In 1996, Karl Rubenberger turned ov

In 1996, Karl Rubenberger turned over production of his tea machine to a manufacturer, and commercial production of highly aerobic, 24-hour compost tea machines began. The original machine tested at OSU produced a water vortex to pull the organisms out of the compost, and had no pipes on the bottom of the machine. When bio-film developed, it could be seen easily and cleaned. But when the manufacturer decided the machine needed to look more professional, the machine was re-plumbed with solid PVC pipe material to replace the plastic tubing. These pipes could not be easily removed or cleaned.