# Vinegar in FF cultures



## DeeVas (Jul 2, 2005)

OK guys the smell of my FF cultures is really reaking up my room. Ive tried to put honey in the cultures but nothing. Are there different types of vinegars that produce less of a smell. There are tons out there like apple cider, the clear white one, red vinegar and etc does the type of vinegar play a role in the smell. What type of vinegar does everyone use? Thanx


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## amphibianfreak (Jul 21, 2004)

How much are you using?


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## DeeVas (Jul 2, 2005)

1/4 of a cup


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## Guest (Feb 18, 2006)

I use about 3 tbs. of honey for 1 1/2 cups of culture (oatmeal based) it helps alot with the smell not stopping it but making it less ofensive. I also keep mu cultures in a box with small air holes. The flies don't seem to mind the dark and get the air they need along with keeping the smell down. I really only smell them if I'm right next to the box.


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## defaced (May 23, 2005)

I use half water half vinegar. I don't know if you're heating your cultures after you add the vinegar but that will really make the vinegar smell unbearable. I used to boil my media when I made it and it stunk up the whole house. Now I heat everyting but the vinegar and add it later and I don't smell my cultures at all. I use distilled white vinegar. Others have used cider vinegar with good sucess too.



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## DeeVas (Jul 2, 2005)

i use half water and half vinegar in my cultures. whatever vinegar my mom has in the house that week. then i throw it in the microwave for about 40 sec to heat it up. then i let it cool off for about 30 min. So basically dont put the culture in the microwave?


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## defaced (May 23, 2005)

Try putting the culture in the microwave without the vinegar, then add the vinegar after the culture has cooled.



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## booboo (Jan 22, 2005)

I dont know why but my cultures never stink, there may be a slight smell of vinegar but nothing to be a problem even to the most sensitive nose.

I use 1/2 media 1/4cup vinegar and 1/4cup water mybe a lil extra water.

My media is pretty similar to carolinas biological (or whatever its called) so thats what i would use throw in some vitamin powder if you have any extra, but dont waste it while dusting is probably more effective.


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## amphibianfreak (Jul 21, 2004)

Yes, do not boil the vinegar! It will smell and never go away.


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## DeeVas (Jul 2, 2005)

no i mean mine reak. yankee stadium urinals smell better than my FF cultures. i mean im a few feet away and i still get a wiff of them. im gonna try and make a new culture without boiling the vinegar.


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## elmoisfive (Dec 31, 2004)

frogboy13 said:


> no i mean mine reak. yankee stadium urinals smell better than my FF cultures. i mean im a few feet away and i still get a wiff of them. im gonna try and make a new culture without boiling the vinegar.


I think if I had FF cultures that smelled worse than Yankee Stadium urinals I'd be calling the Poison Control hotline.

In all seriousness though, some people do appear to be unusually sensitive to the odor(s) of volatile organic acids, aldehydes and ketones. Hopefully you can sort out what is driving the smell. Perhaps looking into some level of physical isolation for the cultures as in a cabinet might help.

Bill


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## DaSlackMan (Feb 3, 2006)

frogboy13 said:


> no i mean mine reak. yankee stadium urinals smell better than my FF cultures..


Sorry to highjack but that was funny. I about spat my drink on my keyboard!!!!


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## DeeVas (Jul 2, 2005)

ill try and isolate them by putting them in a cabinet. these fruitflies cultures are a pain. at one point i was just puttin water without vinegar which solved the smell but that didnt work out. the top layer of the media would be come to hard and the maggots werent capable of crawling up the container. i just sent out my sis to get vinegar and im gonna try not boiling the vinegar. i use brewers yeast in my median would that cause a smell?


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## sports_doc (Nov 15, 2004)

An interesting side effect of adding sour dough starter to my cultures (as suggested in another thread) is that the cx's now smell like a bakery! even almost 3 weeks out.

I too use vinegar 25%/ apple juice or water 75%

S


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## back2eight (Dec 19, 2005)

frogboy13, I had the same problem. It wasn't a culture that I started, it was one that I ordered. The smell was awful. I could smell it throughout the whole house. I also noticed that it wasn't producing as well. My conclusion was that there was something wrong with the culture and I threw it away. I bought cultrues from a different source and those do not stink and are doing well. Before I threw away the stinky one I started a new culture from it with the same ingredients I used in the other culture. That one is stinking worse than the other one, and I used the same things. My conclusion was that there was something wrong with the culture, and maybe it was moldy or something like that and it transfered to the newly set up culture. If you really think it is the vinegar that is causing the small instead of something wrong in the culture like was the case with mine, then why use vinegar? I think you can buy a mold inhibitor you can add to the cultures, so then you shound't need vinegar. I do not use any vinegar in mine, I just simply add the water and a little yeast. So far no problems.


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## dragonfrog (Feb 16, 2006)

*Sour dough*

Sports-doc,
Do you have a recipe for this sour dough you refer to. Sounds like a good idea to me.
Steve


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## sports_doc (Nov 15, 2004)

easy

1 cup flour
1 tsp sugar
add water to form 'pancake' paste.

let sit out in an open tuperware container covered with a moist kitchen towel for about a week (wet the towel daily). Will start to bubble some and smell like sourdough....

after a week you can use it....about a tsp per FF cx....and store rest in the fridge.

once it runs low, just mix another quick batch of paste, mix it into the old starter, let it sit out 2 days again to 'grow' and back into the fridge...

I actually made mine with raisin water (water after boiling raisins for 15 min), or some say you can use milk instead of water....

could not be easier. picks up the yeast from the air in your kitchen I believe. 

thanks Solly!

S


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## DeeVas (Jul 2, 2005)

so i made 2 FF cultures sat and i already see signs of mold forming. URGHHHHH i just cant win. i tried to put less vinegar guess it didnt work lolol. i might just purchase some mold inhibitor down the line.


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## sports_doc (Nov 15, 2004)

2 tricks

use MORE FF's to start the culture....

use MORE vinegar

or use mold inhibitor ( I think I got mine from Ed's) Methylparaben...some say it slows production so use sparingly...

S


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