killing mold via ultraviolet light - biologist needed

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fumo bro

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For most of my pipe smoking career, I have always purchased tobacco in sealed tins. Recently, for the first time I ordered in bulk: 2 pounds of SG FVF, 1 pound G&H Brown Irish Twist, 3 pounds of Iwan Ries flake tobacco. I transferred the bulk tobacco to snap-lid jars with a rubber seal - so I know that the tobacco is well sealed.

My main concern now is mold. I have seen mold grow before in old-opened tins of Edgeworth Slices, Rattray's Marlin Flake, etc. Since I have spent a few hundred bucks on bulk tobacco, I would hate to have it destroyed by mold.

I know that Ultraviolet light (or "Black light") can be used to kill microorganisms such as molds, bacteria and some viruses. So I thought that I could protect my jarred tobacco from mold by using an ultraviolet lamp. Could this be a viable and/or a practical means of eradicating and/or preventing the growth of mold? If so, what setup would I need (i.e., wattage and frequency of UV-light)?

I would greatly appreciate if anyone could shed some LIGHT on this topic. :lol:
 
If it does kill bacteria, I would worry about it harming the ones that actually do the aging of the tobacco.
 
Got to say I think you could save your worries if you buy what I use; a Seal-A-Meal Vacuum sealer. It has thick plastic bags you can use or just seal mason jars and even re-use the lids. I don't know and can't say that mold would still get in, but I would think it would be hard to mold in a vacuum?

Maybe someone else here can tell us as I bought 2 1/2 pounds of 2015 and sealed it up in 3 parts in the plastic bags, but am thinking about moving it to a couple of Qt. jars.

Skip
 
Hello fumo bro.. I think you will have problems killing mold with UV light.. Here is a link to tell you why.. Read down on the page.. You are better using Ozone..

UV Light n Mold Info

And as far as killing Bacteria here is another link that explains exposure levels and duration information using ultraviolet light.. Hope it helps Brother...


Ultraviolet Light & Bacteria
 
I would say dont over think this. Just use clean mason jars and make sure the rubber seal is good. Tighten the lid down and your good I have jars that are 15yrs old and have had no problems.
 
I would venture that those blends should be fine if they're going straight from packaging to jars. As long as the temp stays below 75 and the as long as the relative humidity inside the jar is 70% or lower at 70 degrees mold will not grow. I have an open jar right now in my cigar humidor of FVF to bring it up to 70% before I seal it so it's at optimal moisture content for aging.
 
Wouldn't ultraviolet light have to "hit" the mold to be effective. In other words, in a packed jar, wouldn't most of the tobacco be blocked from the light by the surrounding tobacco? I don't know if this is so, just guessing. Perhaps 30 seconds or so in the microwave would kill them? Again, I don't know, just guessing.

I've found when jarring bulk (and I've done dozens and dozens of pounds of it over the past 20 years) I've never had mold grow once I jarred them. If the bulk is very moist, I'll dry it out first before jarring.

Natch
 
I would not put pipe tobacco in a cigar humidore just jar it.
 
Dry it a little bit and put in Mason jars. Excess moisture in the tobacco will let mould grow even in Mason jars. The Cubans have tried everything imaginable to kill beetle eggs/larvae including UV, XRays, and microwaves. Hard freezing is the only thing that works for them, and then only about 90% effective.
 
Thanks everyone for your informative replies! :D

I have another question: Does the aging process (in sealed glass jars) require some kind of microbe (i.e., yeast, bacteria, etc.)?

If so, then it would seem that eradicating these microbes would preclude the aging of tobacco. :?:
 
As a new pipe smoker who has just started growing his own tobacco mold is a particular worry for me (since about 1/4 of my curing leaves have just been lost to it while I was away for 3 months).
I know that various home growers use "Serenade" on theirs, which is a bacterium used in gardening that eats mold and then dies.
But I am now looking at the possibility of lightly spraying mine with high-alcohol booze before sealing it in something airtight.
I presume that alcohol prevents mold growth...?
This might be sacrilege for the connoisseurs but it might add flavour at the same time although it might prevent other flavours from forming.
Should be an interesting experiment...


BTW. Over here in GB the antis rule, Tobacco is taxed to high heaven and pipe tobacco is now very hard to find retail, even in mid-sized towns.
There is much more incentive to grow your own here than over the pond.
 
Markx, you're talking about the uncured tobacco leaf? Strong ethanol probably will kill mold on contact, though after the initial spray, it's anyone's guess. Considering that ethanol is hygroscopic, and liquor has sugars, you'd be giving any molds and yeasts you hadn't killed a very favorable environment in which to grow.
 
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