Grindal Worms Culture on Polyester Foam

[@filamas]

I have a method of cultivating grindal worms faster and more efficient than the pipette. Take a regular plastic bottle and poke a needle sized hole on the bottle cap. The bottle needs to be filled halfway with dechlorinated water. Aim the bottle at the grindal worms. Squeeze the bottle and a jet of water will come out, blowing the grindal worms off the plastic piece faster and more efficient. You can poke more holes if you want to get more than one group of grindal worms at once. It is preferred to use a big plastic bottle, so you don’t have to refill the bottle every time you use it if it’s too small. Happy grindal worms cultivating!

[@4me]

Thank you!

[@FishEZ]

I too use the polyester method to culture grindal worms. However, I use a fine mesh on the top rather than plastic in which the worms climb up onto the mesh. This makes it easy to culture by simply dipping the mesh into a tank or a shall dish of water. The grindal worms just fall off and the mesh is moistened at the same time. Thank you for making this video.

[@4me]

This is great way! Thank you!!

[@filamas]

Grindal worms and springtails are a perfect protein snack bar for fish!

[@4me]

Yes indeed!

[@jessl1934]

This is definitely one of the best videos on grindal worm culturing that I have come across. On a different video, someone else was using those green scouring pads used for cleaning to culture grindal worms in but it was obvious that it's less suitable for moderating moisture and it probably has less surface area for the worms to colonize so my first thought was - why not use filter foam or polyester foam instead? Glad to see that someone else was ahead of me on that question. One interesting thing from that video is that this person would routinely flush his grindal worm media to deal with the waste buildup and to reduce the chance of a colony crashing. That seems like it would be a good practice to use with sterile growing media.

[@4me]

Thank you very much! I've been experimenting and adjusting my routines for culturing Grindal worms. I like to keep them in containers with springtails - it saves a lot of space 🙂

[@KitCat666]

Nice video keep up the good work michael

[@athulkrishnatu]

Keep going

[@4me]

Thank you very much!

[@KitCat666]

@@4me my pleasure!

[@d4rcGX]

Nice video. I just started and using soil. I can get tons of foam from my work and will have to try this. And using meal prep containers is a perfect meal prep lol

[@4me]

meal prep it is :) I've been testing different mediums and...well, will publish another video once get more data to share on that topic. All the best on your adventure!

[@FishmanEricRussell]

Cool Michael! Seems to be working well

[@4me]

It is. And it is cleaner than work with soil or peat moss.

[@theboesmani]

Very good and interesting video . I feed my cultures dry kitten food which has been moistened . The medium that I use is a 50/50 mix of coca fibre and vermiculite but am going to start experimenting with foam . Regarding the Springtails ; many people call them Mites and regard them as a bit of a curse as they can explode in numbers starving the Grindle Worms and destroying the culture . Whenever I find them I start a new culture .

[@4me]

Thank you very much! I've been trying feed my cultures with different food including dry dog food pellets. It smells noticeably - I think I mentioned it in one of my first videos about Grindal worms. I keep my cultures in the living room, so the smell is the main reason I opted out of dry dog food and many types of cereals as well. Coca fiber should work great as medium for Grindal worms and Springtails as well. I may try coca fiber alone or in mix with other mediums. Though, first I have to complete another medium I try - you will see a video about it in a couple months or so. In my observations Springtails and Grindal worms benefit each other - not really competing for food since Springtails go first after waste. And than it is easy to control the population of Springtails - my Guppies and Endlers enjoy eating Springtails no less than Grindal worms :)

[@theboesmani]

@@4me I have never noticed a smell from the Kitten food . I chose it because the laws on what can go into it are very strict here ( Ireland ) . I know of people having a lot of success feeding Oat Flakes so I am going to try that . Coca fibre is inclined to compact a lot which is why I mix it with Vermiculite . Acidification still happens but I am hoping that 2 layers of sponge will cure that as I should be able to rinse out the bottom layer .

[@4me]

@@theboesmani Damn rules and regulations. My grindals were happy with Oat flakes too. Also, I used to put 2 layers of polyester foam exactly as you intend. Eventually I start using just one layer of foam with moss on top. Instead of washing the dirt of the foam I simply replace it with new foam - I use polyester foam from mail packages (it's literally free and with my wife shopping often online I get too much of packaging supplies :) Important thing I did not mentioned yet in my videos - as waste keeps accumulating in the bottom layer you may notice bad odor starts coming. Once you smell it - that is a sure sign to wash/replace the bottom layer. You will have just a couple days to do it before the whole colony dies out. So, be mindful about bad odor. Setting up new cultures in advance and disposing of old cultures before they get exhausted is simpler and works better for me. Also, the new medium I've been testing since the last month simplifies the care very significantly (I can leave it unattended for days). I just have to see how long the culture can stay stable on that medium.

[@johnkarlogallardo9158]

@@theboesmani Mites are different from springtails, mites are round shaped.

[@janetjosef8138]

Большое спасибо замечательное видео!

[@4me]

Рад что Вам понравилось! Я всё ещё экспериментирую с этими червями. Они очень продуктивные и хорошо приживаются в любых влажных терариумах. Замечательно сожительствуют с springtails (не знаю как по русски называют). Я много видео публикую показываю червей со springtails - рыбки едят их с удовольствием 😁

[@stephenchallis1592]

Thank you. for an interesting and useful video.

[@4me]

My pleasure! I've been experimenting with other types mediums for culturing Grindal worms and other critters. Working on a video update showing easier, better way of culturing Grindal worms. Best regards!

[@husnehenakhatun2701]

Wow amazing

[@4me]

Thank you very much!

[@patriciakloeppel9863]

EXCELLENT VIDEO

[@4me]

Thank you very much!

[@filamas]

1:46 Where did you got that sprayer? I would want that for my aquariums.

[@4me]

This particular sprayer came inside of oyster mushroom growing kit: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bZuboqqBnKx8iZY I like the small size of the bottle - very handy for occasional use. There are many mist sprayers to choice from on Amazon. This set also comes with pipettes: amzn.to/3J4z0J9 Well, look for bottle size for your needs.

[@filamas]

@@4me Last link is out of stock :(

[@4me]

@@filamas I usually ask my wife to shop online for me - she is certainly superior in finding best deals for anything I asked :)

[@husnehenakhatun2701]

Is cereal flake necessary for grindal worm? Or we can give them other food

[@4me]

Grindal worms feed on wide variety of food - I tried and mentioned it in one of my first videos about Grindal worms. I prefer to feed them with cheerios cereal for it smells less than any other food I tried so far.

[@husnehenakhatun2701]

@@4methanks sir where is the video link of that topic

[@4me]

@@husnehenakhatun2701 Here is a playlist of all my videos about Grindal worms: kzbin.info/www/bejne/aKm1p6ljn6p_jKM All the best on your adventure!

[@husnehenakhatun2701]

@@4me thanku sir☺

[@athulkrishnatu]

Nice

[@4me]

Thank you!

[@legainnamchyo4836]

Can i use cotton instead of the foam ?

[@4me]

I can say for sure only about what I tried - cotton is not on that list, yet. I have been trying other mediums to culture Grindal worms - you will see them all in future videos.

[@filamas]

Have you tried feeding the worms with fish food and greens or fruits? It will be a fun experiment!

[@4me]

I tried - the cheerios cereal is the best in terms of smell. And that is the top point for I keep them in my living room and cannot afford to have any bad odors (even slightest tint of it may get my wife furious - and that would be no fun ending of all my experiments 😁

[@filamas]

@@4me You should try oatmeal, it also doesn't smell like cherrios 😁

[@filamas]

Do scuds eat grindal worms?

[@4me]

Scuds eat any and all organic detritus - dead Grindal worms gets eating all the same by scuds and snails.

[@filamas]

@@4me It would be a nice addition to my snail food flakes ;)

[@filamas]

Where can I find grindal worms in nature?

[@4me]

I found Grindal worms picking wilted leaves in Crotona park during last Winter. Though, I did not notice them until a week or so later after feeding the leaves to my isopods.

[@filamas]

@@4me Can you send me images of the grindal worms from the leaves on my gmail?

[@4me]

@@filamas I take videos - not pictures. It would take time for me to look through hours of video records I made for the next video about it (the video is not in production yet)...I've been planning to disassemble 2 terrariums to make room for a new project in a coming weeks. Then I will start editing the video and can take snapshots for you from original clips I recorded. Also, I can take pictures of Grindal worms on leaves as I have them now if you interesting in that.

[@filamas]

@@4me Yes, I would like the grindal worms pictures

[@4me]

@@filamas Check your inbox for 2 emails (one with pictures and another one with short video)

[@athulkrishnatu]

👍

[@filamas]

For me, I would wait until the brownish patch of food is gone and then I will feed the grindal worms. The percentage of the culture to spoil is more rare as there is no leftovers. It could also be grindal worms waste instead of crushed flake of cereal. Correct me if I'm wrong.

[@4me]

You are not wrong about waiting - you can wait for all all food be gone before feeding more. As for the spoiled culture - it is not a percentage of a culture on the stake, it is the whole culture in a given container that is at the risk. I am working on a video to elaborate on this. Here is the gist - it take 1-2 days for the whole culture to die out after I notice fault smell in a container with that culture. It does not happen often indeed. But once I see spoiled food or bad smell in the culture I know that left as it is the culture is doomed if left like that.

[@filamas]

@@4me Can't wait for that video to be published!

[@4me]

@@filamas I'm planning it for May-June.

[@filamas]

@@4me Awesome.

[@hodowlaryb29]

W mojej ocenie stosunkowo mała ilość pozyskana z jednego pojemnika.

[@4me]

I have a different opinion.

[@MemoriesTube.]

👍👍👍

[@4me]

Thank you very much!

[@BitzandBobz-g8v]

👍