I received a bunch of these old jars from someone who stored them in a garage. I have soaked them in hot water & vinegar for 24 hours (2x) and they still keep coming out like this. Any suggestions?
I received a bunch of these old jars from someone who stored them in a garage. I have soaked them in hot water & vinegar for 24 hours (2x) and they still keep coming out like this. Any suggestions?
by imrightontopthatrose
25 Comments
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MazyBird
Citric acid soak?
vibes86
Do you have a dishwasher? I’d throw them in there with the extra hot water option and see how they come out after that.
thedndexperiment
Have you tried actually wiping them down with straight vinegar? I have super hard water and my jars often look like this after pressure canning, physical wiping + vinegar is the best way to get them clean for me.
this_girl_that_time
Maybe try rubbing some CLR on one or two to see if it’s calcium hard water stain?
ConversationBoth6601
Hard to say but honestly, they’re probably safe to use if you can’t wash the stain off with even your best efforts. You could probably use brakleen on those things and it still wouldnt come off. Maybe you could get a drill and buffing compound and literally polish the glass🤷
Kammy44
I have jars that look like this. I run them through the sterilize cycle in my dish washer, and just use them.
Professional-Oil1537
Boil them in water and vinegar I roughly use about a half gallon vinegar to 5 gallons water and boil them for around a half hour. I’ve had some jars clean up in 5 minutes and some have taken about an hour
Longjumping-Royal730
I am curious to hear the removal methods for this. There’s nothing technically wrong with jars that fog like this though, right?
KapowBlamBoom
All those Atlas Jars!!
Check the bottoms. There will be a mold number. If you have any that are “13” put it aside. Those have far higher collector desirability/value.
Moonshiners would break all the “unlucky 13” jars before filling them so they are rare.
Also keep in mind, that the youngest those Atlas jars can be is 61 years old. They stopped producing in 1964
NiceGirlWhoCanCook
I always soak glass from thrift store in water with dishwashing machine soap overnight. Fill your sink and use a load worth of soap and soak. I then place in dishwasher after scrubbing and machine should sanitize it and rinse well.
LN4848
Try some jet dry dishwasher water softener in a sink of hot water since you can’t use your dishwasher at the moment.
Busy_Obligation_9711
Idk if this will work but have you tried Tarnex?? Instead of a pumice stone or coke, Tarnex works wonders for me for all manner of things. Worth a shot
dwerked
Magic eraser or melanine sponge (same thing) works better than chemicals.
JazelleGazelle
Try using some rinse aid like finish jet dry.
Useful_Cheesecake117
You need strenger acid. Vinegar for cleaning purposes (That’s a literal translation of how we callt hat in the Netherlands), or maube even hydrochloric acid. Careful with the latter one.
The deposit may not be soluble in acid, but rather in a basic solution. In that case, try a very hot solution of water with sodium carbonate. That is usually advised to clean glass that is used to conserve food. Besides it’s safe and doesn’t smell or taste like soap does. Only disadvantage: it’s very slippers. Rinse well.
Illustrious-Divide95
scrub manually and polish
tienchi
I found about two dozen of these partially buried in the hedgerow when I moved to my house! I haven’t been able to get mine to look clear again either, I’d love to know if anything works for you!
Pale-Memory6501
Sani-Brew Let soak over night, if it doesnt come out sparkling, throw it out. Sani-brew is available at all home brew/wine making supply stores and online.
CrowandLamb
Question: are you using regular, everyday vinegar? If yes, perhaps try the cleaning vinegar (35%) , soak or add a small amount of baking soda and scrub ….see what happens……
tez_zer55
Acetone! Wipe them down with Acetone, then wash well hot soapy water.
SillyCourtney
What about soaking in hot water with a dishwasher tablet or 2? I’ve done that with my oven racks and it gets them back to brand new. Different issue, but maybe?
GrayDawg23
I’d honestly see what happens if you put them in water and bring it to a boil. If you see any gunk on the surface, or a water color change, it might be working.
Also never put a jar in boiling water unless the glass is very hot as well (still not recommended) And LET THEM AIR COOL, don’t try to cool them with water.
Financial-Wasabi1287
Well… you’ve tried a lot of things; all of them should have worked better than they did. So, now I’m thinking something odd was stored in these jars.
Krickett72
Mine are still a little cloudy but I was soaking them in a vineagr/water solution for a week. My atlas one was the worst. Although they are still cloudy they do look alot better. I did get some CLR the other day but haven’t had a chance to try it yet.
25 Comments
Hi u/imrightontopthatrose,
For accessibility, please reply to this comment with transcriptions of the screenshots or alt text describing the images you’ve posted. We thank you for ensuring that the visually impaired can fully participate in our discussions!
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Canning) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Citric acid soak?
Do you have a dishwasher? I’d throw them in there with the extra hot water option and see how they come out after that.
Have you tried actually wiping them down with straight vinegar? I have super hard water and my jars often look like this after pressure canning, physical wiping + vinegar is the best way to get them clean for me.
Maybe try rubbing some CLR on one or two to see if it’s calcium hard water stain?
Hard to say but honestly, they’re probably safe to use if you can’t wash the stain off with even your best efforts. You could probably use brakleen on those things and it still wouldnt come off. Maybe you could get a drill and buffing compound and literally polish the glass🤷
I have jars that look like this. I run them through the sterilize cycle in my dish washer, and just use them.
Boil them in water and vinegar I roughly use about a half gallon vinegar to 5 gallons water and boil them for around a half hour. I’ve had some jars clean up in 5 minutes and some have taken about an hour
I am curious to hear the removal methods for this. There’s nothing technically wrong with jars that fog like this though, right?
All those Atlas Jars!!
Check the bottoms. There will be a mold number. If you have any that are “13” put it aside. Those have far higher collector desirability/value.
Moonshiners would break all the “unlucky 13” jars before filling them so they are rare.
Also keep in mind, that the youngest those Atlas jars can be is 61 years old. They stopped producing in 1964
I always soak glass from thrift store in water with dishwashing machine soap overnight. Fill your sink and use a load worth of soap and soak. I then place in dishwasher after scrubbing and machine should sanitize it and rinse well.
Try some jet dry dishwasher water softener in a sink of hot water since you can’t use your dishwasher at the moment.
Idk if this will work but have you tried Tarnex?? Instead of a pumice stone or coke, Tarnex works wonders for me for all manner of things. Worth a shot
Magic eraser or melanine sponge (same thing) works better than chemicals.
Try using some rinse aid like finish jet dry.
You need strenger acid. Vinegar for cleaning purposes (That’s a literal translation of how we callt hat in the Netherlands), or maube even hydrochloric acid. Careful with the latter one.
The deposit may not be soluble in acid, but rather in a basic solution. In that case, try a very hot solution of water with sodium carbonate. That is usually advised to clean glass that is used to conserve food. Besides it’s safe and doesn’t smell or taste like soap does. Only disadvantage: it’s very slippers. Rinse well.
scrub manually and polish
I found about two dozen of these partially buried in the hedgerow when I moved to my house! I haven’t been able to get mine to look clear again either, I’d love to know if anything works for you!
Sani-Brew Let soak over night, if it doesnt come out sparkling, throw it out. Sani-brew is available at all home brew/wine making supply stores and online.
Question: are you using regular, everyday vinegar? If yes, perhaps try the cleaning vinegar (35%) , soak or add a small amount of baking soda and scrub ….see what happens……
Acetone! Wipe them down with Acetone, then wash well hot soapy water.
What about soaking in hot water with a dishwasher tablet or 2? I’ve done that with my oven racks and it gets them back to brand new. Different issue, but maybe?
I’d honestly see what happens if you put them in water and bring it to a boil. If you see any gunk on the surface, or a water color change, it might be working.
Also never put a jar in boiling water unless the glass is very hot as well (still not recommended)
And LET THEM AIR COOL, don’t try to cool them with water.
Well… you’ve tried a lot of things; all of them should have worked better than they did. So, now I’m thinking something odd was stored in these jars.
Mine are still a little cloudy but I was soaking them in a vineagr/water solution for a week. My atlas one was the worst. Although they are still cloudy they do look alot better. I did get some CLR the other day but haven’t had a chance to try it yet.