Yeast Culturing Equipment

[Wolfy]

I'd always been put off by the "POISON" printed on bottles of metho
and since using for yeast cuturing would end up in the beer we drink
- or would the amount ending up in the beer be so low as to be
negligible?

I'd be curious to know if any poison - that one can readily buy in a shop - is potent enough to be harmful if 1 drop is diluted into 20L of wort that is then boiled for an hour.
(Botulin toxin is one of the most powerful known toxins: about one microgram is lethal to humans, but the botulinum toxin is destroyed by thorough cooking over the course of a few minutes).

Besides as manticle said the metho is burned away in the flaming process.

 

[Golani51]

Is there any reason to use an innoculation loop over a syringe for example?
I would have thought a syringe ideal. It doesn't get messy, costs pennies and can be bought at any chemist, sterile, and the yeasties are stored inside so there would be no issues with contamination from air and dust. A drip or two on each slant and all done.

R

 

[Golani51]

BTW Is anyone doing a yeast swap (any forum topic on it I dont know about?)?
I am happy to get a new smack pack to exchange for some slants.

 

[Wolfy]

Is there any reason to use an innoculation loop over a syringe for example?

A rounded-end loop is better for streaking slants and plates because it allows easy collection of the yeast sample and will not cut/scar/indent the surface of the agar when streaked (so the yeast colonies will grow on the agar surface and not in the 'holes' or 'grooves' cut by the tip of the sharp syringe-needle).
If taking samples of liquefied yeast in solution a syringe-needle might be more useful.