r/Kombucha

First time trying to make my own scoby. I made a gallon size starter of sweet black tea and used two bottles of GT Synergy Gingeraid with the intention of making 5 gallons of kombucha to keg as I am a home brewer who is cutting back on beer and looking at other cool and fun beverages to make. Last night I went to take a sample of the liquid with a straw through the side of the kombucha. The scoby separated off the side of the jar and ultimately sunk to the bottom. Will this be ok and will my scoby continue to develop even though it has sank? Should I pour off some and refeed, trying to place the scoby on the top of the new starter? My concern is it looks quite thin and I don’t know how to handle that. Not sure if it will tear apart when trying to pull it out. Any feedback is appreciated. The first four pictures were from last night before I took the straw sample. The next two are from today showing it sunk to the bottom. Oh I started this on 7/22

My partner got sick and we forgot about the scoby for almost a month 🤦🏻‍♂️ this is mold, right?

Thanks for your help! I may have let the first ferment go too long

Ciao a tutti!! Sono una studentessa di design e per passione ho iniziato a coltivare lo scoby. A parte il barattolo che uso come starter in cui ho i miei dischetti di scoby e che uso per la kombucha, ho provato a sperimentare per avere a disposizione più pellicole e sperimentare con biomateriali.
Qualcuno di voi ha sperimentato con la pellicola di scoby e altre combinazioni. Ho provato a massaggiare una delle pellicole ancora fresche (già sciacquata) con una soluzione di acqua distillata, glicerina e alginato di sodio e poi immergerla in acqua distillata e lattato di calcio, al momento sto capendo come secca ma sono molto curiosa di sperimentare per trovare la consistenza e le qualità di materiale migliore per poterla utilizzare come pelle. fatemi sapere se avete provato qualcosa o se conoscete paper o siti dove posso fare ricerca 🙏🏻🙏🏻

idk what to think it’s my first time 😭

First fermentation was done with black tea, and it developed mold. Mold was seen on day 7-8 of the fermentation both times. I don't know what I am doing wrong?!
I’m fermenting it in a kitchen cupboard/dark space. I sterilized the jars by placing them in hot water before starting.
The first time, I used a metal cap and burped the jar almost every day. I also sanitized my hands before burping it. The second time, I covered the jar with a muslin cloth instead.
What’s confusing me is that I used the same jar and the same process in Pokhara, and it worked fine. I’m now doing it in Kathmandu, and I’ve gotten mold twice. Could this be due to differences in temperature, humidity, water quality, or something else about the environment in Kathmandu? Or is there something in my process that I’m overlooking?
What would you check or change first?

Does this look normal? Is the SCOBY bubbling up normal? This is my first time ever making booch and I really just jumped into it after being gifted a SCOBY.

Whats the deal with ugly cellulose mats? And why don't I always get fizzy froth in my F1 even though F2 yields good carbonation?

This the 6th day, but it was pretty hot. My original scoby has sunk to the bottom, but it seems there are 2 layers on top.

I've been using this brand of frozen juice for a while in my 2nd ferments. I wish they had more flavors than the 3 I can find. It's hard to find pure juices without tons of extra sugar or corn syrup. As I was bottling up my last batch and glad I had just one more 1/4 cup to add to my last bottle, I realize this whole time and every time, I had been using it fully concentrated. Just left to melt and then measured out and put into the bottle. It's been pretty good, now I'm worried how this next batch will turn out if I dilute this to regular juice strength first. Guess I'll find out in a couple of weeks.

As the title says, my kombucha is probably contaminated with water kefir. The pellicle looks kind of weird, like it’s growing little strings from the bottom. I still have some starter in a different jar, so I’m can just start over, but I’m wondering if I could just proceed with this one and see what happens.
Something similar is happening to my kefir, it seems to grow a pellicle on top.

Would you still drink this? How should I proceed?

TFW: You get a satisfying pop and a nice foam.

I took a break from brewing about a year ago so it's been a while and I had to order a new scoby. After about 18 days of fermenting, it only has a thin film on top and no full Scoby formed but it's super vinegary now so I feel like it's past bottling time. Why didn't a new Scoby form? And do I just mix this in or what do I do with the thin layer on top? It just breaks up if I touch it.

Hello all,

I’ve read the list and compared my scoby to the pics (mild/yeast/normal). Still unsure but erring on the side of scoby. Would appreciate a little advice from some seasoned professionals (this is my first rodeo)

Tysm!