Family and Community Health program

Hi, I'm Buffy Rhoades with Oregon State University Extension Service, Familty and Community Health

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Program, in Clackamas County.

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In this video, we will demonstrate how to use a weighted gauge regulator to safely can

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food items.

Dial Gauges

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While dial gauges are more commonly used, they must be tested annually for accuracy

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to ensure food safety.

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Extension offices will check your dial gauge for free, but not everyone lives in an area

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convenient for testing.

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Pressure canners with a weighted gauge do not need to be tested for accuracy, because

Pressure Canner

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they cannot go out of calibration.

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A weighted gauge pressure canner regulates pressure inside the canner, by allowing some

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air to be released from the canner during processing.

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It is designed to gently rock when it is maintaining the correct pressure.

Counter Dead Weight

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This is the 15 pound counter- or dead-weight that comes with your pressure canner.

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This weight allows you to correctly use the dial gauge.

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During processing, the weight won't start rocking unless your canner exceeds 15 pounds

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of pressure.

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This one is a 15-pound weight that disassembles to allow for increments of 5, 10, and 15 pounds

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of pressure.

Adjustable Weight

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This is a pressure canner with a dial gauge that has already vented steam for 10 minutes.

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At this point, we place the adjustable weight on the steam vent, instead of using the counter-

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or dead-weight.

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For this example, we're using a 10 pound weight.

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Recipes calling for 11 pounds of pressure on a dial gauge will use the 10 pound weighted

Weighted Gauge

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gauge.

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Once the weighted gauge starts to rock, the 10 pounds of pressure has been reached.

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Ignore the dial.

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If you are at a higher altitude, you will need to process at 15 pounds using the weighted

Rocking Too Fast

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gauge.

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This is an example of the weighted gauge rocking too fast.

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If you run your canner at this speed, you're likely to run the canner dry.

Adjusting Heat Source

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If this happens, adjust the heat source so the weighted gauge will slow down, but not

Adding Water

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stop.

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This level of motion is just right.

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The rocking may increase slightly if you're using an electric stove, due to it's cycle,

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but it should come back to this rhythm.

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When the weighted gauge is rocking at this rate, there is no need to add extra water

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to the canner, however, if you're running the canner for a long processing time, such

Adding Quarts

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as for tuna, adding an extra quart certainly won't hurt.

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It's important not to run the canner dry.

Additional Tips

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Here are some other important tips to keep in mind:

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Set your timer for the recipe appropriate to your product and elevation.

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If the weight stops jiggling or moving at any time during processing, the canner must

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be brought back to the proper pressure and the processing time must start over from the

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beginning.

Conclusion

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In order to ensure your product is safe and of the best quality, always use approved resources,

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such as: The National Center for Home Food Preservation,

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any state extension publication, and the Ball Blue Book, published after 1987.

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We hope this information is helpful in preserving foods at their peak, to be enjoyed all year

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round.

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To learn more about pressure canning, visit the Clackamas County Extension YouTube channel,

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where you will find videos on canning tuna, along with other food preservation methods.

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You will also find us on social media!

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Be sure to subscribe, comment, and share!

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