When I got ready to start canning this season I knew I was going to have to do something about my current canner. I had it tested and even though it was still reading accurately every time I use it the gauge fills with steam and becomes hard to read.
At first, I thought I was going to have to buy a new pressure cooker/canner. I went ahead and checked Amazon and found that I could order just a gauge for less than $20, score! The only downside was several people left comments about it not coming with a nut and that it didn’t include instructions. I looked at my current one a figured it couldn’t be that hard to install so I ordered it. We have an Amazon Prime account so 2-day shipping was free. I assumed since I was ordering it on Friday I wouldn’t have it until Monday but Amazon just added Sunday delivery to our area which is also free for Prime members. If you are interested in an Amazon prime account you can try it out for free for thirty days. You can use it, take advantage of the free shipping as much as you want during the trial, and cancel if you don’t like it.
Anyways, back to my gauge! I received it Sunday and immediately dug into the box. Imagine my surprise when I saw this beauty next to my current one. It is 1,000 times better. I was happy to see that replacing it was easy but like others warned it did not come with a nut to hold it in place. The nut from my old gauge did fit but if for some reason yours does not or you no longer have the gauge take your new one to Home Depot or Lowes and you should be able to get one for less than .25. My new gauge looks great and I am ready to start canning tomatoes!
I went ahead and made a quick video of how to replace it. It really is simple and worth doing to ensure you can read your gauge accurately and that it is reading accurately
The gauge I used was from Amazon: http://www.tinyurl.com/oazd7w2