Hi Folks - first time post here and a big fan of the videos.  I'm trying to optimize my sterilization process.  I'm currently using 23 quart pressure cookers with 4 x 6 pound blocks in each.  I've seen lots of guesses about how long folks should cook their blocks, from 30 minutes to 3 hours,  but has anyone actually measured this or have a calculation to estimate how long you need to cook 6lb blocks at 15 bar to have the centers reach 212F for 30 min?  Btw, my substrate is masters mix.  Thank you in advance!

These are pretty old. A 250ml LC jar was inoculated with a couple milliliters of Master syringe. 2 days to settle into the jar and then kept at about 40°. I've noticed only that their height is about 50% of the first time I used them. I assume that this is possibly the strain getting tired but I don't know enough to say that yet. All the same the equally old Mound 4 did just about the same as it did. I'm starting to see the same strains performing different in different grow-vessels and I'm starting to see Variegated Cordys do some very cool stuff after a year. My point is only that I'm starting to log this stuff down to weighing everything down to the cake itself after harvest to see if I can repeat what's already happened as well as possibly figure out if I can rely on my own notes to know which can take storage, best vessel and what yields the best. I hope to make my own "expiration dates" from this and just know what is worth the fridge space and how far I can take various strains. Also switching to oats has been pretty good. 

Holy shit right, you folks weren't messing around......Kong is so fitting for these monsters 🤌

Sweaty blocks

Hi guys! So happy to be part of this awesome weird community!

So recently i've been noticing quite a few blocks in our incubation space "sweating" quite a lot (see picture). I think I heard in one of the episodes that overly sweaty bags is probably a sign of contamination but I wanted to hear your thoughts on the issue... What's normal metabolism vs. contamination i guess.

Thanks!!

Hello mushfam!
That steam generator episode was great! Thanks for that video. Those steam generators are getting sold out now. lol!
Has anyone tried these electric water softeners to pretreat the water before entering steam generator to protect element?

here is a link to example:
https://a.co/d/9kFHmKc
but if if link doesn't work or want to search it up on amazon instead or if having trust issues with links these days, it is listed as "iSpring ED2000 Whole House Water Descaler, Alternative Electronic Salt-Free Hard Water Conditioner, Reduces Limescale Prevent Deposits Build-up, Different from a Water Softener"...would this work as good as the inline water descaler product Eric mentioned?

I'm hoping to pipe in steam to a 300gal stock tank after it is as insulated as I can possibly make it to be and add supports put in on the bottom of tank to keep bags off from the bottom. Probably find a flat bottom heavy duty floor dolly to cart it around. I found one again on the all too convenient amazon website that is almost the entire length and width of the stock tank rated for 2,000lbs. Hopefully that is enough weight capacity to work.

At least the first attempts grew something outside. Pretty sure these are little Nebrodini oysters growing off the unsuccessful indoor blocks. Kind of cool all the same. Might throw a block in a mono tub outside soon before it gets warm. 

Idk if they added it to my feed/algorithm due to the episode or just as some good news for the mushroom world but I was presented this article today:

https://m.newtimesslo.com/food/california-mushroom-growers-are-backing-a-bill-that-would-only-allow-mushrooms-that-are-fully-cultivated-in-the-state-to-bear-california-grow-14890528

Hello mush community! I just saw the episode Steam Generation and I was wondering can someone put the link of that Chinese steam generator that Erik was showing because everything that I found is not as cheap as he mentioned in this episode?

Okay so what is the soak time for an individual whole oat kernel at 15 psi 250F, not in a bag just full rolling boil loose in the unit under pressure?

No thermal lag or plastic bag to obstruct steam...
Instant ? 1 min? 10m? 

Seems in that particular scenario it should be pretty much sterile by the time it comes up to pressure and temp then comes back down with little to no hold time.

Lions Mane Problem Pulling From Block…

Hey guys! I’m having problems with my lions mane pushing away from the blocks… I’ve been growing lions for 4 years now and I’ve never seen this happen until 6 months ago.. I’ve asked a few farms but can’t seem to find an answer.

I just moved into our new fruiting room, last week I had a perfect harvest of 12 blocks, this week half of my blocks are pulling off the blocks again. I don’t think I have any pictures here, but even the blocks that are fruiting from the top of the blocks rather than side are pushing off and upwards also. I’m fruiting two different strains from capnstem together right now.

I also notice a few blocks that have excess metabolite build up in the bottom of the bags, so far it doesn’t look like those fruits are pushing away from the block, but if I remember correctly in the deep dive video you guys mentioned that can happen due to using to much spawn?

has anyone experienced this or know what’s going on?