Slant stoppers

I ordered some petri dishes last night and the site had test tubes on sale for dirt cheep so I ordered some to use as slants. The only problem is they don't have stoppers. I was thinking I could probably find some cheap cork ones, but would that work? Any other ideas?

I would not use cork, as it would be nearly impossible to sanitize. It also continues to breathe and pass unknown sized particles.

You could use something like these: http://www.graphicice.com/index.php/action/prodspec/itemID/502478803
However, the innoculated slants will build up a slight pressure (carbonation) that will try to push the stopper out of the tube. You will need some external means of capturing the stopper.

These tubes make life much easier: http://morebeer.com/view_product/19905//Slant_Tube

You can continue to re-use them many times. A small investment that will pay itself back many times over.

Wouldn't the pressure cooker sterilize them?

I saw those stoppers, the thing that crossed my mind was would they be ok with the heat of the cooker?

Yeah I'll probably get some of those next time I place an order.

i understand you want to limit oxygen uptake to the yeasties to aid in hibernation. im using 30mL testies like the ones linked. they look good but you can get them cheaper on ebay. i got 20 for about $15 shipped. iirc.

unrelated: i didn't realize 1mL is 1cc. so my honda has a 1590mL powerplant!

mordantly said:

i understand you want to limit oxygen uptake to the yeasties to aid in hibernation. im using 30mL testies like the ones linked. they look good but you can get them cheaper on ebay. i got 20 for about $15 shipped. iirc.

unrelated: i didn't realize 1mL is 1cc. so my honda has a 1590mL powerplant!

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Well even if you half fill your slant there's still going to be 15mL of air in there, and given the small amount of cells that'd go a long way. Also as the yeast make CO2 a small amount of pressure will build pushing air out, not sucking it in.

The other thought I had was maybe tin foil with something to hold it in place.