Really no way to avoid it happening if using those jars.

Dave

How about empty jars below the water line (of course they'll fill with water, maybe put a ring on to avoid chips but no lid) and then a rack on top of those, then put the jars to be processed on the rack above? I forget how many inches of water the fill line is - maybe regular 8oz jelly jars on the bottom to get the rack up high enough for the squatty jars?

Sure you could stack jars but it isn't necessary.

Jars that small are seldom used in pressure canning except for doing meats so it's only an issue then. With the regular 1/2 pints it isn't a problem.

Dave

I use these 8oz jars for a watery Chipotle sauce. I have only done this once. Not being sure, I did put some emptys on the first rack and did this batch in 3 layers. From the answers I am still not sure if submerging them is OK or not.

Yes, submerging is OK. It's not the goal, but as Dave said, there's no way to avoid it in certain situations.

Tuna is canned in the short half-pints and the bottom layer is always submerged. The water is close to submerging the second layer as well. Due to the long processing time, extra water is needed to prevent the canner from boiling dry.

Enjoy your chipotle!

Deanna

I agree. Same thing happens to me when I can tuna or salmon. It's not a problem any more than it would be with a boiling water bath. The jars (product) will be safely processed regardless and will seal just fine.

Carol

So submerging jars in a pressure canner is ok? For years we made jam & canned in a water bath. A while ago we got a pressure canner and started with veggies & sauces. BUT first 2 tries (carrots & a pasta sauce with meat) we stupidly submerged the jars. Everything seemed fine with the jars a and still does.......will these remain safe or should we ditch them? (The booklet that came with the canner wasn't real specific as to how much water to use, so we submerged.......the big hint was that the water had faint smell and color of the product...venting?....should have consulted websites like this one.....dumb)

The normal amount of water you place in the PC is 3 quarts. Depending on the size and shape of the specific canner that will usually give you water that is 3-4" deep approx. Then as you put in the jars that level rises. The only time it will submerge the jars is if you are using 1/2 pint jars (as Carol mentioned for Tuna). It will not submerge pints or quarts.

So no submerging is not something you would do intentionally. But when processing 1/2 pints of meat and such it cannot be avoided and is safe to do.

"BUT first 2 tries (carrots & a pasta sauce with meat) we stupidly submerged the jars. Everything seemed fine with the jars a and still does.......will these remain safe or should we ditch them? "

They are very likely safe as long as the canner was properly vented for 10 min before applying the weight and they were processed correctly for the required amount of time. But that is questionable if you are not using tested and approved recipes and if you are using your PC manual for instructions for canning. USDA approved recipes only and note that most manuals are not kept current and often omit steps or give the wrong times.

Suggest you review and follow the current "Using a Pressure Canner" guidelines at NCHFP and use either their recipes or those from the Ball canning books.

http://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/uga/using_press_canners.html

Dave

I pressure canned potatoes with about a inch of water over them is this ok?

If your canner was properly vented for 10 min and
they were processed correctly for the required amount of time your potatoes should be fine. But what size jars were you using in your pressure canner that they were submerged....I'm having trouble picturing someone canning potatoes in single servings and if using the recommended amount of water, other sizes should not be submerged by that much. (although I did used to can quite a bit in small jars for my elderly mother with her little tiny appetite)

My daughter got confused with pressure canning (meat) and water bathing. She inadvertently covered all the jars (pints) of chicken with water then pressure canned them at 15 pounds for 75 minutes. Will they be ok? She has done 3 batches and I am hoping she doesn't have to recan them with 3 quarts of water!