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FrankHorrigan
The Inquisition



Registered: 01/04/11
Posts: 10,573
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How Frank makes sawdust bags from fuel pellets. 8
#18032295 - 03/30/13 10:07 AM (10 years, 9 months ago) |
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This is part of my series on how I get things done. I hope it helps!
This is a quick pictorial of how I prepare my sawdust in filter-patch bags. Sawdust is great for growing just about any gourmet mushroom species. There are other methods but I prefer to use hardwood fuel pellets for my sawdust and wheat bran to supplement the substrate.
My method is a mix of RR's sawdust video and Lipa's/EM666's pasteurized fuel pellet tek.
First, I buy a big bag of hardwood fuel pellets from just about any hardware store. This particular one ran me $5 for 40#.

I take my filter bags and I open them all up. I add 5 cups of fuel pellets to each bag, followed by a half cup of wheat bran. I also throw in a handful of gypsum.

How much water you need to hydrate your pellets with depends on brand. My 5 cups of pellets hydrates properly with 6 cups of water.
Pour 6 cups of water into each bag and fold it loosely. Allow it to hydrate for 20-30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, open the bag up and mix everything well. Make sure there are no hard pellets left. You want these to be on the drier side. If you squeeze the sawdust and any drops fall from it, it is probably too wet.

Wipe down the inside of the bag with a clean paper towel and insert a tyvek sleeve all the way to substrate level. Leave one end hanging out of the top. As RR describes, fold the bag accordion-style. This sleeve method provides GE for the bag while it is cooling since the bag will seal itself closed.


Now it is time to sterilize. In my AA-921, I can fit four of these five lb sawdust bags at once. It takes some finesse however. Make sure to place rings on all sides of the bags and use a canning rack on the bottom. This allows steam to penetrate the bag evenly on all sides.

Put a heavy plate or something similar on top before closing the lid. This prevents the bags from expanding and possibly blocking the steam vent.

Sterilize at 15psi for 120-150 minutes. MAKE SURE TO PUT ENOUGH WATER IN THE PC FOR THIS LONG A CYCLE. I usually have the water level about 1.5-2" up the sides of my bags on the bottom of the PC. Make sure you don't put so much water in that it splashes over the top of the bags.
Once the PC has cooled, move the bags to a flowhood or still-air box. Wipe down your bag with isopropyl as well as your spawn jars. Moving quickly and carefully, remove the tyvek sleeve from the bag and open it completely. Pour in one quart of colonized grains. Ziptie the top shut tightly, but leave a nice plenum of air inside the bag for the colonizing mycelium.
Pictured is a before and after of two sawdust bags being knocked up with King Oyster on rye 

Let the bag colonize at whatever temps your species requires. I either put my bags in a big plastic tote or on wire shelves.
-------------------- Yes, you can bump my old threads with a question. Here is how I get things done. You should take a look. Frank's tips and tricks. Updated on 3/21/14
Edited by FrankHorrigan (03/30/13 10:42 AM)
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Brain Fart
Mushroom Nerd



Registered: 12/19/07
Posts: 2,538
Loc: Your Mom
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Re: How Frank makes sawdust bags from fuel pellets. [Re: FrankHorrigan] 1
#18033001 - 03/30/13 01:19 PM (10 years, 9 months ago) |
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I would cover maybe with tinfoil instead of a plate. Cause I have broken 8 plates now.....I thought it was because I did not let the PC depressurize naturally(took it off the stoves hot part).... nope it just does it even if I leave it be.
Morale of the story. Don't use a plate because when it breaks it will rip open your bags and now you wasted your bag substrate and time.
Maybe Im a tard but be forewarned this can and probably will happen to some of you who try this...safe alternative is to cover it with tinfoil to prevent bag blockage, but also to avoid exploding plates.
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God Stamet
wannabe Stamets


Registered: 07/01/12
Posts: 774
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Re: How Frank makes sawdust bags from fuel pellets. [Re: Brain Fart] 1
#18034462 - 03/30/13 07:25 PM (10 years, 9 months ago) |
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great write up frank. i'm starting to get into gourmet aspect pretty heavy now, great timing. how come we pasteurize for cubes but sterilize for gourmet??
-------------------- I have caught the Mycology bug! Not just here for the ride, i'm here for life. How I do my bulk substrate just another mushroom capsule TEK
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Oeric McKenna
LIFE CAPS


Registered: 06/15/12
Posts: 5,318
Loc: Babylon
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Re: How Frank makes sawdust bags from fuel pellets. [Re: God Stamet] 1
#18036274 - 03/31/13 06:15 AM (10 years, 9 months ago) |
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Sterilized because of the wheat bran. I do similar with great results except I mix everything in a giant bucket and don't measure water. Just hydrate until just right. I see a huge benefit from supplementation in colonization speed. I'm way less paranoid about contams now then when I 1st got into edibles since most of these species are so strong. The reason I mention that ( and I don't advocate cutting corners) is that I was the same way with the alcohol & bleach spray, face mask ect, but I no longer do much of anything.
Good write up man.
I've recently liked the performance of logs but the longevity of sawdust. Made sawdust logs! Hey, if anyone has birch trees nearby, go strip the bark off a dead one. Utterly amazing substrate.
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Brain Fart
Mushroom Nerd



Registered: 12/19/07
Posts: 2,538
Loc: Your Mom
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Re: How Frank makes sawdust bags from fuel pellets. [Re: Oeric McKenna] 1
#18036444 - 03/31/13 07:52 AM (10 years, 9 months ago) |
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Stripping the bark off the birch tree can kill it. I would advocate not killing the tree
Oops just noticed you said a "dead one" lol nvm!
Birch bark is like gasoline if you need to start a fire with a flint
I also have noticed the increased pace of colonization due to supplementation.
I was adding a cup or two of BRF to my sawdust for kicks and have some of the same culture running on unsupplemented sawdust. Pretty interesting difference in colonization times.
Is it just me or do my kings take FOREVER on sawdust to colonize...I have a block from 3/2 still only like 70% colonized. The supplemented bag seems to be doing better. My Phoenix Oysters Yellow Oysters are rocking, so are my Black Poplar. Lions Mane is almost ready for its bulk run, same with the ABM Portobello.
My reishi are fruiting beautifully in my reishi mono and bags I made up about a month ago.
And my shiitake wil lbe ready to fruit finally come april
Edited by Brain Fart (03/31/13 07:52 AM)
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Oeric McKenna
LIFE CAPS


Registered: 06/15/12
Posts: 5,318
Loc: Babylon
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Re: How Frank makes sawdust bags from fuel pellets. [Re: Brain Fart] 1
#18036489 - 03/31/13 08:15 AM (10 years, 9 months ago) |
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I think fine tuning the moisture per individual species preference is a big factor for colonization also. A culmination of grow notes with species specific ideas in detail would be cool. There are many that are not successfully fruited, but even aside from that, the species that are often dismissed as easy still have unfound secrets I am sure.
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t3chnobily
Strangest


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Re: How Frank makes sawdust bags from fuel pellets. [Re: Oeric McKenna] 1
#18036605 - 03/31/13 09:12 AM (10 years, 9 months ago) |
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This. The devil is in the details and little changes in procedures and conditions have big effects on productivity.
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thelanzii


Registered: 11/13/12
Posts: 5,434
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Re: How Frank makes sawdust bags from fuel pellets. [Re: t3chnobily] 1
#18037323 - 03/31/13 01:21 PM (10 years, 9 months ago) |
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yet another one of franks teks I will be following. Thanks for the write up
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Edmunter
Mr



Registered: 05/01/13
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Re: How Frank makes sawdust bags from fuel pellets. [Re: thelanzii] 1
#19735446 - 03/23/14 05:39 AM (9 years, 10 months ago) |
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Im on steep learning curve and have a question. I have inoculated 5 jars of grain with Psi cyans. Firstly I could have used this method and inocutated the bags? Secondly can I just pasteurise a bag like this When I want to spawn to bulk or is it different for wood?
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t3chnobily
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Re: How Frank makes sawdust bags from fuel pellets. [Re: Edmunter] 1
#19735568 - 03/23/14 07:14 AM (9 years, 10 months ago) |
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Lol this is different. Don't usually get many mushcult questions down here!
Yes you can pasteurize sawdust in Mycobags just leave out the bran.
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Edmunter
Mr



Registered: 05/01/13
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Re: How Frank makes sawdust bags from fuel pellets. [Re: t3chnobily] 1
#19735587 - 03/23/14 07:29 AM (9 years, 10 months ago) |
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Just thought it might be on point.
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bodhisatta 
Smurf real estate agent


Registered: 04/30/13
Posts: 61,889
Loc: Milky way
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Re: How Frank makes sawdust bags from fuel pellets. [Re: Edmunter] 1
#19735667 - 03/23/14 08:28 AM (9 years, 10 months ago) |
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Quote:
Edmunter said: Im on steep learning curve and have a question. I have inoculated 5 jars of grain with Psi cyans. Firstly I could have used this method and inocutated the bags? Secondly can I just pasteurise a bag like this When I want to spawn to bulk or is it different for wood?
Frank is using bran, a supplement, so he is sterilizing and then spawning in a SAB to stay sterile rather than spawning in open air.
You can pasteurize the sawdust but you'll want to leave out the bran then but if you're doing straight sawdust you may as well just sterilize it. I've "bucket tek" my sawdust pellets some 20 quarts now just by taking 6 cups of boiling water and adding it to 5 cups of sawdust pellets in a small bucket putting a lid on and wrapping it with a blanket the next day they're all hydrated give it a good stir and they're ready to go.
If you want to supplement the sawdust though it's like adding BRF to coir, it would contam right away if you pasteurize is so you have to sterilize it and then keep it sterile when you spawn so no open air with supplements.
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tombosley8
Full on... Bossley Baggins



Registered: 10/14/13
Posts: 3,660
Last seen: 7 months, 29 days
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Re: How Frank makes sawdust bags from fuel pellets. [Re: bodhisatta] 1
#19753845 - 03/27/14 04:10 AM (9 years, 9 months ago) |
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is supplemented sawdust going to colonize faster and how much? 2x? ie Would I benefit by doing the extra steps of proper sterilization and sterile inoculation and storage if i were inoculating it with a grain jar? or should i spawn the grain spawn to bucket tek'd bran-less sawdust? referring to the last post mainly. Do you use a sterilized colonized sawdust bag to inoculate your bucket tek'd sawdust? Or do you bucket tek sawdust and mix with pasteurized chips? just trying to figure out how you use the bucket tek'd sawdust to see if i could incorporate it.
and where is a cheap source for bran. Is organic wheat bran necessary or would the rice bran RR shows
 Quote:
RogerRabbit said: In fact, it's also what I use to supplement sawdust blocks for my shiitake farm, and I'm steam sterilizing 100 pounds per day of supplemented sawdust. It outperforms wheat and oat bran, and is cheaper to boot. It's about 10% the cost of Bobs Red Mill brf. RR
work?
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Edited by tombosley8 (03/27/14 04:52 AM)
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FrankHorrigan
The Inquisition



Registered: 01/04/11
Posts: 10,573
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Re: How Frank makes sawdust bags from fuel pellets. [Re: tombosley8] 1
#19754537 - 03/27/14 09:37 AM (9 years, 9 months ago) |
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Why would supplemented sawdust colonize faster? More nutrients = slower colonization time. Supplementing provides better yields.
Any organic wheat bran you can find at a grocery store works fine, you are way too worried about these insignificant details
-------------------- Yes, you can bump my old threads with a question. Here is how I get things done. You should take a look. Frank's tips and tricks. Updated on 3/21/14
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Forrester
aspiring sociopath


Registered: 02/05/13
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Re: How Frank makes sawdust bags from fuel pellets. [Re: FrankHorrigan] 1
#19754549 - 03/27/14 09:40 AM (9 years, 9 months ago) |
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Quote:
FrankHorrigan said: Why would supplemented sawdust colonize faster? More nutrients = slower colonization time.
There's a lot of professional growers around here that would disagree with that. I don't have a lot of experience supplementing as I don't have a flow hood but ALeon for example grows professionally and says the reverse is true
-------------------- Repugnant is a creature who would squander the ability to lift an eye to heaven, conscious of his fleeting time here. ------------------- Have some medicinal mushrooms and want to get the most out of them? Try this double extraction method.
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FrankHorrigan
The Inquisition



Registered: 01/04/11
Posts: 10,573
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Re: How Frank makes sawdust bags from fuel pellets. [Re: Forrester] 1
#19754559 - 03/27/14 09:43 AM (9 years, 9 months ago) |
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In all my work it holds true, except with coffee grounds, those speed it along. I guess it depends on the species
-------------------- Yes, you can bump my old threads with a question. Here is how I get things done. You should take a look. Frank's tips and tricks. Updated on 3/21/14
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mycoloco
less and less a stranger



Registered: 06/20/13
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Re: How Frank makes sawdust bags from fuel pellets. [Re: FrankHorrigan] 1
#19754599 - 03/27/14 09:54 AM (9 years, 9 months ago) |
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Supplemented Shiitake blocks colonize much faster than non-supplemented blocks, in my experience.
-------------------- The universe is an illusion of the living.
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Forrester
aspiring sociopath


Registered: 02/05/13
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Re: How Frank makes sawdust bags from fuel pellets. [Re: FrankHorrigan] 1
#19754642 - 03/27/14 10:02 AM (9 years, 9 months ago) |
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Quote:
FrankHorrigan said: I guess it depends on the species 
I would imagine it does to a degree, it would make sense anyway. Probably depends on the supplement as well. There's always so many factors to consider...
-------------------- Repugnant is a creature who would squander the ability to lift an eye to heaven, conscious of his fleeting time here. ------------------- Have some medicinal mushrooms and want to get the most out of them? Try this double extraction method.
Edited by Forrester (03/27/14 10:08 AM)
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tombosley8
Full on... Bossley Baggins



Registered: 10/14/13
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Re: How Frank makes sawdust bags from fuel pellets. [Re: FrankHorrigan] 1
#19761450 - 03/28/14 07:16 PM (9 years, 9 months ago) |
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EDIT: removed unneeded questions(did not pertain or make sense which i rarely do)... it just didn't need to be a part of such an awesome thread
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Edited by tombosley8 (05/21/14 02:24 PM)
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BlackDogJesus
Bacon


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Re: How Frank makes sawdust bags from fuel pellets. [Re: FrankHorrigan] 1
#24157281 - 03/12/17 08:45 PM (6 years, 10 months ago) |
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Awesome, I can't wait to try these as soon as my spores take!!!
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