Shattered Kilner (sealed) jars

SteveTwigg's picture
SteveTwigg

Beware, my starter exploded!  I came down stairs this morning to be confronted by a mess.  My Kilner jar had shattered - too much gas!  Fortunately I had another jar, which didn't shatter, so I still have a starter.  I am going to resort to a small Pyrex bowl covered with cling film.  Paul Hollywood suggested using these jars on his tv programme!  Not a wise choice.  Anybody else had this problem?

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farinam's picture
farinam 2013 April 27

Hi Steve,

Some years ago I made a batch of chili relish and stored it in the pantry and after a few days found one of the shelves covered in all sorts of sticky goo.  There must have been some stray yeasts on the chilis and the bottles had cracked under the pressure.

I use a wide mouth bottle with a screw cap that I only start the thread on for my starter so that it is covered but not tightly sealed and that works just fine.  When I prepare a levain for baking, I mix it in a 500ml Pyrex jug and cover that with GladWrap.

Good luck with your projects.

Farinam

petanque 2013 April 27

Given enough time yeast can build up explosive pressures.

Poorly made home brew (beer) is a common example of this.

Containers need to be able to vent any CO2 that is produced.

phaz 2013 April 28
the classic Ball jar used for canning. I rotate 3. 2 large, 1 used for storing in the fridge and the other is the clean jar so when I feed from the fridge I transfer to the clean. The other is a smaller wide mouth, and used to warm up and reactivate starter from the fridge. With the design of the lids on these jars, you can, as farinam mentioned, screw down about 1 thread to hold the 2 piece lid on, yet still be able to vent gases as the inner lid basically floats on the top of the jar. It is amazing how much gas can be produced by just a little starter.
MkII 2013 April 28

I'm using a Kilner type jar for my latest starter. I took the rubber seal off the lid so I can close the catch but leave an escape route for the gas.

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