On Nov 19, 3:37 pm, wrote:
Thanks for the replies.

The original pump I used came with a 5-gallon aquarium tank. I used a
5-gallon bucket to brew my tea so I thought I was in good shape.

Here's the process I used: I filled a 5-gallon bucket with water. I
took the aquarium pump and attached gang-valves to four separate
bubbling stones. I turned on the pump and let it run for a day to
eliminate any chlorine in the water. Then I put some nice, sweet-
smelling finished compost in a cheese cloth and set it on top of the
bubblers. So the beneficial bacteria could have a little chow, I added
a few teaspoons of molasses and stirred twice a day. It began to
foam, but man did it stink! So, where did I go wrong? My only guess
is that the pump was too wimpy to aerate the brew. Or perhaps that I
put the compost in cheese cloth instead of just dumping it in the
bucket? I hate wasting perfectly good compost, so any advice before I
try again would be appreciated.

Oh, and can I dump this awful concoction back on the compost pile?

Okay, a couple of things:

1. I would not dump this material back onto your compost pile.
Basically, you've established that you've brewed up a bunch of
anaerobic organisms that you don't want on your plants. So why
inoculate your compost with them? Better to dispose of it and start
fresh. Did you know that plants can't tolerate alcohols beyond 1 part
per million? There just isn't room for these organisms in a healthy
soil food web, and you certainly don't want to introduce them
artificially through bad compost tea.

2. I have not seen any data supporting the use of cheese cloth. I do
know for a fact that 400 microns is the optimal mesh size to put the
compost into when using a mesh bag. This allows the fungi and
protozoa to escape, but keeps most of the particulate in the bag. You
can brew without any bag at all, as long as you have adequate aeration
so the compost doesn't just settle at the bottom of the bucket.

3. Aeration is key! You need to keep the dissolved oxygen levels
above 6% throughout the entire brewing cycle. This isn't easy to
measure without a meter, but to give you an idea, in our brewer we are
raising the water column over 2 inches. This means that when I turn
on the aeration, the water level is raised up over 2 inches higher
from the bubbles.

4. How much compost did you use? I use 1 heaping cup that is a
combination of 3 composts: vermicompost, alaska humus, and a fungal
compost. This increases the diversity of organisms and ensures that I
have a good starting group of microbes. All the composts have been
lab tested, so I know they contain the organisms I want. You may want
to consider adding another compost, but all you need is maybe 2 cups
total or 1 lbs. worth.

5. Molasses is a complex sugar source that tends to select for
bacteria. The fungi are what provide the disease suppression and many
of the other beneficial functions. Do you have any humic acid or
liquid kelp?

6. Air stones can be problematic. Make sure you clean them
thoroughly with hydrogen peroxide and wipe off any remaining biofilm.
Otherwise you'll sabotage your next batch before you even start
brewing. Data has shown that very little biofilm can significantly
reduce the levels of beneficial biology in your tea.

I know this is a lot of info. There's a lot that goes into making the
tea. Hope this helps though, and check out that link I posted!

~Tad