Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Welcome Tattler!

I'd like to welcome the continued advertising of Tattler Reusable Canning Lids!!

I first found out about Tattler lids almost two years ago when I inquired if I could receive a box of lids in exchange for doing a review. They promptly sent two boxes (which I shared with a friend) and I tested these babies out.  Well, I became an instant convert. In fact, I saved my pennies and ended up buying a lifetime supply of lids which, in my opinion, has been one of the best investments we've made to date.

You see, one of my biggest concerns when it comes to canning is running out of lids. Disposable canning lids are meant to be just that -- disposable. While I had a fair number of disposable lids stockpiled, the inexorable fact remained that eventually I would run out.


So what's a Prepper to do? What the world needed was canning lids that were reusable, by golly. And lo and behold, they exist!

The Tattler company has been around since the 1970s and has some of the best customer service I've ever found. Tattler lids take a little getting used to and have a slightly different technique than disposable lids, and because of that there were instances where I needed some guidance. A quick email to the Tattler folks and boom, I had my answers.


After I received my lifetime supply of lids, I deliberately put my disposable lids on a high and inconvenient shelf so I wouldn't be tempted to mindlessly reach for them. I wanted to master the Tattler lids, and how glad I am that I switched completely.


I simply cannot think of a better product for long-term food sustainability than reusable canning lids.  And that is why I welcome the Tattler folks as a continued advertiser on this blog.

19 comments:

  1. Not a comment on Tattlers but a tip that my family has learned. We have chickens and like creamed eggs. When you boil fresh eggs it is hard to peal off the shell. My wife read somewhere that if you steamed the eggs instead of boiled them the shell would come off much easier. We could not see how this could make a difference but boy it sure does. We have a expandable holed vegetable steamer pot insert that allows the eggs to be held out of the water and still allows the steam to freely circulate around the eggs. THIS REALLY WORKS! I thought you would be able to give this a wider audience and I love your blog so you have become my conduit to the world for this tip. Thanks for all you do.

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  2. You may want to use up the one time use lids as I believe there is a shelf life on them. I have a large number of Tattlers but am planning on using up the disposable lids before I start to use the Tattlers. I am also waiting on your canning with Tattlers booklet when that is made available.

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  3. I use the disposables on items I give away. Not giving my tattlers away. I may never get them back.

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  4. I'm pretty new to canning. I've learnt a lot from your blog - actually, it was your blog that inspired me to start it up a bit over a year ago THANKS!! I have been recycling regular glass bottles as you can buy new screw lids to match. Since I hadn't had any luck with finding second-hand preserving bottles, I recently "splurged" and bought some proper mason ball preserving bottles and guess what I ordered with them?? Yes, tattler lids. I'd read your reviews of them and was convinced. Love them!!

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  5. I have some and like them but am not completely sold on them since I can't be certain they are sealed. I don't hear the pop, so I wonder. How do you verify that yours are sealed? Is it just trusting that they are? Do you use them for soups, jams, all canned goods? I have this "I can't be certain they are really sealed" fear that I can't let go of!

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  6. I hope to buy some this year, need to save up a little more $$$

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  7. i ordered and received tattler lids but i have not used them yet..i will with this years harvest..but i also have purchased a good amount of the disposables too...why? because i tend to give preserves and other canned goodies as gifts and my jars never seem to make it back home...so disposable lids are for the gifts and the tattlers stay home where they belong.

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  8. I <3 my Tattler lids, too. Even gave a local shop that carries them some background on them (about 5-6 years ago they were selling the rest of the 70's stock on ebay, the son or grandson was on the same gardening forum at the time, something like that). Lucky for me, this shop is also planning to carry the rubber rings so I've been slowly acquiring a small stash of those for when some of mine are done for (my children empty the dishwasher fairly regularly, and the younger ones have a tendency to stretch/play with the plain rings if they're not paying attention).

    I am keeping my stash of disposable lids for a) using on gifts I give to friends/relatives just in case, b) for barter later on if need be, and c) the fair is still iffy on them and doesn't like entries made with Tattler lids. Sigh.

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  9. Ok--here is my concern with this reusable lids. Regular metal lids PING down when sealed properly. I think we have all had lids that SEAL tight but not PINGED down -- thus NOT safe. I called Tattlers and told them i was concerned that these lids could SEAL but still not be SAFE and how was i to know for sure. They had no answer. So for me NO PING.. NO BUY..

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  10. How do I contact you privately? Do you have an email address open to your readers? Thanks.

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  11. I bought a lifetime supply also right after Patrice did her review of them. Tattlers are easy to know if they are sealed! Follow the directions and let the jar cool. Then when you take off the ring give a bit of gentle pressure on the lid. If it didn't seal, it will slide right off! Then refridgerate that jar for use now, and put the rest on the shelf. Some of my products are 2 years old(meat and broth) and still sealed wonderfully. If the lid is sealed, the food is safe if YOU did the process right! They can't say anything because the safe factor is entirely in your hands! You can get PING all day long and still not have safe food if you processed it wrong! You better have lots of them saved up because I won't be parting with any, metal or Tattler!
    Judy in Idaho

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  12. Agreed that a jar can seal (ping) even if processed short. Of course you have to follow proper times an pressures, which i do. But with Tattlers i can follow the proper steps and still not be sure from what TATTLERS tells me. They said, yes it can seal tight (they did not say a word about if it slips off with gentle pressure) an not have a full vacuum. Patrice.. can you get us a resolve on this once and for all. I would use them IF i KNEW FOR SURE there was a way to be sure that the 'seal' was indeed sufficient. At least with the metal lids I know if there is a ping (indention) and i have processed properly i am safe. Tattlers does not give me this confidence. NOT trying to beat an issue to death.. really want to know. The concept is good but i am still unsure. In the OLD days they used glass tops and rubber rings with bail pressure fittings. They had no way to KNOW if they REALLY had a seal. How is Tattlers any different?

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    1. The lids cannot "ping" when they form a vacuum because the lids are made of plastic, not metal; and they're much thicker than the disposable lids and therefore have less flexibility than the thin metal disposable lids.

      The seal in both metal disposable lids as well as Tattler lids comes about because of the gasket, not the lid itself. The gasket in disposable lids is built in. With the Tattler system, it's separate.

      But just because there's nothing to "ping" doesn't mean the seal hasn't formed. When the jars have cooled and I remove the rings, any lid that hasn't sealed instantly comes off. The jars that have sealed are TIGHTLY sealed and you really have to whale at it to get it off.

      A seal is a seal. There's no such thing as a "partial" seal. If a jar has sealed (and assuming the contents have been processed properly), the food is safe.

      Canning is an art as well as a science, and failures can happen (due to a chipped jar rim which compromises the seal, or bad rings, or poor processing methods, or endless other variables). But when a Tattler lid has sealed, I'm as confident about its integrity as I am with disposable lids.

      As with disposable lids, there are occasional times a seal fails after being stored in the pantry for awhile (this is generally due to poor processing techniques). But that happens with disposable lids as well, and the standard procedure under such circumstances is to discard the food.

      Tattler lids have been around since the 70s and I'm been using them exclusively for almost two years now. I wouldn't be praising them to the skies unless they were a product I felt strongly about... which they are.

      Hope this helps!

      - Patrice

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    2. Hi Patrice, for those with a Food Saver with the jar sealer attachment the metal lids are reuseable as the rubber seal isn't heated. Not for canned stuff of course, but for dehydrated or dried. Jeff

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  13. How often can you use the tattler rubber seals and when do you know they can no longer be used? I am using tattler lids and rings and love them.

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    1. The rings are supposed to be good for about twenty uses. I haven't yet used any up so I wouldn't know the "signs" when they're past use. I would guess it would have to do with anything compromising the integrity of the rubber, i.e. tears, cracks, etc.

      - Patrice

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  14. My family bought me a life time supply of Tattler lids......So far this season I have had to re-can EVERYTHING! Last year when I used the lids I had no problems. Do you know how frustrating it is to work for two days with carrots, 24 QTS!, and have to redo all but three! I have contacted the company and
    their customer service is very helpful. Wonder if they would fly to NC and help me can?!?!

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