Microwave pasteurizing

[aumbrellaforainydays]

whats the avg time most people nuke their substrates in the microwave for? or should i just do a hot water bath?

microwaves are full of nasty bacteria.. i'd just go with a bit pot of hot water and a cooler. very easy
lost

[aumbrellaforainydays]

would pressure cooking it at 5psi for 30mins be good too? or would that make it "too" sterile.

[BigStemz]

i've only worked with 50/50 subrate but i always pressure cook; with seemingly succesfull results.

[cap]

*sigh* OK, here goes....


pasteurization takes place at 160º Farenheit. no higher!
think: hot-water method, cold-pasteurization with lime, or the bleach method, etc - there are many ways.

anything higher, such as pressure cooking, or microwaving, is considered sterilization.


the goal of pasteurizing is killing off the nasties (parasitic molds and bad bacterium) which cant survive at 160ºF,
while leaving the [i]beneficial[/b] microorganisms in the substrate unhindered they can tolerate 160ºF., but any higher and they too will be killed off, leaving your poo open to contams

these beneficial micro's are your substrates natural 'immune system' for the
next few weeks while your project is exposed to open air/unsterile conditions.

in other words, the 'microherd' is of utter importance and will be killed off at temps above 160º.


sterilizing the bulk substrate is however acceptable only under one condition--
the substrate must be in a sealed container or bag, preventing contamination from striking.

one example of a bulk substrate being sterilized, is buckaroobonzai's mycobag tek.
note that in his tek the substrate is never exposed to open air before full colonization 'invitro'


so....


for open-air spawning procedures, pasteurization (@160ºF) is the only way
to ensure your project is not compromised to contamination before full colonization.

once colonized in full, the mycelium is somewhat contam-resistant,
and can be exposed to open-air (greenhouse) fruiting conditions without much worry.


for some 'new-age' (lol) teks, where the poo or straw is sealed and inoculated through a port,
sterilization is applicable. the reason being that contam. spores from the air cant land on your work.



AUmbrellaForRainyDays; if you havent already, you may take a few moments to read in the
pasteurization and bulk / spawning sections of the old (discus) archives here. the vaults too.

also see>> http://forums.mycotopia.net/showpost...5&postcount=12

take care and good luck

[cap]

this hot-water + lime tek from Rev. Trips is bulletproof >> http://forums.mycotopia.net/showthread.php?t=14991 (rev's strawlog tek)

[eternalfrost]

my foaf has only ever used microwave pasturising. hasnt had any problems with it. he only does relativly small batches thought. if your gunna be doing like 10 pounds of poo, itll be a pain in the ass to nuke it.

he just takes a tupperware and loads it up with wet substrate. leaves one corner of the lid popped open to vent. then just nukes it for 3-5 min bursts with like 5 min between and repeat 4-5 times. just make sure your water content is alright after your done as you will loose alot of moisture to steam

[cap]

Originally Posted by eternalfrost

my foaf has only ever used microwave pasturising. hasnt had any problems with it. he only does relativly small batches thought. if your gunna be doing like 10 pounds of poo, itll be a pain in the ass to nuke it.

he just takes a tupperware and loads it up with wet substrate. leaves one corner of the lid popped open to vent. then just nukes it for 3-5 min bursts with like 5 min between and repeat 4-5 times. just make sure your water content is alright after your done as you will loose alot of moisture to steam

does your microwave stay under 160 degrees?

[aumbrellaforainydays]

thanks cap for the redispersing this knowledge. i ended up just boiling a large pot of water and soaking my substrate in it for an hour, then let drain and stick in sealable plastic containers. today i finally get to move the mycelium to the dirt. only wierd thing is that my half qts of popcorn barely colonized 50% over 10 days, while my rye and wbs full qts are 95%. i think i screwed up the moisture on my popcorn.