It still "irks me" that I ahould have to use "road salt" in my pickles! LOL I'll try it one more year, so far I haven't been too impressed. Shammie

The road grade is loaded with impurities and not fit for food consumption. I add the stuff to the bottom of the jars before packing and filling. It does help a bit, but only if there is not too much heat used in the canning process to begin with. Because most of my pickles are full strength 5% vinegar, I process a lot less time. I consider salt and vinegar a good 'preservative' all by itself. Here, 'road salt' is a mix of rock salt and sand. Totally different from the Calcium Chloride. They do recommend using the spreading type CC around plants, concrete, and wood, as it will not destroy the surfaces as easily as rock salt can. Even for that, its at least twice the price of rock salt , but has a much faster reaction for melting ice. Far too expensive to be used as a road treatment by itself.

I bought Calcium chloride from BulkFoods.com by following the link provided by ksrogers because I had a lot of trouble finding Pickle Crisp this year. I have a few concerns and questions now that I have it. It says to dissolve into cool liquid. Most of my fresh pack recipes involve pouring hot vinegar solutions over the pickles in the jar. Also, jar says 1 level teaspoon to 1 quart liqid makes a .5% solution. Compared to 1 1/2 t of pickle crisp in a quart jar filled with cucumbers, that seems like a lot weaker solution. My sweets and dills turned out great last year. I'd like to use this bulk calcium chloride since it's so much cheaper, but I want to do it right. Any suggestions for both problems? Thanks.

Well, the Pickle Crisp box lists "Calcium Chloride" as the only ingredient, so if your hot brine worked last year with Pickle Crisp, then it should work equally well with the Bulk Foods product.

Either they're recommending a weaker solution or there's a difference in weight due to the size of the crystals. You'd need to be able to compare measure-for-measure. Maybe Ken or someone can help with that one.

Carol

I purchased food grade calcium chloride at a local homebrewing store. It too is larger crystals like in the link Ken posted. I've used it last year and this year for everything from sweet & dill pickles to pickled okra and pickled peppers. I simply follow the original Pickle Crisp instructions and they turn out fine.

My guess is that it is because it foams/fizzes when added to hot liquid.
I add it to the bottom of the jars before filling them.
I got some of the bulk calcium chloride from them, too, but have not used it yet. I am going to use the same amount as Pickle Crisp.

Yes, the crystals are a bit larger in the bulk version which would indicate that less is used in a recommended teaspoon (from the bulk label). But because its still food grade, I use the recommended amount called for on the Pickle Crisp box, which is 3/4 teaspoon for pints, and 1 1/2 teaspoons for quarts. It goes into all my pickle types, and is placed in the jars prior to packing and filling with brines. Be sure to tightly cap the bulk product as it can absorb moisture very quickly and then turns to a liquid and clumps up.