Casey wrote:
> This problem has been plaguing me for some time. Being the macho type,
> I've been trying to solve it myself -- with no success.
> My latest venture was ten pints of peaches. I used the USDA canning
> guide that calls for either hot water bath or pressure. I chose pressure
> (as I have done in the past). My home is at 2,300, more or less, feet
> MSL. The guide called for 10 minutes at 10 PSI, weighted gauge. I did
> the hot-pack with 1/2 inch headspace, as directed.
> The finished product came out sealed well -- all caps snapped down
> -- but with 1-1/2 to 2 inches less fluid (light syrup) exposing fruit
> at the top. And, the fruit floats about an inch or more off the bottom
> of the jar.
> The first time this happened, a couple or few maybe several years
> ago, I had a pal run some culture tests in a lab. The tests were totally
> negative for any bacteria.
> After a few months, the fruit poking out of the syrup darkens
> slightly, but not dramatically. It also tested negative.
>
> Any ideas what I'm doing wrong?
>
> Regards,
>
> Casey

I'll take a guess Casey. Looks like you had a pressure variation in your
pressure canner and some liquid from the jars was lost. I put up fruit
each year using the boiling water bath method as I live at sea level.
But have lost liquid in pressure canning tomatoes at sea level when I
slipped and let the pressure vary by a lb or more while trying to hold
at 11 lbs.

The latest USDA guide from the University of Georgia ag division, "So
Easy to Preserve," page 49 says that at altitudes above 1500 feet you
should pressure can fruit at 10 lbs using a weighted gauge canner. If
you have a dial gauge pressure canner you should pressure can at 7 lbs
between 1001-4000 feet. I take it you have a weighted gauge canner which
would lead me to believe you had some pressure fluctuations while you
were canning the peaches. HTH