18 replies to this topic

[simplegood78]

I wish I could claim the research was mine (not really), but it belongs to Vaille Swenson.  She is currently a Virology and Gene Therapy PhD student at the Mayo Clinic.

 

 

In 2019, she wrote her Masters Thesis titled "Assessment and verification of commercially available pressure cookers for laboratory sterilization"

She looked at pressure cookers by Cosori, Gourmia, GoWISE, and Instant Pot.

 

The following table summarized the time needs to sterilize agar and soil water.

 

 

The Instant Pot passed the spore sterilization test, even against known heat resistant Geobacillus stearothermophilus spores.

 

 

A sterilization time of at least 150 mins was required for the Instant Pot to inactivate the spores

(Figure 2), which appeared similar in color and opacity to a spore ampoule sterilized in an

autoclave and the negative control. None of the other pressure cookers inactivated the spores

even with sterilization times of up to 300 minutes, which yielded unsterilized spore ampoules

visually identical to a positive control. These data indicated that the Instant Pot pressure cooker

could sterilize spores to the level of an autoclave, and we infer that it would be capable of

inactivating all other less heat resistant organisms to properly sterilize laboratory items for

research.

 

It took 150 minutes to eliminate that spore.  So I would imagine bags of spawn would require at least 150 minutes, if not longer.

 

The complete thesis can be found --> here for interested parties.

 

 

 

[rockyfungus]

Believe mine only goes up to 120. They work. Done it all in it. Just cramped and the 120 is limiting. When I first started I would double run it for bags 240 mins. 

[dead head jed]

I do grain jars in mine and love that its set and forget. Have left jars sitting on the table for 2 weeks and stay nice snd clean. Unfortunately its when I open them to add cultures for 1.5 sec that they all seems to start growing green.

[ShortcutSlim]

I've searched till my eyes bleed trying to find an answer to the age old question...will quart jars fit in an 8qt Instant Pot,and if so,how many...3 maybe? I'd be ok with that for now. I know all the arguments about electric and all,and I'm not challenging anyone or trying to re-invent the wheel or cause any discontent. :)

 

So,anyone know if an 8qt Instant Pot would hold a couple of quart canning jars?

[DonShadow]

I can fit 1 quart jar with the rack in my 6-quart instant pot Max, but it has to be tilted diagonally because the lid is too low. If the jars could stand upright it would fit 3. It’s very handy if I just need one quick and dirty grain spawn jar. I suspect the 8-quart models would easily fit 3-4 jars standing upright. Maybe someone else can verify that.

FYI, the instant pot Max is a fully automated autoclave. It reaches proper sterilization temperature unlike the other models. For syringes, liquid cultures and agar it is a gem, but the ability to do even just one quart jar is a big perk.

[rockyfungus]

Mines a 6qt too but not Max. I use manual and high pressure and vent for 10ish minutes. I run it extra long as it's only 12 PSI I believe.

I can fit 1 smashed 6lb Bag. Or about 3-4 1/2 pints. The real secret is baby food jars, spice jars and PP tupperware that stacks easily. 

 

Pressure cooker is the gold standard for size and ease of loading/unloading. 

Edited by rockyfungus, 12 March 2022 - 10:24 AM.

[Moonless]

I have a Duo and it works for jars and Tupperware but I never had success when I loaded it up with bags. Now I know you need to double run it for big things.

[rockyfungus]

People swear by keep warm as a pasteurizer. My results are at like 75% success. Lot of failures due to spawn and other variables that I like to experiment with. Lately I've been doing a quick lime soak before keep warm. Never bad to be redundant if you struggle somewhere. 

Past. 50:50 casing. That bag is perfectly folded and then smashed! It'll come out a little screwy, but it's not going to be sealed. 

If I do smaller bags for 2 cycles (240min) it seals perfectly in there!

 

[ShortcutSlim]

Thanks for all the input fellas.The Instant Pot is just sooo convenient. You just haul the thing out and plug it in and that's about as easy as it gets. I went to Amazon and looked up the specifications for 6qt and 8qt replacement bowls,and saw that the difference in height between the 2 models is 1/2". I still don't know if the jars would fit,but a 1/2" might be just enough additional headspace to allow for the jars to stand upright.

 

I don't know how many replies to the question of how many qt canning jars will fit in one of those I have read. Multiple replies about how canning with one is not yet recommended,but not one that said they would or wouldn't actually fit.Frustrating actually.

[DonShadow]

Shortcut—my girlfriend’s roomy has an 8qt. I can check if quarts fit upright in it next time I’m over there and I’ll let you know what I find.

Edited by DonShadow, 12 March 2022 - 06:40 PM.

[ShortcutSlim]

Shortcut—my girlfriend’s roomy has an 8qt. I can check if quarts fit upright in it next time I’m over there and I’ll let you know what I find.

I'd appreciate that @DonShadow

 

I messaged a couple of vendors on Ebay,but most vendors there don't really know much about what they are selling. If I get a honest response to my question,I'll post it for the benefit of all.

 

[ShortcutSlim]

I asked the question on Reddit and got a notice that a Mod deleted it. I swear,I hit submit and it was immediately deleted. wth?

[rockyfungus]

First rule of mycology, reddit is great for the LOLz.

[Moonless]

I asked the question on Reddit and got a notice that a Mod deleted it. I swear,I hit submit and it was immediately deleted. wth?

If you were posting on mushroom growers you might not have used the correct format for the title. You need to add flair in your title.

[SlipperyJack]

I have always sterilized my bran jars and syringes in my InstantPot and never had a problem.

If I remember correctly, I use the PRESSURE COOKER setting and set it for 90 minutes.

[ShortcutSlim]

First rule of mycology, reddit is great for the LOLz.

 It was my first time on reddit. Having my first post deleted wasn't exactly welcoming. :)

 

 

I asked the question on Reddit and got a notice that a Mod deleted it. I swear,I hit submit and it was immediately deleted. wth?

If you were posting on mushroom growers you might not have used the correct format for the title. You need to add flair in your title.

 

I actually posted in the yogurt forum. I had read a post about doing the yogurt in jars,so I figured asking about doing it in qt jars wouldn't cause folks to have heart attacks worrying over me trying to do canning in the IP. (GASP)

 

I have always sterilized my bran jars and syringes in my InstantPot and never had a problem.

If I remember correctly, I use the PRESSURE COOKER setting and set it for 90 minutes.

 

 

So,I hauled out the trusty 6qt IP and tried quart jars in it. I can get 3 to stand upright,but can't use the trivet underneath. I had ordered a thin silicone pad for underneath,but couldn't get the jars to fit using it either. Guess I'll try without anything underneath and see how it goes. It will require lids with RTV and micro-pore tape obviously. Otherwise,an 8qt would be the next option. Before all is said and done I'll be IP poor. Ha ha ha.
 

[SlipperyJack]

I am not sure which size mine is, but I use 250ml jars for my inoculations.

I can fit 3 side-by-side with the trivet.

When I do a grow, I usually inoculate 12 jars, so sterilizing takes a bit of time for me.

Without the trivet I can double stack them, but I am not that brave!

I would rather take my time.

 

 

So,I hauled out the trusty 6qt IP and tried quart jars in it. I can get 3 to stand upright,but can't use the trivet underneath. I had ordered a thin silicone pad for underneath,but couldn't get the jars to fit using it either. Guess I'll try without anything underneath and see how it goes. It will require lids with RTV and micro-pore tape obviously. Otherwise,an 8qt would be the next option. Before all is said and done I'll be IP poor. Ha ha ha.
 

 

[DonShadow]

I've searched till my eyes bleed trying to find an answer to the age old question...will quart jars fit in an 8qt Instant Pot,and if so,how many...3 maybe? I'd be ok with that for now. I know all the arguments about electric and all,and I'm not challenging anyone or trying to re-invent the wheel or cause any discontent. :)
 
So,anyone know if an 8qt Instant Pot would hold a couple of quart canning jars?

Hey Shortcut—as promised I tested out a few jars in my GF’s 8qt instant pot duo.

I was able to fit 3 quart jars with standard canning lids and rings. They have to be arranged so that they don’t interfere with the vent/lock at the back of the lid, so the jars are positioned as they are out of necessity. I also placed a small ceramic plate at the bottom of the pot to simulate the canning wire rack. The plate added a little over 1/2” of height. The lid still fit and sealed just fine. Hope this helps :)



The “canning rack”



Jar clearance without the rack:


And with the rack:


Lid closed:

[ShortcutSlim]

Well done @DonShadow..

 

I really appreciate the in-depth report on the 8qt.The reference to the extra half inch was helpful as well. I bought a silicone mat for the bottom of my pot to allow a little more headspace,while giving a buffer between the bottom of the pot and the jars. I did 2 qt jars that way with my 6qt. I also was able to use a washcloth in the place of the mat,but neither affected the fit of the jars. Like you said,the jars do need to be placed so as to avoid interference with the vent and whatnot. I can get 3 jars to fit and still close the lid,but not if using either the mat or washcloth.

 

Thank you for this.

 

Shortcut.