Pressure Cooker Safety Valve Function

You may be wondering what the safety valve on a pressure cooker is even for. Its main purpose is to let out steam if the internal pressure becomes too high or at a point that is no longer safe for the pressure cooker to try and maintain. 

There are other regulating valves that should be doing this first and the safety valve is a backup in case the first valves fail. 

This feature is needed and is what stops the possibility of a pressure cooker from ever exploding. 

Pressure Cooker Steam Coming Out Of Safety Valve

So let’s get onto why some steam might be coming out of the safety valve. If it’s leaking steam, it’s because the internal pressure is too high and the safety valve is working as intended to release excess pressure when the regulating valves fail. 

This indicates another issue with pressure cooking that could be one of the following. 

• Overfilled pressure cooker – The pressure cooker may have no faulty parts, but if it’s filled too high or has foam growing on the inside, it may be blocking the regulating valve from functioning properly. 
• Not enough water – This is the underfilled possibility. If all of the water has boiled off and there’s nothing for the heat to be easily regulated out, then the heat may rise too fast. 
• Issues with the regulating valve – If the regulating valve isn’t working properly, then the pressure will build up in the pressure cooker. This means the backup safety valve has to get rid of the excess pressure. 
• Broken safety valve – The safety valve may be broke and continuously releasing steam.