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- #121
Here's my version of the very long fermenting thread. Buckets are free, food grade, at most of your walmart, meijer, Kroger etc.. Just ask at the deli or bakery for their empty buckets... If they don't have any, check another store. Soo not paying for something the stores throw away! Its what works for me, but tweak it as you find what works for you! Main things are.. stir it, keep it warm, replace the grains daily..I am using cracked corn too, to keep my ferment going, its the cheapest right now. I have used scratch, and even wild bird seed depending on whats available and has good grains. I added UNPASTEURIZED Apple Cider Vinegar to my first batch. You can find it at Walmart (Heinz) and several other groceries. Bragg's, vita-cost, there's a bunch of them out there. filled the bucket 1/2 full with the grains, Add a "glug"maybe 1/4 cup true measure of the ACV. added lukewarm water an inch or 2 from the top. You need the unpasteurized with the "mother" to get a fast start. I keep mine in a 5 gallon frosting bucket i got free from meijer bakery. lids don't matter, you can use a towel or cheesecloth to keep things out of it. You want an "airy" cover, don't seal it tight if you do get a lid. Stir maybe 2x a day, more if you think of it...by the 3rd day, you will see grey film, almost looks like a spiderweb on top. The film is the "mother" and that's what you need! Stir it in! Yeast won't give you the probotics. and you can do it with just the grain but it takes a month or longer to get it going. keep it in a warmer room. My stuff is in the laundry room by the furnace, stays about 75 degrees or so. Once the ferment is active, use the liquid to start your feeds. I have the same bucket going since august, give my birds about 3 cups of the fermented seed with the liquid and match the layer feed at 9 cups, (3:1) using a 2 gallon bucket. top off with water just above the level of the feed and stir. I use 2 - 2 gallon buckets so the feed will ferment a day before its fed out.
I set up my feed buckets for all the critters a day ahead. ( for me, that's a total of 10 buckets plus the FF grain makes 11) The pigs get 5 gal of feed, 1/2 gal of FF to 2 gal hog feed. alpaca, 1/4 cup ferment to 3 cup feed. the birds all get 3 to 1. Cats and dog etc.. I just watch and see how they look, feel their sides and check them all every few days. Even my most spindly looking barn cat is a chub now, and her coat shines, She has filled in well and isn't bony anymore. Its made a difference in all of the animals I have. Pigs still have some odors, but even the chicken poop boards and poop patrol for my dog doesn't gag me! I spend a lot less on feed now, use less, and save trips to the co-op. Hope this helps! Its really easy once you get started, I just have a lot of different animals here so its a little more involved for me.
