Save money on Canning Lids with Reliable Non-brand Lids!

Looking for Save money on Canning Lids with Reliable Non-brand Lids! in 2024?  Scroll down this page and  follow the links. And if you bring home some fruit or vegetables and want to can, freeze, make jam, salsa or pickles, see this page for simple, reliable, illustrated canning, freezing or preserving directions. There are plenty of other related resources, click on the resources dropdown above.  If you are having a hard time finding canning lids, I've used these, and they're a great price & ship in 2 days.

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Save money on Canning Lids with Reliable Non-brand Lids!

Ball brand canning lids, like everything else, have skyrocketed in price. This year, Ball brand regular lids are selling for $4 to $8 per dozen flat regular lids.  That is INSNE, as these lids are designed to be single use only.

Save and reuse jars and rings

Of course, if you are smart, you save the rings and jars, both of which CAN be reused, and only buy new lids each year.  But with the lids going for $0.50 to $0.80 per lids, that really increases the cost of your home-canned foods.

Buying off-brand lids - which are reliable?

  But with all the off-brand lids sold on Amazon, how do you know which are reliable?  Well, I tested some of them on HUNDREDS of jars. When I looked at the reviews on Amazon, I immediately noticed that every brand and off-brand of lids had 3% to 10% complaints about the lids not sealing.  Since this appeared even on the Ball brand lids, it is obvious that many of these are due to people improperly canning and processing the jars.  Sorry, folks, but often, it just wasn't the fault of the lid... "The fault, dear Brutus, lies not in our stars, but in ourselves" to quote Shakespeare.  Although I he probably never canned a single jar.  Maybe the witches in Hamlet did...

Look for <3% 1-star reviews

Anyway, logically, I looked for off-brands that had a similar percentage and nature of complaints as on the brand name, Ball. That meant around 3% 1-star ratings. You WON'T find any lids with zero complaints or poor reviews.  That's just the nature of whiners who don't know what they're doing in the online world.

Look for BPA-free

Next make sure these are clearly stated to be made of food grade metal lids with bpa free silicone seals. BPA is an endocrine disruptor that was used to make plastics flexible.  It should not be use in food products today!

Conclusion: What I found

First, if you still want to get Ball brand canning lids, the cheapest price I have found is here, Ball brand canning lids is at Wal-Mart, is about $4.00/dozen in November 2024 - of course that price is a snapshot and is subject to change.

You can order them on;line, have them delivered, pick them up or whatever you want.

 

There ARE reliable off-brands. I've used these and both worked flawlessly.

 

• Dalzom® Canning Lids - for Regular Mouth Ball, Kerr Jars - Food Grade Material, 100% Fit & Airtight for Regular Mouth Mason Jars
  BPA-free.
  
• Ceaver Canning Lids - for Regular Mouth Ball, Kerr, Completely Sealed, No Bending or Deformation, Canning Lids BPA-Free.
  These worked every bit as well as Ball lids.  However, they are "unavailable" oin Amazon in November 2024, no weay of knowibng if they will return there.

 

Examination and comparison of generic vs. Ball brand lids

OK, lets closely examine generic lids against Ball brand lids, both right out of the box.

Generic on the left, Ball on the right in all photos below:

The tops look and feel identical, with the same exact dimensions

 

The bottoms look and feel identical, with the same exact dimensions

 

The edges look and feel identical and have the same thickness.

 

Actual Results Comparison

Now, I canned apple butter from the same batch, at the same time, in the same canner (together) for the same length of time, all conditions were identical because they were canned together.

As you can see, all jars, with both the generic and Ball lids, sealed perfectlty. And weeks, months later, remained sealed.

I DO recommend these generic canning lids as a safe, reliable way to reduceyour home canning costs.

 

 

Alternative: reusable lids (Tattler Lids)

There is one completely different alterative, the Tattler reusable plastic lid.  I have also tested these for over 10 years and they DO reliably work. But the initial cost is high, and of course, if you give the jars away as gifts, it makes no sense to use these as you will rarely get them back. See this page about Tattler reusable canning lids.

 

More canning lid resources

 This page has a history of the canning jar and this page has free label templates to allow you to make your own custom jar labels.

Frequently Asked Questions About Lids and Rings

This page has a complete list of canning lid FAQS.

A few popular ones are below:

 

Buckled canning lids:

See this page about a new problem: buckling canning lids that won't seal.

As my jars are cooling after I take them out of the canner, they sometimes make a popping or hissing noise.  Is this normal and safe?

Yes, the lids are designed to flex and that's actually a key selling point.  You can tell if a jar hasn't sealed properly (after it has cooled completely) if the lid flexes and makes a popping sound when you press the center of the lid with your finger.  The popping sounds while it is cooling is the lid being sucked down by the vacuum that is forming inside the jar - which a normal part of the sealing process.  Hissing sounds are usually just escaping steam or hot water evaporating on hot surfaces, also normal!

How can I tell if my jars have sealed and whether they have spoiled?

That requires a detailed answer.  See this page: How can I test or examine my jars to see if they sealed properly or have spoiled?