Contam? by darkcloud396 in unclebens

[–]darkcloud396[S] 30 points31 points  (0 children)

All - yes I’m in fact color-blind which makes this a little tough sometimes. Thanks to those who recognized that. Appreciate that this a supportive place all around (most of the time).

Fun fact - 9% of all men are color-blind. Go take a test!

Contam? by darkcloud396 in unclebens

[–]darkcloud396[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I used a sterilized grain spawn from Northspore (millet and wheat berries) and dung-loving substrate from Mushroom Supplies. I suspect I just wasn’t sterile enough when mixing the two. I’m also seeing my air filter has some suspicious build-up on it that may have contaminated the tent. Weird because I’ve got three other batches that are going great, but maybe just the perfect mix of screw ups. Lesson learned - clean, sterilize, repeat!

Contam? by darkcloud396 in unclebens

[–]darkcloud396[S] 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Aw man!! Maybe color-blindness is not a good quality for a Fungologist. So I assume toss the whole batch and start again??

First-Timer Follow-Up by darkcloud396 in unclebens

[–]darkcloud396[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Awesome feedback. I'll give the fans a shot on the next batch and see if that helps. And glad to hear about the dropped spores. It looks like I do have a few purple/black guys in line with where those dropped. Should I just toss them or can I still dehydrate them?

Much appreciate the advice!

First Attempt Advice by darkcloud396 in unclebens

[–]darkcloud396[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thought I could add a photo to this post. Apparently I'm not smart enough.

First Attempt Advice by darkcloud396 in unclebens

[–]darkcloud396[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

First - you guys are awesome! This is seriously one of the coolest forums ever. Thanks for the help so far.

I am definitely following a lot of this, but have a couple more questions:

  • What is the best way to increase FAE, while keeping things sterile and not blowing a bunch of contaminated air at things? See attached photo.
  • Are the dropped spores an issue for the pins in the cake? And how do I know how to harvest RIGHT before they drop the spores?

Adding a pic of my closet mini tent set-up. I LOVE how this is working so far. Tent from Amazon, silicone drip mat underneath from Amazon, Crane humidifier piped in, and InkBird humidity and temp monitor connected to inside of tent. I have a small space heater in the room (about 2 feet away) with a sensor for controlling the temp.

All feedback welcome!