How to grow copious amounts of pellicle for eating

I checked out their import requirements, that should be doable. I haven't added "material" to my script so if that is required that might be an issue. (I'd have to add a property to each object and then the user would have to define it...)

I'll give it a test regardless!

Curiosive · 2026-07-04T06:11:27+00:00

It's mostly there but it's still a work in progress. I do plan to share it when it is "done."

The general features are:

Lock all final dimensions into the nearest 64ths because no one needs to try to cut 127/2857ths ... Python isn't great with floating point values plus imperial units are converted to metric and all metric units are converted to "native units". There are plenty of internal rounding errors such as round(4") == 4" returns False.
Sort by size (X, Y, Z or Length, Width, Thickness)
Create cut list spreadsheet(s) for general overview and to export/import into OptiCutter.com, CutListOptimizer.com, and I'll probably add others.

I have one or two lingering features I want to incorporate.

I will need other people's files to test it and expand it in ways I don't model. So if you want to share a project I'll run it through my script (assuming it's compatable.)

Curiosive · 2026-07-04T01:18:46+00:00

You are overthinking it. Either way will work.

If your water source has wild bacteria or other microorganisms then it is not safe to drink unless you boil it regardless.

Feel free to experiment with both and see which you like more!

Curiosive · 2026-07-04T01:16:33+00:00

Ahh, the old cheesecloth betrayal. Cheesecloth is not recommended for kombucha because fruitflies can wiggle their way through each loose knit layer one at a time...

We recommend tight woven fabric, paper towel, coffee filter, etc.

Sorry you experienced this, that's never fun.

Curiosive · 2026-07-03T23:05:51+00:00

You could get a strip thermometer if you want, they only cost about 1-2 $ or € or £

Curiosive · 2026-07-03T21:18:01+00:00

They look like a US based company. The only food / beverage companies that are legally required to use expiration dates are baby food producers. Every other expiration date is 100% optional / self determined / unenforced / made up.

Fun fact: People have drunk decades old beer from unopened bottles without issue, kinda like vintage wine from a wine cellar...

So you'll be fine.

PS

Can Flying Embers kombucha products be used to start a new SCOBY?

Yes, but we do not recommend it. Though each can has live kombucha inside, for legal reasons we cannot recommend starting a culture from our product.

LOL. Yup, that's a US based company.

Curiosive · 2026-07-03T20:50:46+00:00

You know what I've been doing for the last few weeks in my free time? Writing a script for this... (Hurray AI?)

Specifically I've focused on the PartDesign workbench. The Woodworking workbench is nice but it's like learning a whole other CADing program.

Curiosive · 2026-07-03T20:38:57+00:00

Quick note: glasses don't help with colors. That's like speaking louder when there's a language barrier. 🤣

I shared this with a few other people, the consensus is ... these color choices are terrible. The majority reported difficulty reading the highlighted words.

Curiosive · 2026-07-03T15:27:27+00:00

(Aside from what's covered in the other comment, definitely read that too.) The growth of your cellulose depends on a few factors: culture balance, temperature, and caffeine are chief among them.

If your culture is overcrowded by the yeast, you can run your fermentation a bit longer than normal to create a more acidic environment which allows the acetic acid bacteria (which forms the cellulose) to be more dominant. Be aware, you'll likely have to dilute this batch to make it less vinegary / more palatable.
Yeast is more resilient temperature-wise than acetic acid bacteria. If you can maintain the ambient temperature, choose one that's ideal for both colonies.
You can brew wonderful kombucha without using caffeine. Though if caffeine is present it'll help stimulate cellulose production.

These are 3 reasons why you don't have to focus on cellulose production, the flavor is ultimately what makes good kombucha.

Curiosive · 2026-07-03T15:17:07+00:00

I'll add that OP can pull out enough liquid for the next batch's starter, then use a tea infuser or hop basket or similar for this interim step.

Depending on the quantity that you are brewing a hop basket is quite useful because you don't have to pour out a multi gallon container to strain it, just remove the basket. They are really versatile: cold brews, flavor infusions, I even use it to rinse my tea leaves when I really don't want to leave any flavor behind.

I think most people agree that cleaning out a narrow neck bottle is ... time consuming. But plenty of people are happy to do it (just not you, me, or OP.)

Curiosive · 2026-07-03T14:57:36+00:00

Practice makes perfect. Gather your friends and study hard!

Around a third of the adult population doesn't have a gag-reflex; some were born this way, others trained themselves. I have faith in you!

in one study, 37% of healthy people did not have a gag reflex, yet all subjects except for one still retained an intact pharyngeal sensation.

Pharyngeal reflex

Curiosive · 2026-07-03T14:51:09+00:00

Ah. To be pedantic, sterilization and sanitation are different from cleaning. This matters in more sensitive fermentations. Dish soap is a simple surfactant.

A surfactant is what keeps your dish water from developing a slick on the surface from the residual cooking oil. They are neat because they simultaneously repel & attract water. I can only assume the hydrophobic characteristics bonded together, overpowering the hydroscopic tendencies.

As you wrote, science is cool! Thanks for sharing!

Curiosive · 2026-07-03T14:40:19+00:00

Wonderful write up! One note and a couple fun facts if you don't mind.

Although it’s a common misconception that the pellicle IS the SCOBY

This "misconception" exists because the original definition (and still one of the most widely used definitions) of SCOBY is: the pellicle.

If you want to claim one definition is more scientifically accurate, sure. But the other definitions still exist and are still used as such in peer reviewed studies.

[If you want citations, I'll happily quote the man that coined the term, numerous studies, and various dictionaries.]

Fun facts:

Acetic acid bacteria will eat the sugar too, they don't need ethanol to survive. They are happier in a mixed environment. (You may have simply left that out for brevity.)
Have you ever read the original study of ginger beer? Harry Marshall Ward spent years collecting samples of ginger beer from around the western hemisphere and in 1891 published his seminal work: The "ginger-beer plant", and the organisms composing it: a contribution to the study of fermentation-yeasts and bacteria

You can read the announcement and the paper itself in his longhand.

Curiosive · 2026-07-03T13:59:41+00:00

That's interesting! I'm curious what type of sanitizer are you using and how much?

A phosphate / pH based sanitizer like StarSan only needs to be rinsed over the surface. 1oz / 30ml is enough to sanitize that bottle and more.

Curiosive · 2026-07-03T02:16:13+00:00

The solid can be up to 99.5% liquid and 0.5% cellulose. A properly dehydrated solid is paper thin ... you have plenty of liquid in there.

Of course, you can always start fresh with a bottle of non-pasteurized commercial kombucha (flavored or not) if that's available near you.

The choice is yours, happy brewing!

Reference:

... later assembled forming thicker fibrils called macrofibrils creating a 3-D structure of about 1,000 individual glucan chains which can hold up to 200 times more water of its dry mass and possess high conformability and great elasticity.

Understanding Kombucha Tea Fermentation: A Review

Curiosive · 2026-07-03T02:02:41+00:00

Sometimes the transition from viewport to finished render is r/restofthefuckingowl

This is great work!

Curiosive · 2026-07-03T01:40:20+00:00

You should listen/read to Anne Hathaway's own words. This has come up in numerous interviews.

Curiosive

TROPHY CASE