- The mud rose an inch, at least
- The mud is also more porous-looking
- The water column rose
- The cellophane looks like it is about to burst open and explode again
- The air column is now less than half and inch thick
The column looked like THIS today:
I emailed Dr. Sun to inquire about the condition of my column. Here is the following correspondence:
Me: Dear Dr. Sun: I made my Winogradsky column about 2 weeks ago, but I keep coming across the same problem: Although I keep filling it up with mud 3/5 of the way, water about an inch and a half high, and then an inch of air space, my column keeps "bursting" and the water level rises, and I've had to rebuild it. Is this normal?
Dr. Sun: I don't think there's anything "normal" about the column. You must have a lot of gas-producing organisms growing. If you gently bang the column to let the air come up, can you smell what kind of gas it is? That actually sounds very exciting!
Me: Dear Dr. Sun: Okay, thank you for the feedback.
Also, different tutorials say different things. Are there supposed to be slits in the cellophane fir gas exchange, or no slits so that it is an anaerobic process?
Dr. Sun: I don't think there's anything "normal" about the column. You must have a lot of gas-producing organisms growing. If you gently bang the column to let the air come up, can you smell what kind of gas it is? That actually sounds very exciting!
Me: Dear Dr. Sun: Okay, thank you for the feedback.
Also, different tutorials say different things. Are there supposed to be slits in the cellophane fir gas exchange, or no slits so that it is an anaerobic process?
Dr. Sun: I think even with gas exchange, there will still be anaerobic zones toward the bottom. Without constant mixing, oxygen is typically consumed faster than it can dissolve into the column.
Me: Ah, okay that makes sense!
I actually didn't puncture any holes.
Do you suggest I do? Or would you prefer the gases collect with an unpunctured top? It seems to keep bursting anyway...I apologize for the onslaught of inquiries, and I appreciate your feedback.
Dr. Sun: Is there any color developing? If there are signs of oxygenic photosynthesis (like a green layer of cyanobacteria), then you have endogenous oxygen production. Puncturing the holes will help relieving the oxygen. If you have sulfate reducers making sulfide, then the gas it emits will smell like rotten eggs. Maybe you can stick a hollow coffee stirrer through the cover to help the gas escape the column.
Me: There is currently no color developing, but for the first week, the smell was horrible...like rotten eggs. But the smell neutralized within 5 days. Now it smells more like worn socks. There is still no color in the soil itself, but it does keep rising and getting more porous...would you like a link to my blog to see the pictures?
Me: There is currently no color developing, but for the first week, the smell was horrible...like rotten eggs. But the smell neutralized within 5 days. Now it smells more like worn socks. There is still no color in the soil itself, but it does keep rising and getting more porous...would you like a link to my blog to see the pictures?
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