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Mushrooms, Mycology and Psychedelics > Advanced Mycology
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Polymer "water crystals" and grains
    #2032625 -

This may belong in the advanced forum, if so please move it there.

I was reading the tek on using polymer as a substrate
http://www.shroomery.org/index/par/7999

and i also found a few threads on using it in a casing layer but i didnt see anything on using it with whole grains.

so i was wondering if anyone has used them with grains? or if anyone has any opinions on whether this would work. (environmental concerns aside)

I have three rye berry jars that have seemed to gotten a lil too dry. they are still colonizing but they only seem to be colonizing near the bottom of the jars producing a very thick dense mycellium...



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Re: Polymer "water crystals" and grains [Re: Seraph]
    #2032947 -

flip those rye berry jars over and you should see some more progress in the other direction.

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Re: Polymer "water crystals" and grains [Re: whole9]
    #2035372 -

I dont think flipping the grain jars over would help that much they are whole grains so the issue is more of dryness. I shook them yesterday and have yet to check on them. If nothing has changed i think ill add some sterile water.

I am still more interesting in finding out if anybody has used these polymers with whole grains?


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Re: Polymer "water crystals" and grains [Re: Seraph]
    #2035904 -

hmmm perhaps ill get a few answers in adv. cult...

could a mod please move this thread there?

thanks


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Re: Polymer "water crystals" and grains [Re: Seraph]
    #2036348 -

You could use them, but I'm not sure you need to. If it really is a matter of the grain being too dry, they may colonize just fine (how long has it been anyway) I've always been surprised at how dry grain really can be and still work fine. Also, just injecting sterile water (just a little) may be easier to do with less risk of contam since you can inject it, not open the lid all the way to put the polymers in.

Seeing as how not many if anybody has ever used the polymers like this, something that has been tested in the past is adding a little moistened and sterilized verm. (polymers don't sterilize well, often turning into muck when pc'd).

Now, to the root of the problem, was the grain simply too dry to begin with, or is there something drying them out? What kind of lid/filter arrangement do you have on them, perhaps that is leading to them drying out too soon?


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Re: Polymer "water crystals" and grains [Re: mycofile]
    #2036508 -

i think that they may have been to dry to begin with... the other jars that i have are colonizing just fine (popcorn & WBS) ... fast actually.

There was an obvious difference between the rye in the bottom of the jars and the rye at the top even after shaking. If i do decide to do anything it will mostlikely be injecting sterile water as that is my safest bet.

to be more specific
do the polymers withstand pressure cooking if i were to put them in my grain jars from the beginning? or is it not worth it to even bother with them.


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Re: Polymer "water crystals" and grains [Re: Seraph]
    #2036629 -

PCd water crystal became more goo like but not useless. Couldve been brand specific.

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Re: Polymer "water crystals" and grains [Re: walk]
    #2036777 -

thanks for the replies, glad i was able to get some answers...

i suspected they might turn abit gooey after being pc but i wont really know how they work for me till i give em a try. however considering the ease of using wbs i dont think ill be trying anymore rye for the time being.

thanks again walk and mycofile


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Re: Polymer "water crystals" and grains [Re: Seraph]
    #2037127 -

If you're experimenting with this, it might be worthwhile to try grinding the dry crystals, in addition to leaving them whole.  I also found a goo-ing effect when PC'ing full sized hydrated water crystals.  They're about 1/2 cm^3 or so [at least the ones I tried] but were no longer neat little cubes after melting in the PC.  They formed pockets of goo, more at the bottom than the top.  Ground crystals would hydrate into more of a sludge that could be added [sparingly, of course] to grain with more effective mixing.  Maybe after the crystals melt in the PC it doesn't make a difference.  Might be worth trying.  You can vary some of the parameters with a full load of jars.
Another thing to maybe consider is the fact that these crystals are damn-near contam-proof IME. . .You might be able to get away with adding a few non-pc'd wet crystals during inoculation depending how you do things. 
Adjusting the water content of the grain itself [if even necessary] would be the easiest way to address the problem, but please experiment :smile: 

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Re: Polymer "water crystals" and grains [Re: Suntzu]
    #2045433 -

those crystals are the shit, i use them for my salvia, i think that they would keep the water content just right in your jars


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Mushrooms, Mycology and Psychedelics > Advanced Mycology
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