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Asked by gearhead240 ·July 17, 2018 ·13.5k readers

Selectively breeding aerobic ULC Microbes

It is my understanding that the ULC methods were designed to be utilized with as little equipment as possible and to be super easy so that everyone around the world could implement them. My belief is that what is always the cheapest and easiest..might not produce the best outcomes for each farmer's particular needs. I do think ULC microbes are amazing from my own personal experiences. That being said, if I figured out that my regular ULC Microbes peak during this time of year in my location at about 27 hours, could I add aeration and/or stirring methods to a batch in order to cultivate more aerobic dominate microbes and just use my 27 hour baseline that works for my normal ULC microbes? Is this counter productive even if I am trying to bring in more fungal aerobic microbes while I try and hone my skills in regular KNF Microbe/IMO techniques?

The answer

Drake Weinert L4 Instructor · provisional Foundation · Jul 17, 2018 ✓ Marked as the answer
ULC Microbes are predominantly aerobic (or facultatively anaerobic, which is not much different for KNF applications)! The bubble rings form because the microbes are swimming around and they create convection currents that slowly cycle all the water up to the surface where they take in oxygen. However when the population peaks, then other things start to happen and the microbes that take over are anaerobic and they stop circulating the water. You will notice a smell change happen and this is an indicator of aerobic vs anaerobic microbes in predominance. The bubble rings are also an indicator of what the water is doing in terms of movement. I think stirring or agitating the water may inhibit the growth of some microbes and your time table may not be the same as the static tank. One would have to use a microscope to verify this scientifically. If you are concerned about the amount of oxygen in the water, there is a device called a Bacterial Mineral Water machine, and this is one of the better ways to get oxygen + minerals + microbes into the water.  

From the KNF library

From the KNF library Drafted by Claude from Office Hours and the books · Sep 2026 · 6 sources

Drake recommends aiming at aerobic microbes and letting the anaerobic ones arrive on their own. (Office Hours Ep. 102, 22:30)

For fungal aerobics, Drake looks for wispy gray growth in an IMO collection. He avoids mostly yellow anaerobic ones. (Office Hours Ep. 138, 46:48) He also brews worm compost hot and aerobic to grow chitin-eating microbes. (Office Hours Ep. 17, 1:04:15)

Air matters in piles. Too much moisture blocks air, and actinobacteria take over instead of aerobic microbes. (Office Hours Jul 2025, 32:33)

Watch your clock and your nose. In JMS, anaerobic zombie putrefaction microbes take over from the worker microbes after 3 to 5 days. (Office Hours Ep. 42, 47:40) For JMS, Drake says a sweet or sourdough smell means it's good. Rotten egg or vomit means it went anaerobic. (Office Hours Ep. 28, 47:13)

The library does not say whether aerating or stirring a ULC batch shifts its population. It does not say whether your 27-hour peak would hold if you did.

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