Sterilizer barrels are a great way to ensure that your substrate is free from contaminants. This is especially important for mushroom growers, as these contaminants can ruin all your hard work. The sterilizer barrel achieves this by using the heat transferred from the water at the bottom to permeate upwards and through the substrate killing most of the contaminants that can hide inside your substrate, making sure that your mycelium has a greater chance of survival.With this method, you can be sure that your mushrooms will be healthy and free from any unwanted bacteria or fungi.
If you’re a beginner mushroom grower, then the next step in your journey is to obtain a sterilizer barrel. This is an essential tool for growing mushrooms as it helps to sterilize the substrate quickly and efficiently so that you don’t have to wait days for just a few blocks to be done using a pressure cooker. Having a sterilizer barrel allows you to sterilize your substrate bags in bulk, going from 4 bags in 24 hours to 20 bags or more depending on your barrels size, and can be a complete game changer when it comes to mushroom farming.
You can buy mushroom sterilizing barrels online but they can be quite expensive, ranging in the thousands of dollars for a barrel with an element at the bottom, a switch and a float valve. Alternatively you can build one yourself for just a few hundred dollars.
Check out this great video made by Jessie Campbell an experienced mushroom grower.
“Don’t waste your money on an overpriced Bill Bob Barrel when you can just as easily make your own at home” – Jessie Campbell