To ferment or not to ferment, convince me.

May I jump in here and ask about mold? I've thrown batches away (on the compost so it's not totally wasted) because I didn't stir it enough when it was hot and humid. I'm hearing it's ok to feed it? They've been off of it the last few days, and I am wonder if it's because it's too strong. I recycle the leftover liquid, and it might be getting a little too "ripe." Thoughts? Thanks.


Yes, if you recycle too much of very ripe liquid, it might be too strong, IMO. Lots of folks do that and wonder why their chickens are now turning up their beaks to the FF. If you've ever made sourdough bread, the seasoned folks will discard (or make sourdough pancakes) most of their starter after a while wHEN it gets too sour. Just use a little bit of it when you refill. In fact, the empty wet bucket probably has more than enough beneficial bacteria to seed your new batch. If its too sour, the chickens won't like it. Ever had REALLY sour sourdough bread? It's a puckering experience and not most people's cup of tea.

As per the mold, you can stir it in and wait a few days (if its warm) or just scoop off and compost the moldy feed. If its white mold, chances are pretty good it's just yeast, which is part of the beneficial microorganisms. Google images of white mold and white yeast to see the difference. All the white mold I've seen has really tall mold spores, perhaps 1/4" or more. White yeast can be thin or even 1/8" thick, depending on the kind of yeast. And as far as I know, the white and green molds are not ideal but not really harmful either. It's the darker molds you want to avoid. Around here people scream "black mold!" when it's really just dark brown mold. Black mold is much more common in very hot and humid locations like the Southern USA. Dark brown mold can be more harmful than other forms, but the true black mold is the really nasty stuff. Just what I've learned over the years, I'm not a mold expert, though. Some folks have extreme sensitivity to any molds, so those people probably already know they probably don't want to do any sort of fermenting of anything.

One last thing...yeasts smell "yeasty" and molds smell "moldy". Some yeasts smell more sour, some sweet, but all molds I've ever smelled have been moldy smelling.
 
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Thanks, pdirt. That was a lot of good information you gave. I appreciate the time you took to explain the different molds. I've thrown quite a bit of feed away because of what I thought was harmful. What I had was white bubbles with threads connecting them. I started some fresh stuff this morning, which should suit the birds a little better.
 
Thanks, pdirt. That was a lot of good information you gave. I appreciate the time you took to explain the different molds. I've thrown quite a bit of feed away because of what I thought was harmful. What I had was white bubbles with threads connecting them. I started some fresh stuff this morning, which should suit the birds a little better.


What you had certainly sounds like yeast, perhaps even Kahm yeast, which is common in lactofermention. In any case, not something you need or even want to toss. The yeasts are part of the fermentation! Glad to know you feel more prepared for the future :)
 

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