Here is the deal. I have a duel line pump that I got from bass pro shop. From the figures I looked at when I got, it should out out enough air to brew like 40 gallons of tea, I use it in a 5 gallon bucket. I have brewed probably 6 batches (ewc and compost) all smells good, no issues.
This batch after 25.5 hours smells like silicone caulking. I used rainwater, that I aerated for a little before starting the brew. A tbs of kelp meal and a tbs of molasses as food for the microbes. One open air line under the paint strainer, and one in the strainer.
I have already brewed a batch with this batch of castings I got from a local place. It turned out fine. What happened? Any guesses?
Their website says 5.0 stl/min. I know I founds a common measurement when I first looked it up, wth is stl?
Edit: yes, I assume this is a anaerobic bacteria smell. @Tinytuttle Anybody else need added?
I think your fine it might be the worm casting what they were made with I’d say it’s not anaerobic so your safe when it goes bad it will smell of high sulfur ,rotten egg ,sure you know the smell. pumps are rated volumes /min for instance I believe mine puts out 45 liters of /min that STL I have no idea [quote=“Badger, post:1, topic:32929”]
else need added?
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I say you could go higher on the kelp like a cup or so… Iv been playing around with amendmentS like some of the DTE all purpose in the teas you could even take a piss in the bucket at the end of the cycle ! Lol
I just applied tea to freaking everything in the yard even my trees I I can already tell a difference
I believe tea applications can help deter pest problems as well ,carry on @Badger you doing the right thing and will be rewarded!
The anaerobic bacteria would need time in an area with no oxygen to develop to the point of smelling, and then it would smell real bad (hydrogen sulfide) if you disturbed it. I suspect that it could be the rainwater because sometimes you get a lot more dissolved dust in it that settles down on the roof. Silicone caulk smells like ammonia to me. That would mean that you might not have enough aerobic bacteria present when you start the tea. Nothing is breaking it down so waste goes right to ammonia, then aerobic bacteria converts it to nitrite, another aerobic bacteria turns it into nitrate. Anaerobic bacteria would be responsible for breaking up the nitrate called Anammox to produce an end product that results in dinitrogen gas and nitrous oxide. Make sure you are using some fresh compost, garden or forest topsoil to get the bacteria going. Hope this helps.
My wife said she would compare the smell to wine that was getting ready to go bad. She used to work at a liquor store, so I think she would know that smell.
A-2 model
@Badger I Don’t want to seem to burst your bubble here unless the pic is misleading but I don’t think that pump is near big enough, it probably can keep minnows alive in a 5 gallon bucket but not big enough to brew compost teas here’s is one that’s more Than twice the size I run and probably could do a 50 gallon barrel the air we pump into teas I compare it to that of the surface like a hot tub as far as turbulence goes it really has churn the entire water profile I paid about 50$ for my active aqua at the grow shop. If I’m right yes your compost tea can go anaerobic if your are still actively aerating it. This might be what caused the the smell.
I would be wary about adding TOO much kelp, just from some reading I’ve been doing, Tim Wilson has independently tested different ingredients in brewing aacts and recommends max 0.25% of your brew be kelp meal.
“2/ that kelp meal initially delays all microbial development in a liquid but does feed fungi and bacteria/archaea following 24 hours. If too much is used the effects are suppressive. From this I garnered that it should be used very sparingly and one must be prepared to brew a little longer if using this foodstock. Again, this does not mean that kelp meal is not a good thing to use in/on soil. It definitely is”
I did not see the pump, but I think it makes total sense. Not enough oxygen for the bacteria to multiply. Funny enough, you could seal the bucket and ferment it until Fall, then use it.
Yea I follow Tim as well and dip into his information from time to time … Iv built his mini Microbulator just never seem to use it much but maybe I should I always like the idea of splashing water down in top of the surface maybe this increases DO considerably more … maybe I should try a side by side comparison?
I just found it super odd that I had brewed multiple other batches with no issue, and then all of a sudden, this batch sucks. We’ll, this caps off a rough week. I haven’t even got a good sunset Pic in the middle of this saharan dust. Silver lining is we go to the lake tomorrow, until Sunday. That’s exactly what I need.
Funny part is one review on Amazon had a guy saying it was perfect for act in a 5 gallon bucket. Maybe I will try teas again next year. I plan to keep my gonads, and if I spend any more on growing pot this year, my wife may take them. Lesson learned, thanks guys.
Oh the bacteria are multiplying for sure so much that there consuming all the DO when o2 falls ,more of the anaerobic take over and take things the other way which is not good at times when you start seeing more ciliates and and flagellate In the brew that’s a good indicator That it’s going anaerobic.
It very well could be that you never really got your bacterial counts up to where they should of been or as high as you may have wanted … the nutrients in the brew is still beneficial and still helps plants grow with a nutrient rich tea ! Don’t give up ! Use your nose it’s the best instrument to tell us things in what’s going on.
It’s just that the air stone goes to shit on a cheap pump because it gets clogged with shit from the air and film that dries on it. Quality pumps will have the intake screened or filtered internally. Having more power means you won’t have to worry about that so much.
Not sure if ya have seen of my microscope pics of bacteria before I even put them on a slide I put just 1 ml of tea in 9 mils of water, at times I could dilute several ten fold times just to get it in a countable range in a typical field of view , when they say theres more Bactria in a typical gram of soil than there is people on the earth just blows my mind … it’s the truth!
