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Ferg
Tenderfoot



Registered: 09/16/10
Posts: 58
Loc: Oregon
Last seen: 12 years, 8 months
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Working with spawn bags - how tall of a flow hood do I need?
#14304778 - 04/17/11 05:53 AM (12 years, 9 months ago) |
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I have been making Shiitake blocks with a glove box. It works all right, but it is a major PITA. I want to buy a flow hood, (or maybe build one) but I don't really know how tall it should be. Is 12" height too short when you're dealing with pouring spawn into large filter patch bags?
Any advice appreciated.
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EvilMushroom666
Heretic




Registered: 11/18/09
Posts: 10,289
Loc: Canada
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Re: Working with spawn bags - how tall of a flow hood do I need? [Re: Ferg]
#14305248 - 04/17/11 09:28 AM (12 years, 9 months ago) |
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When I started building my 2"X2" hood RR chimed in that he gets away with using his 1"X2" hood for inoculting 20+ bags of shiitake per day. I could have saved money and went with 1"X2" but choose to go big regardless.
Hopefully RR see's this post and chimes in with his two cents.
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RogerRabbit
Bans for Pleasure



Registered: 03/26/03
Posts: 42,214
Loc: Seattle
Last seen: 11 months, 4 days
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Re: Working with spawn bags - how tall of a flow hood do I need? [Re: EvilMushroom666]
#14305322 - 04/17/11 09:46 AM (12 years, 9 months ago) |
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Yup, I'm still using a decade old series 1 from fp.
I'd like a bigger one, but with all the other stuff we've had to buy, I saw no reason to drop a few hundred bucks just to replace what already works. If I upgrade, I'm going straight to a 24" X 48" so I can inoculate multiple bags standing upright rather than one at a time laying down. RR
-------------------- Download Let's Grow Mushrooms semper in excretia sumus solim profundum variat "I've never had a failed experiment. I've only discovered 10,000 methods which do not work." Thomas Edison
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mister
Nature nut



Registered: 10/04/08
Posts: 2,926
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Re: Working with spawn bags - how tall of a flow hood do I need? [Re: RogerRabbit]
#14307268 - 04/17/11 04:01 PM (12 years, 9 months ago) |
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I have abuild for a 12 X 24 in my journal. If you are interested in reading.
--------------------
   
   AMU Q & A thread  
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M8M
Stranger
Registered: 05/28/09
Posts: 229
Last seen: 2 days, 23 hours
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Re: Working with spawn bags - how tall of a flow hood do I need? [Re: RogerRabbit]
#14307298 - 04/17/11 04:07 PM (12 years, 9 months ago) |
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RR: Would it be possible to elevate the flow hood about 6" above your work surface so the the top half of the bag would be in the laminar air flow? Would this work OK? M&M
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urbanfarmer
l'estranger
Registered: 12/22/08
Posts: 614
Last seen: 10 years, 9 months
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Re: Working with spawn bags - how tall of a flow hood do I need? [Re: M8M]
#14311749 - 04/18/11 12:35 PM (12 years, 9 months ago) |
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2'x2' works fine for me. I like that when pouring one bag of spawn into another bag of substrate, the bag I'm pouring from is still below the top of the hood.
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RogerRabbit
Bans for Pleasure



Registered: 03/26/03
Posts: 42,214
Loc: Seattle
Last seen: 11 months, 4 days
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Re: Working with spawn bags - how tall of a flow hood do I need? [Re: M8M]
#14312262 - 04/18/11 01:57 PM (12 years, 9 months ago) |
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Quote:
M8M said: RR: Would it be possible to elevate the flow hood about 6" above your work surface so the the top half of the bag would be in the laminar air flow? Would this work OK? M&M
No. Too much non-filtered air will get sucked into the sterile flow. I use a 12 X 24 simply by laying the bags on their sides and doing one at a time. It takes me a little over an hour to inoculate 50 five pound bags of substrate or grain spawn, which I do every day. If I was doing over 500 lbs per day, I'd probably get a bigger hood. However, for the small amount we're doing, it would only be a convenience, not a necessity, and would use double or more the electricity. RR
-------------------- Download Let's Grow Mushrooms semper in excretia sumus solim profundum variat "I've never had a failed experiment. I've only discovered 10,000 methods which do not work." Thomas Edison
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The Big Oyster
Righteous Reishi



Registered: 12/20/08
Posts: 83
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Re: Working with spawn bags - how tall of a flow hood do I need? [Re: Ferg]
#14314081 - 04/18/11 09:41 PM (12 years, 9 months ago) |
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I went with building a 2' X 2' after getting tired of the glovebox hassle and to make spawn bag work easy. Works like a champ and I couldn't be happier...for now. I recommend a hood on it if you are going to be working in a "not-so-clean" area. Mine is in the garage and it has worked awesome with the hood. If you have a clean dedicated room, the hood isn't such a necessity.
Here's some pics of the beast:
   
So, go for a 2' X 2' if you have the dough and room
Edited by The Big Oyster (04/18/11 09:45 PM)
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Ferg
Tenderfoot



Registered: 09/16/10
Posts: 58
Loc: Oregon
Last seen: 12 years, 8 months
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Re: Working with spawn bags - how tall of a flow hood do I need? [Re: The Big Oyster]
#14321101 - 04/20/11 01:06 AM (12 years, 9 months ago) |
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Thanks for the great info everyone. Nice hood, oyster. I have a dedicated room with air filters and plastic on the carpet to keep dust from kicking up when I walk, and I take clean room procedures very seriously. Does anyone have input on this idea that a flow hood may not even be necessary?
This seems like it might be too good to be true, and I'm afraid of trying it to see what happens.
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RogerRabbit
Bans for Pleasure



Registered: 03/26/03
Posts: 42,214
Loc: Seattle
Last seen: 11 months, 4 days
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Re: Working with spawn bags - how tall of a flow hood do I need? [Re: Ferg]
#14321679 - 04/20/11 06:35 AM (12 years, 9 months ago) |
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Quote:
Ferg said: Does anyone have input on this idea that a flow hood may not even be necessary?
If you're satisfied with a high failure rate.
If not, a flowhood is absolutely necessary, even if you live in an igloo in the arctic. RR
-------------------- Download Let's Grow Mushrooms semper in excretia sumus solim profundum variat "I've never had a failed experiment. I've only discovered 10,000 methods which do not work." Thomas Edison
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MonkeyKnifeFight
Stranger


Registered: 06/08/10
Posts: 772
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Re: Working with spawn bags - how tall of a flow hood do I need? [Re: RogerRabbit]
#14322286 - 04/20/11 10:12 AM (12 years, 9 months ago) |
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Quote:
RogerRabbit said:
Quote:
Ferg said: Does anyone have input on this idea that a flow hood may not even be necessary?
If you're satisfied with a high failure rate.
If not, a flowhood is absolutely necessary, even if you live in an igloo in the arctic. RR
Not sure why you'd say this. I have a tall still air box (no attached gloves) and I can spawn to filter patch bags inside of it no problem. And i don't get a high failure rate.
I wouldn't even consider a flow hood unless I was trying to set up some kind of commercial operation where I'm working in front of it all day. Boxes work fine for hobby growers like me. But of course everyone has their own approach. I prefer to keep things as simple as possible.
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RogerRabbit
Bans for Pleasure



Registered: 03/26/03
Posts: 42,214
Loc: Seattle
Last seen: 11 months, 4 days
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Re: Working with spawn bags - how tall of a flow hood do I need? [Re: MonkeyKnifeFight]
#14323083 - 04/20/11 01:34 PM (12 years, 9 months ago) |
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I consider anything over one bag in several hundred getting contaminated a high failure rate. That's why I say it. If you're colonizing several filter patch bags in a tight area and one gets green mold, enough spores will get out through the filter and into the filters of adjacent bags to take several of them down. I've seen this repeatedly.
I bought my first two flowhoods when I was strictly hobby growing. I'm still using the second one, a decade later. It more than paid for itself the first few months, so the last 9 1/2 years of use have been pure gravy. RR
-------------------- Download Let's Grow Mushrooms semper in excretia sumus solim profundum variat "I've never had a failed experiment. I've only discovered 10,000 methods which do not work." Thomas Edison
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MonkeyKnifeFight
Stranger


Registered: 06/08/10
Posts: 772
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Re: Working with spawn bags - how tall of a flow hood do I need? [Re: RogerRabbit]
#14323530 - 04/20/11 03:16 PM (12 years, 9 months ago) |
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I'm comfortable with a .002% failure rate so I guess that's why I'm happy with my box.
How does a flowhood pay for itself for a hobby grower?
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RogerRabbit
Bans for Pleasure



Registered: 03/26/03
Posts: 42,214
Loc: Seattle
Last seen: 11 months, 4 days
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Re: Working with spawn bags - how tall of a flow hood do I need? [Re: MonkeyKnifeFight]
#14324966 - 04/20/11 08:52 PM (12 years, 9 months ago) |
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By eliminating the 'oh shit' factor of wasted time.
Besides, hobby growers have done as much to advance mushroom growing techniques as the commercial operators have. The former generally share what they learn in order to advance the art, while the latter treat it as top secret propriety information. RR
-------------------- Download Let's Grow Mushrooms semper in excretia sumus solim profundum variat "I've never had a failed experiment. I've only discovered 10,000 methods which do not work." Thomas Edison
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