[snowdrops]

Years ago I used to use wax paper discs with cellophane circles dampened and stretched over the jar, secured with an elastic band.

I feel old!!!!

I still do & don't intend to buy in to this 'new' way of buying new jars & tops,just doesn't do it for me. I'm not selling them, I've done the old fashioned way for 30 years or so,very rarely had any jam go off & on the odd occasion when I have I know it was my fault. I suppose if you are just starting off preserving that is the info that is around.I do wonder if now there is so much about preserving it is the manufacturers making money out of us again. I'm working on the old adage 'if it ain't broke don't fix it'

[Sparkyrog]

Years ago I used to use wax paper discs with cellophane circles dampened and stretched over the jar, secured with an elastic band.

I feel old!!!!

My Mother used to do it that way 

[jmc1949]

Years ago I used to use wax paper discs with cellophane circles dampened and stretched over the jar, secured with an elastic band.

I feel old!!!!

I still do & don't intend to buy in to this 'new' way of buying new jars & tops,just doesn't do it for me. I'm not selling them, I've done the old fashioned way for 30 years or so,very rarely had any jam go off & on the odd occasion when I have I know it was my fault. I suppose if you are just starting off preserving that is the info that is around.I do wonder if now there is so much about preserving it is the manufacturers making money out of us again. I'm working on the old adage 'if it ain't broke don't fix it'

I'm glad you can still  use wax discs and cellophane circles. That's what I remembered my gran doing. I don't remember any lids.  I'll do it this way as I'm only preserving for me own use.  Next I need to find wax discs and cellophane circles.

[jmc1949]

Just looked at eb.y. Lots of packs with wax discs, celleophane etc. 

[BobE]

I found a site that does gingam circles if you like.

[mumofstig]

Years ago I used to use wax paper discs with cellophane circles dampened and stretched over the jar, secured with an elastic band.

you can still buy/use them, but nowadays I use recycled jars complete with their lids. The dimpled lids are brilliant cos you can see if you have a good seal or not 

When I was young kilner jars were used more for things that needed heat-treatment to preserve them, like  tomatoes, apples or other fruit in syrup, rather than simple jams or jellies which would last under the wax sealing papers and cellophane lids 

and yes you can store pates in them if they are heat treated 

[BobE]

Mos yes you are right but in those days everybody had a larder.  I remember the one in our house, it has a metal grill to the outside, no windows and was cool.  So things would keep better.  In our CH houses there are no places to store jars like that and so you need a better seal.

[mumofstig]

Sorry, but the heat treatment provides the seal - believe me, they still do this kind of preserving a lot in countries around the Med 

[BobE]

Ok, I was only wondering about the different storage locations.

[jmc1949]

My intention is to preserve apples, comice pears and victoria plums for over winter use. So will using wax paper and cellophane not be adviceable.  I have a larder of sorts in the garage which is very cold in winter. 
Sorry to ask stupid questions but I've never done this type of preserving.

[BobE]

Nor have I, but I do have a cold potting shed.  My jams are in a kitchen cupboard at the moment.  I will watch this with interest.

[mumofstig]

definitely not - you need to heat treat the jars after filling, to ensure they'll keep well.

look here
http://chat.allotment-garden.org/index.php?topic=108562.msg1221577#msg1221577

[mumofstig]

The sugar and acidity in berries in jams and the sugar and vinegar in chutneys are what preserve them, as long as they are airtight.

Fruits preserved in syrup do not have the same ratios of ingredients and do not store without heat tratment.

[jmc1949]

Thanks for the link - makes more sense now.

[tosca100]

Sorry, but the heat treatment provides the seal - believe me, they still do this kind of preserving a lot in countries around the Med 

This is what I have been doing this year. Here in Bulgaria everything is bottled as soon as it's ready, they don't go a bundle on fresh veg the way we do. As the neighbours had already planted dozens of tomato and pepper plants, as well as aubergines, courgettes and okra, it has been a very steep learning curve, as although I have made plenty of jam, chutney and jelly, I have never had such a huge amount of other stuff to process. It is all in the cellar. I also have a freezer full, but could easily lose that in power cuts over the winter.

Thank goodness for the internet, I couldn't have done it otherwise.

Next year I will plant what I want, to eat mostly fresh. I have enough tomatoes etc bottled for years!!!