StMarcos

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On the bottom of this page

http://www.canningpantry.com/all-american-steam-autoclave-sterilizers.html

it says

**Autoclave sterilizers resemble pressure canners but are NOT suitable for the canning process. Likewise, pressure canners must NOT be used as a sterilizer.

Think this is just an fda thing or what?

logdrum

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My older All American 930 canner has no weight and a geared pressure gauge. Don't know why you couldn't use the autoclave, maybe they don't want cross contamination?

jldc

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Sounds like too many lawyers in the mix to me. If it can obtain and maintain the right heat it will sterilize your wort. Is there anything in the pressure relieve system that might get clogged by sugars or foam in canned foods?

L

StMarcos

Recipes 

I suppose the rubber pop-out relief and the standard spring relief could get clogged/glued. There is nothing in the instructions saying I can't sterilize liquids (i.e. wort) for non-food (liquid-culture mycology) purposes. I suppose maybe I should ask them. Not sure if the starter wort is really considered food anyway, as we discard most of it....

I wonder if it had to do with the fact that because pressure is not released continually during the sterilization process, the liquids inside do not actually boil. Maybe a cooldown, jar-sealing thing.