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De-pickling the pickle jar?

 
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Location: Michigan, zone 5
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I'm in need of some gallon glass jars, to store my raw milk in, and the only thing I could think of was those giant pickle jars. Has anyone had any success getting the pickle smell out of the jar, to re use them?
 
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YES. They will smell for the first few times, but they don't impart flavor to the milk. 90% of the smell is in the lid. You can buy replacement lids cheap online--a jar of pickles plus a new lid for less than the cost of empty gallon jars. Plus PICKLES, which are good for the first couple gallons. After the first few, you may consider them less good--but then consider them free chicken feed.

 
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Bleach. Something that permies and other environmentally conscious people try to minimize the use of, but this is one of the uses. To get rid of the molecules hanging around producing the pickle odor, you either have to oxidize them (the bleach) or bake the jars in a hot oven for a few hours. Either way, the odor molecules will be gone. Baking soda is another popular de-odorizer, but it is not heavy duty enough to take care of the pickle odor.
 
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I agree, most of the smell is in the lid. I have had success with putting some baking soda in the lid and screwing the lid on upside down so baking soda is wedged tight around the edge and a layer sits on the cover. Then leaving them alone for a while.
 
Jenna Sanders
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These are all great suggestions, thanks so much!
John- Do you fill the jar with bleach and water or just bleach?
 
John Elliott
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Jenna Sanders wrote:
John- Do you fill the jar with bleach and water or just bleach?



It matters less how much you dilute the bleach (the active oxidants in the bleach will find the odor molecules) and more the amount of contact time. As has been noted, the metal lid with its painted-on coating absorbs more of the odor than the glass itself, so I like Matu's idea of swirling the de-odorizing solution around and then letting the jar sit upside-down for a while.

Or you can just soak all the lids overnight in bleach/water and hope that takes care of most of the problem.
 
Jenna Sanders
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YES. They will smell for the first few times, but they don't impart flavor to the milk. 90% of the smell is in the lid. You can buy replacement lids cheap online--a jar of pickles plus a new lid for less than the cost of empty gallon jars. Plus PICKLES, which are good for the first couple gallons. After the first few, you may consider them less good--but then consider them free chicken feed.



Is there somewhere you have ordered the lids from in the past? I'm not sure if the lids are a one size fits all gallon jars type thing?
 
R Scott
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I have gotten them from the Amish store down the road. They are not a one-size fits all, although all Vlassics seem to be the same.

Azure sells some, but theirs are the WIDE mouth, different than pickle jars--not a bad price if shipping doesn't kill you: https://www.azurestandard.com/shop/brand/208

I did stumble across this cure for pickle lids, SUNLIGHT!! http://www.tammysrecipes.com/node/4649




 
R Scott
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Here is someone that probably has what you need: http://www.fillmorecontainer.com/Closures-C26.aspx

 
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