Filling and levelling comes first. The blower runs until compost, plenum and the air above sit at roughly one temperature, around 45 to 48 degrees Celsius, which takes about four to five hours.
Then pre pasteurisation conditioning holds the mass between 45 and 52 degrees for two days. Pasteurisation follows at 58 to 59 degrees for 4 to 6 hours. Last comes post pasteurisation conditioning at 45 to 48 degrees for 3 to 4 days, until ammonia is no longer detectable. Smaller tunnels often need 4 to 5 days to reach the same point.