I also came across aquarimax's video while I was researching feeders and vivariums. I much much prefer keeping crickets bioactively and have them in a 52 quart with just under two inches of substrate and I recently added a drainage layer under 1/3 of the substrate to improve the humidity gradient. I also have three wild caught milipedes in there (which I worry are eating cricket eggs) and five isopods. I would recommend as many hides as possible. I only had one generation of nymphs appear right before my total colony crash but I just restarted with about thirty crickets. My favorite part about keeping them this way is observing their behaviors. They look so much less gross on a bed of natural material. They tend to all cluster together on one or two hides while loners explore. The favorite hide changes throughout the day :)
@mordystrum8 ай бұрын
Omg this was such a cool experience, I have those round black cricket tubes and I get up to 10 in one at a time only when there's no egg cartons, or less then 10 crickets.
@puretranscending8 ай бұрын
I use them to put in between the egg cartons now and have found they hide in there now. Which I've found to be the easiest way to try and catch them. It's been a challenge with the different sizes and so many all in one. I think I'm on my 3rd generation and will need to start a bigger bin or may divide and add more adults to decrease inbreeding just as a precaution. Don't know that it's nessasary but don't think it will hurt. Lol
@AntsMichigan11 ай бұрын
Hey! How is it working 5 months later? I've kept banded crickets in the past only on one occasion and never got more due to how bad they smelled and the fact there's easier to breed feeder insects such as mealworms and cockroaches. With that being said, after seeing a couple of videos on bioactive cricket setups and how they seem to smell natural and not breed out of control, I've started to consider breeding crickets in a setup like this. Which is why I'm asking you how well this kind of setup worked for you. Any and all information helps. Thanks. Oh and, what was the measurements for the substrate? Thinking about using your formula.
@majasmagic Жыл бұрын
would love to see an update, this could be a better option for home keepers. What were the frass eating insects you bought? I am aware one can use mealworms to eat up debris etc.. but they too produce frass.
@puretranscending Жыл бұрын
It's been up for a week now. I just have white springtails in there. Added a 12oz culture. So far, super pleased, I have had ZERO, crickets die! 🤯 There not much info out there on the how too but my understanding is to limit the CUC so they don't eat the cricket eggs. Thanks I'll definitely keep updated on how it goes.
@majasmagic Жыл бұрын
@@puretranscending thanks, very interested also to see how many you can actually breed that way and how you then harvest.
@puretranscending Жыл бұрын
@majasmagic that's going to be the interesting part. I have like 2-3 more meals of my last pet store cricket run and then I'll have to start tapping into the bin.
@majasmagic Жыл бұрын
@@puretranscending super excited to see what happens. I would have to set mine up in the house, I have an old aquarium I can use, I so hope they don't smell. I can just about get away with the mealworm farm in the parlour.
@puretranscending Жыл бұрын
So I'm all out of crickets to feed my gecko but 100 crickets makes a heck of alot of baby crickets lol I have soooooo many of them lol
@gryllidaeperkcal1369 Жыл бұрын
Does this all work in a single bin for a long time?
@puretranscending Жыл бұрын
So far so good. I'm on my second round of babies since the original 100. It is challenging getting out the adults to feed to my gecko so now I just bang the egg crate into a big tote and let Berta get the big ones and then put the little ones back into the bioactive. I tried doing a second bin but it didn't take but I think it's because I used pool filter sand instead of play sand. I need to make an update video.