Hydei cultures turn to mush!

[Ryan]

My hydei over time keep turning into liquid....why is this? I am using the power mix as of now.

Thanks for any help,
Ryan

[Ed Martin]

Ryan are you giving the power mix a chance to dry out by putting it in the light and giving it enough venitlation after 10 days or so? Also I do not use vinegar for the Hydei because it seems to reduce the yield.

If my cultures get too wet, I usually just add a rolled (like a tube) paper towel.

Ed

[Ryan]

What should i supplement the vinegar with? Also ill try having my hydei infront of a fan or asoemthing to help dry them out, but the oppening to the bottles are small(sobe bottles, got millions)

Thanks for the help!
Ryan

[kleinhanz]

When the media in my cultures do not stick when I shake out flies, I just add more dry media directly to the top. It should wick out a lot of extra moisture. I also use slightly less than the recommended water to mix ratio becuase it's easier to fix a dry culture then a wet one....

[Ed Martin]

Hi Ryan, I just subsitute methyparaben & water for the vinegar in my Hydei cultures. If I am making melanogaster batches I just use the normal mix.
Ed