Are old blue mason jars safe to use?
Canning jars have a life expectancy of 10–13 years. After that, you will experience more breakage because of the wear and tear of normal use. Because of this, it is not recommended to use vintage or antique canning jars for food preservation.
Ice cream maker – 76 ppm lead. Vintage blue glass mason jar – the jar had no heavy metals but the vintage lid had 861 ppm lead and 1,537 ppm cadmium. Weck glass canning jars – 142ppm of lead.
Feeling Blue
Those blue mason jars were mass produced until 1937 using sand from around Lake Michigan. It was that sand that gave the glass its blue hue.
Ball is the most consistently Lead-free brand I have found (with just a few exceptions.) Conversely, almost all Kerr jars I have tested have been positive for low-levels of lead (20 to 40 ppm range) – with very few exceptions.
- Make a Chandelier. This chandelier was created using an old wagon wheel and thick cord. ...
- Mason Jar Succulent. ...
- Create a Centerpiece. ...
- Make Party Favors. ...
- A Winter Arrangement. ...
- Make an Arrangement. ...
- Mason Jar Wedding Favors. ...
- Upcycled Easter Terrariums.
COLORED JARS
Blue, green and purple jars have been made for home food preservation. However, there are other colored jars, such as yellow, available for craft projects, but are not recommended for food preservation.
It contains a chemical called bisphenol A (BPA), or, where advertised as BPA-free, a substitute called BPS. This coating, while meant to be protective, is not entirely safe.
Nowadays, you can even buy a big flat of Mason jars for pretty cheap at your local craft or household goods store — but the older ones can fetch much higher prices. Typically, the smaller or more common antique jars can go for about $20 apiece, but the more rare versions can sell for as much as $300.
Blue glass Ball jars were produced in the late 1890s and early 1900s, but the company stopped producing these in 1937. There were also some brown amber jars produced in the 1950s, but most of the jars produced after the 1940s were made of clear glass.
It also includes the words “Masons Patent” in block letters below the logo. These jars were only made in 1890, and they are very valuable. Blue glass jars were only produced until 1937, although the company has recently started to manufacture a reproduction jar using a more vibrant teal blue color within recent years.
What are the most valuable Mason jars?
No. | Model | Year |
---|---|---|
1. | Atlas Strong Shoulders Mason Jar | 1938 – 1940 |
2. | Atlas E-Z Seal Mason Jar | c. 1896 |
3. | Atlas Improved Mason Jar | c. 1900 |
4. | Atlas “H” over “A” Mason Jar | 1923 |
- Not every jar has their manufacture date on the glass, but most have the patent date. ...
- There will be a large number on the bottom of your jar. ...
- These charts tell you the approximate decade in which your Ball jar was made.
The official recommendation for how long to store jars of food is one year, and you're recommended to eat it within 2 years. It's a quality issue. After that first year, the food is not necessarily bad, so don't throw it away just yet.
In response to consumer demands, major mason jar lid manufacturers in North America removed BPA from their lids. To be clear, all Ball and Bernardin branded lids being made as of 2015 and onwards will be BPA free.
Tamara also tested newer blue Ball mason jars and found some small levels of lead in them. However, she found that Ball is the most consistently lead-free glassware brand. Thus, it is best to use clear plain glass without any painted features, and I recommend the Ball brand.
Tamara also tested newer blue Ball mason jars and found some small levels of lead in them. However, she found that Ball is the most consistently lead-free glassware brand. Thus, it is best to use clear plain glass without any painted features, and I recommend the Ball brand.
Is there lead in vintage Pyrex bowls and baking dishes? Yes. Almost all vintage Pyrex bowls and baking dishes test positive for large amounts of lead.
A complete Mason jar is composed of a tempered glass jar, a flat self-sealing lid, and a metal band.
In response to consumer demands, major mason jar lid manufacturers in North America removed BPA from their lids. To be clear, all Ball and Bernardin branded lids being made as of 2015 and onwards will be BPA free.