingly. I keep a year's worth of canning supplies on hand - such that in a SHTF situation I could do another year's worth of produce preservation IF there is adequate water and energy for that purpose. I store a fair amount of emergency water (6 - 55 gallon barrels, 1 - 15 gallon barrel, 3 - 5 gallon containers, and 3 flats of costco bottled water) and also have two very large rain barrels and purification/filtration supplies. HOWEVER, in a prolonged SHTF situation those supplies will be needed for human hydration needs and cooking - so prioritization may take canning out of the equation in certain "bad situation" scenarios. Alternatives.... drying (I have screening and can make large solar drying trays if needed)... foods that do not require treatment to store well (potatoes, dried shelling beans, winter squash, etc), and garden production that can be harvested year round (fresh through four seasons gardening).