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autoclaving wood



Davis posted about autoclaving driftwood.

It was mentioned that the wood was burnt in the process...?  Working in a
laboratory, I have access to an autoclave and have used it on driftwood
when I had bad case of black beard algae and wanted to transfer the wood to
a separate tank.  I can't see how autoclaving would burn your wood.  I
routinely autoclave dry wood like toothpicks without any problem using a 20
minute "dry cycle".  For wet wood I have used the "liquid cycle", but I
don't think that the type of cycle matters.

Three hours of autoclaving is a LONG time.  20 minutes would likely be
sufficient to do the job.  I don't know if the thickness of the wood would
be a problem.  Even if it were, external sterilization would probably be
all you really need.  It's not at all surprising that the silicone failed.
Many plastics and adhesives will fail under the high temperatures of
autoclaving.

-Carmen

Carmen C. Robinett      Berkeley, CA   (510) 642-5971