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Try this super easy trick the next time you encounter an impossible jar lid that you just can’t seem to get open. Here’s my method for how to open tight jar lids.
It seems to happen exactly at the wrong time, right when you’re really busy and in the middle of trying to prepare a meal as quickly as possible. Some jar lids just defy logic and no matter how hard you try, you just can’t seem to get them open. I first shared this little trick over a decade ago and I still get messages from people over on Pinterest who find it and have to write to thank me because of how well it worked for them. After hearing from a few very relieved Pinterest users lately, I thought maybe it was time to reshare it and make sure I spread the message once more about this handy little tip. I actually still use this method at least once a week or so. It works and it’s actually kind of fun. 🙂 Here’s my trick for how to open tight jar lids.
How to Open A Really Tight Jar Lid
There really isn’t much to this trick, but it makes such a difference. It will only take you about 10 seconds at most to try.
The next time you’re faced with a really right jar lid, grab a butter knife out of the cutlery drawer and hit the lid with a good solid “thunk” in a few places around the rim of the lid, using the edge of the knife, rather than the flat face. I promise you, the jar will suddenly be so much easier to open.
Bonus: it’s a great way to get out your frustrations after trying to open that darn lid for so long. 🙂
Before you know it, you’ll be back to enjoying your toast and jam, putting pickles on your burger at the bbq, or making your famous pasta dish with the jarred sauce that no one knows you use instead of homemade.
This trick will most likely result in a few dents around the edges of the jar lid, so this may not be the best method to try if you want to save your lids, but I typically don’t worry about it, because I mostly just save my glass jars, not the lids.
What this trick does have going for it is that it’s almost instant and it works 99% of the time. Try it and let me know how it works for you!
If you like to save your jars, you may also find these tips helpful:
- How to Remove Stubborn Jar Labels : The No-Sweat, Chemical Free Method
- How to Remove Stains and Odors From Jar Lids to Reuse Them
- DIY Mason Jar Air Freshener
- DIY Gardener’s Jam Jar Hard Scrub
- 4-Minute Peppermint Bark Mason Jar Gift
Don’t forget to save this idea on Pinterest so you have it when you need it. Subscribe to follow along with me for more of my favorite tips for your home, garden, and kitchen!
Courtenay Hartford is the author of creeklinehouse.com, a blog based on her adventures renovating a 120-year-old farmhouse in rural Ontario, Canada. On her blog, Courtenay shares interior design tips based on her own farmhouse and her work as founder and stylist of the interior photography firm Art & Spaces. She also writes about her farmhouse garden, plant-based recipes, family travel, and homekeeping best practices. Courtenay is the author of the book The Cleaning Ninja and has been featured in numerous magazines including Country Sampler Farmhouse Style, Better Homes and Gardens, Parents Magazine, Real Simple, and Our Homes.