Not to start a heated discussion, but. . . I am NOT proposing to can just "any tomato based recipe". I am proposing to follow the guidlines put forward to the public by a research based State Co-op Extension service. The directions for pressure canning are simple, and straightforward, and contain no language warning that the product will be unfit to eat after processing. There are extensive warnings about following salsa directions explicitly when water bath canning. We all understand and agree that those warning are of the utmost importance, including the need for proper acidification and not increasing the ratio of low acid veges to tomatoes. Perhaps I should have stated my intentions differently. I plan to pressure can at 11 lbs/ 35 minutes a salsa with a much lower pepper content (since I am allergic to peppers), different dried herbs (a safe substitution) and a different and lower source of acid (red wine). I will be following an approved recipe for amounts of tomatoes vs garlic, onions, and herbs; for amounts of tomato paste; and for length of cooking (to control for density issues). After canning this salsa, I may choose to heat it until boiling and serve it over pasta. It still seems like I am within the guidlines put out by WSU. Sharon

RCMJR & misoilman, tnx for your replies. RCMJR: LDJ appears to have been in business since 1999. According to the LDJ website they claim the boiler is "Great for radiant floor heat systems". I'd be interested in talking to existing users to see how they are getting on with the the system. I took a closer look at their page about the corn boiler and they claim it's thermostat controlled, perhaps it's able to be dialed down. The picture of it looks like a water heater with a hopper sitting next to it. I'll post the url for the corn boiler. The capacity of the water heater portion is eighteen gallons. They also have an option that would allow the boiler to provide hot water for "domestic" use. So would be able to heat water for shower's, washing dishes etc. Right now the utility room has two gas fired water heaters sitting in it, one for the floor heat and one for domestic use, I think. We'd have to talk the heating and plumbing guy that took over from the H&P guy that had been maintaining the system for many years. The retired fellow is still in town and we might be able to talk him into coming over and orienting us with the systems. misoilman: Having the seller comfirm the moisture content of the corn would be the first thing I would insist on when purchasing the corn. I do know from talking with the folks at the elevator, they will not accept corn that is more than 15 percent moisture. I also need to check with the city to make sure there isn't an ordinance that would preclude me from having a small gravity box sitting next to the carport. If the gravity box is small enough, I'd even consider backing it into the carport. Alas, there is no basement on this dream house. Just a thick concrete slab...:-) So We'll probably use a couple of five gallon buckets for transfer of fuel from the box to the hopper. I'd just consider it a form of exercise...:) We're also a bit concerned about the age of the plumbing in the floor as it is original to the house. The impression I got from the house inspector was that the in floor plumbing was put in place then had the concrete poured over it. I'm going to have to have someone that has better eyes than me and know's what they're looking for, look at the blueprints and see if we can find out how thick the concrete is. Luckily, we've secured a "home warranty" from the seller for at least the first year (at their expense), and there is a possibility of extending it through the second year. I should also probably state that the corn boiler is not a done deal as we are still in the early part of the research stage. Although, a friend of ours has suggested we check the website of the Governor of Illinois and see if there are any grants or other incentives that we might be elgible for. Governor Blagojevich (Bla-goy-a-vich, what a mouthful) is very interested in promoting alternative fuels and energy use in Illinois. Here is a link that might be useful: LDJ's Corn Boiler page

oh well rub it in why don't you! :) We actually don't get a lot of pouring down rain where we live, but lots of drizzling. As far as the water issue, pumping is really not an option at this point. We have all the tubing and foamboard installed/stapled. Hubby says it will be ok... just wondered if anyone knew for sure. :)

Thank you for the response! from what I read, heating the floors will be a lot more expensive with electric radiant heat as you stated. I also thought that it would only really heat the floor and not solve my situation but I wanted to hear that first hand and not make my own assumptions. I think the reason my kitchen is so cold is that when we built our addition, we built it over a crawl space in 1996. My husband built it with the help of his brothers. We don't have heat going into the crawl space itself and at the time, he only put the pink insulation inside. Since then, we had someone blow the insulation onto the walls of the crawl space. I don't think insulation can really do the trick. I remember hearing on one of the home improvement shows on TV that the crawl space should be heated to help with a similar situation (I think I heard that correctly). In order to do that, I would have to go through the finished side of my basement to reach the crawl space. Not desirable. I do have a friend that has put in radiant heat using the tubes with water running through it heated by a boiler. It was worth the investment for her because she lives in a quad and was basically trying to heat her lower levels of the house. She also used this type of heat to heat up a patio/sunroom that doesn't have any other form of heat in it. It really works. I, on the other hand, have small area but I'm so uncomfortable in the winter. I guess I can get a quote with heating with water and a boiler to see how expensive it will be. It still is strange that a 200 sq. foot addition would be that tough to heat