Maybe someone else has thought of this but I thought Id throw it out there....
I've found from past experience that if I keep sugar water mixed up (I usually keep a milk jug full) I can simply do "water changes" on my DIY CO2 Generator and keep it going for months.
Simply pour out about 1/2 of the mixture when it just starts to slow and replace with fresh sugar water. The mix will stall for afew hours and youll be back in business. Maybe a smaller waterchange more often would be best to keep the stall down to a minimum.
I dont use CO2 anymore except once in awhile starting a new tank just to give in that extra head start but this worked WELL for me in the past. This way one pinch of yeast will last pretty much forever as long as you dont let the alcohol build up too much and kill off your culture. I seem to be able to keep it steadier this way than mixing a new batch each time... with a new batch it always took a good 24hours to get kicked off good.
Just like our tanks... it just takes a waterchange to remove toxic chemicals, in this case alcohol, instead of doing a 100% change and having to "cycle the tank" again
it has also occurred to me before to add afew tablespoons of activated carbon to the mixture to help absorb alcohol since most of us keep a jar/box on hand...... but I've never tried it. Anyone have any thoughts on this?
-Justin
One Mynds Eye