A SCOBY Hotel is one of the most important tools in every Kombucha brewer’s toolkit. Whether you brew occasionally or run multiple batches at once, keeping a dedicated SCOBY Hotel ensures you always have strong, healthy cultures ready for your next brew — plus backups in case anything goes wrong.
This comprehensive guide covers everything you need to know:
Let’s dive in.
A SCOBY Hotel is a jar dedicated to storing extra SCOBYs in acidic, mature kombucha. Each time you brew a batch, your SCOBY forms a new baby culture — and those extras can quickly pile up.
Instead of throwing them away, a hotel allows you to:
Think of it like a sourdough starter jar — but for Kombucha. And… just like a sourdough starter, it takes a certain level of knowhow to keep your culture thriving, even when it’s not in use for long periods.
A SCOBY Hotel offers major benefits:
If you brew more than one batch, or you simply want the safest brewing setup possible, you need a SCOBY Hotel.
Use a wide-mouth glass jar (1–2 gallons is ideal). Avoid plastic or metal.
Move your extra SCOBYs into the jar gently using clean hands.
Fill the jar with strong, finished Kombucha from a previous brew.
The acidity prevents mold, protects the cultures, and keeps the hotel safe.
Fill until all SCOBYs are fully submerged.
Both work, depending on your goal:
Avoid metal lids unless they are non-reactive and lined.
WARNING: Do NOT use cheesecloth. Many other sites will tell you that layering cheesecloth will protect your brew from pests, mold, and other potentially harmful things. It absolutely will not, under any circumstances, protect your brew. Stick to a cloth cover like the ones we have in our shop… or even a clean cotton t-shirt without holes will do in a pinch.
Ideal range: 60–75°F (16–24°C)
Avoid direct sunlight, heat vents, or cold basements.
That’s it — your SCOBY Hotel is officially open for business!
A well-maintained hotel can last years, providing endless cultures.
Maintenance focuses on:
Here’s how:
Look for:
If your hotel gets very full, remove older layers, soft cultures, or extremely thick mats. Always be sure to check thoroughly for mold – you can reference our Mold Guide for photos, descriptions, and more.
Healthy SCOBY characteristics:
Pour hotel liquid through a strainer to remove thick yeast strands.
Yeast is good — but too much can:
Rinse or gently scrub the inside with warm water.
Do not use soap.
Refill with a 50/50 mix of:
This maintains acidity and feeds the cultures.
Floating is fine — exposed + dry is not.
It depends on temperature, crowding, and yeast growth:
If the liquid turns syrupy, overly yeasty, or evaporates significantly, it’s time to refresh.
This is the #1 mistake new brewers make.
Refrigeration:
SCOBYs belong at room temperature — always.
Generally: No. And we don’t really recommend flavoring SCOBYs in general when a 2nd Fermentation is the ideal time to do that (see our How to Brew Kombucha Complete Guide for more details), but IF you do… here’s a few guidelines to follow.
If a SCOBY was exposed to:
…it may carry those flavors into your main brews.
Use a separate “flavored SCOBY hotel” for safety.
These cultures are still wonderful — just keep them separate.
A healthy SCOBY:
| A SCOBY is ready for retirement when: |
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What to do with your retired SCOBYs:
This is usually yeast gas forming underneath.
Gently press the culture down or add more liquid.
Normal — these are yeast colonies.
Normal — this is healthy yeast.
Normal — your hotel is maturing beautifully.
Not normal. Discard that SCOBY and surrounding liquid, clean the jar thoroughly, and repopulate the hotel from a mold-free culture.
When starting a new batch:
Use:
Hotel starter is extra acidic and powerful — your brews will ferment faster and more safely.
(You can also follow our How to Brew Kombucha Complete Guide to get set up.)
Made your Hotel – now what to do? Find out in the Long Term SCOBY Hotel Maintenance post.
A SCOBY Hotel is a dedicated jar where you store extra Kombucha SCOBYs in strong, mature kombucha. It acts as a “backup bank” of healthy cultures you can use if a batch molds, you want to start new brews, or you’d like to share SCOBYs with friends. Keeping a hotel ensures you always have strong, ready-to-brew SCOBYs on hand and makes your whole brewing setup more resilient and reliable.
To start a SCOBY Hotel, place one or more extra SCOBYs into a clean glass jar and cover them completely with mature, unflavored kombucha. The liquid should be tart and acidic, which protects against mold. Cover the jar with a breathable cloth or a non-reactive lid and keep it at room temperature, away from direct sunlight. Once the SCOBYs are submerged in strong kombucha, your hotel is officially open.
Most brewers refresh their SCOBY Hotel every 2–6 months. A refresh usually means thinning out excess yeast, cleaning the jar, and topping up with a mix of fresh sweet tea and mature Kombucha so the liquid stays acidic and the SCOBYs stay fully covered. In warmer climates or very active hotels, you may choose to refresh more frequently if you notice a lot of yeast buildup or low liquid levels.
Both options can work. A breathable cloth allows the liquid to continue fermenting slowly, while a tight-fitting non-reactive lid reduces evaporation and is useful for longer-term storage. Avoid reactive metal lids and always make sure the SCOBYs stay submerged in acidic liquid regardless of the cover type you choose.
No. Refrigeration is not recommended for SCOBY Hotels. Cold temperatures can stress or damage the bacteria and yeast, often leading to sluggish brews and a higher risk of mold when you start brewing again. SCOBYs are happiest at room temperature, typically between 60–75°F (16–24°C), stored in strong Kombucha.
With proper maintenance, SCOBYs can live in a hotel for many months or even years and still successfully start new batches. As long as the liquid smells pleasantly sour, there is no mold, and the SCOBY is firm and intact, it is likely still viable. Very old SCOBYs might take a batch or two to fully “wake up,” but hotel cultures are generally quite robust.
A healthy SCOBY is tan, cream, or light brown, smells pleasantly sour, and feels firm and rubbery. Signs that a SCOBY should be retired include: fuzzy or powdery mold (in any color), a rotten or cheesy smell, very dark brown or black color, or a texture that is falling apart or dissolving. If mold appears, discard the affected SCOBY and any liquid it touched, then thoroughly clean the jar before restarting with a clean culture.
It’s best to keep SCOBYs that have been used in flavored batches (with herbs, juices, fruit, or strong tisanes) in a separate hotel. These “flavored SCOBYs” are still usable, but residual ingredients can sometimes affect the flavor or balance of your primary brewing cultures over time. A separate hotel keeps your main SCOBY Hotel clean, consistent, and predictable.
Yes — in fact, SCOBY Hotel liquid often makes some of the best starter tea because it is very mature and acidic. Use 1–2 cups of hotel liquid per gallon of fresh sweet tea when starting a new batch. Just be sure the liquid is clean, mold-free, and still smells pleasantly sour before using it as starter.
If your hotel is overflowing or you have very old SCOBYs, you can compost them, chop them into pet treats (many dogs love small SCOBY pieces), dehydrate them for snacks, or use them in crafts like SCOBY leather. As long as there is no mold, they are safe to repurpose or share, even if they’re no longer ideal for brewing.
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