How to Use an Automated Mushroom Grow Kit? | Set the Controls and Let It Work

An automated mushroom grow kit controls humidity, fresh air, and temperature for you, with setup taking about ten minutes.

The appeal of an automated mushroom grow kit is that it removes the guesswork from a notoriously finicky process. Instead of misting several times a day and hoping the fresh air exchange is adequate, the kit handles the environment while you handle the harvest. Whether you picked a self-contained fruiting chamber or a monotub with separate controls, the setup follows the same logic: assemble, connect, set your ranges, and maintain.

What You Get Inside an Automated Kit

Automated kits from Midwest Grow Kits, a leading supplier of home mushroom cultivation gear, ship with the hardware already assembled. The MycoClimate™ 44Q and 66Q Automated Monotub kits include the tub, self-adhesive filters, a fresh air exchange (FAE) fan, a humidifier, a humidity controller, and a probe. The Tabletop Ecosphere™ takes it further as a fully automated fruiting and incubation chamber that manages CO2 levels, humidity, spore filtration, and fresh air exchange in one self-contained unit.

The phrase “automated” means the controller watches the humidity and switches the humidifier on and off to hold your chosen range. You still load the substrate and harvest the mushrooms — the kit just removes the daily babysitting.

Assembling the Chamber Step by Step

Start by unpacking the tub and laying out every part. The monotub kits ship with the holes pre-drilled, so there’s no cutting required for the main assembly. During the colonization phase, cover all holes with the self-adhesive filters — this lets the mycelium breathe while keeping contaminants out.

Once the substrate is fully colonized, it’s time to switch the tub into fruiting mode:

• Remove the filters on one end of the lid to expose the two holes for the FAE Fan Mini and the Myco-Mister Mini Humidifier, then mount both components.
• On the opposite end, cut a one-inch slice into the pre-installed 2″ filter and insert the humidity probe through the slit. The probe needs to sit inside the tub where it can read the actual air, not just the wall of the chamber.
• Confirm the probe wire reaches the controller without stretching, since a taut wire can pull the probe out of position as the lid moves.

Load the tub with a ratio of one colonized grain spawn bag to 2–3 substrate bags. Spread the mix evenly across the bottom rather than piling it in one corner, which gives the mycelium uniform surface area to fruit from.

Setting the Humidity and Fresh Air Controls

With everything connected, plug the humidity controller into the wall outlet. The controller uses two physical buttons to program your high and low humidity range:

1. Press and hold UP for 3 seconds to enter the high-humidity setting, then release. Use the button to set your target high value.
2. Press and hold DOWN for 3 seconds to enter the low-humidity setting, then release and set your target low value.
3. Plug the humidifier into the controller’s outlet. The system now switches the humidifier ON when humidity drops below your low setting and OFF when it reaches the high setting.

The fan runs independently and pulls fresh air through the filtered holes, keeping CO2 from building up inside the tub. There’s no official app or smartphone control for these kits — the documented interface is the physical controller on the wall. The same button logic applies when you need to adjust your range mid-cycle: hold the button, set the value, release.

The most common mistake is connecting the humidifier and fan during colonization. Those components are meant for the fruiting phase only — running them early disrupts the CO2-rich environment the mycelium needs to colonize the substrate. Keep the filters sealed until the substrate is white and fully knit together. For a curated rundown of the best automated kits across every budget, our tested roundup of automated mushroom grow kits compares the top contenders side by side.

Maintenance That Keeps the Harvest Coming

An automated kit still needs your eyes. Check the water reservoir daily and refill the humidifier as it empties, and watch the probe reading — if it drifts from the range you set, the probe may have slipped out of its slit. Wipe down the inside of the tub between growing cycles using warm water and a soft cloth. Sanitize the interior and exterior afterward with 70% isopropyl alcohol.

Do not use bleach or abrasive scrubbers. Bleach residue lingers in the plastic and will kill mycelium in the next run, and abrasives scratch the surface where contaminants can hide. A gentle sanitizing wipe-down is all the kit needs to stay clean.

The table below sums up the core setup decisions:

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