How to Start a Black Soldier Fly Larvae Colony

[@saltlifegull4091]

She's so dang funny! Love her style of recklessness, as I can connect with that. Super job! You go girl!

[@Possum-Pie]

I subscribed b/c you won my admiration by being 1. Frugle, 2. Chaotic, and 3. Adventurous with the element of danger...

[@TigerLilyGzzTLRoars]

Concur. Plus, funny! New sub.

[@mayajasinski5972]

I think it's rude to call her these things. I don't think she's trying to do those things at all. These are healthy sources for chickens that you don't understand because you don't have the experience.

[@Possum-Pie]

@@mayajasinski5972 GEEZZZZ....people get so offended nowadays. I LOVE this woman's approach, her frugality is commendable, I am also frugal, and it is a WINNING strategy in a world where prices have skyrocketed in the past 4 years. Adventurous? Another wonderful adjective meaning free-spirited, willing to take risks, a great characteristic especially in a world where women are often thought of as unable to do things like this on their own. As for your quote that I don't understand b/c I don't have the experience, I too made a BSLF breeder and FAILED miserably until I watched this wonderful video. After taking VALTARI's advice, I now have a working breeder for my own hens. How about you self-reflect as to why you're offended by so much???

[@scottstevens7253]

It's always great to see a new take on a BSF bin ... Just PLEASE everyone try to understand just how easy these amazing insects are to raise.. You don't need mosquito netting, wood that will rot in the elements, fancy swinging latches, etc ... As an extreme example, there is a 'biopod' (i.e. plastic container with an incline) that sells for over $200 dollars... That is pretty crazy when you look at how many quality HDPE plastic containers there are everywhere as on a bike ride, I found a 35 lb kitty litter container that someone tossed out.. It works great with a few small holes drilled in the sides below the rim and also the bottom, with a bungie cord to keep the racoons out... The main point is, take advantage of the unbelievable hardiness of these creatures and know you can build a great fixture for them with very minimal materials... Also: if your colony conditions has sludge in it (like at the 6 min mark in this video); you need more drainage/ more aeration... I'm not trying to be critical, but that amount of sludge is a little gross and might prevent newcomers from starting up their own setup.. Drainage and Aeration are really the only two things to think about, and they go hand in hand... (The fact that the BSF can survive in those conditions is a testiment to just how hardy they are)

[@FusionDeveloper]

Correct. BSF larvae will flee from muddy food. I suggest adding hardwood sawdust (from grill pellets) and some lump hardwood charcoal (broken into stone sized pieces) to help absorb liquids and odors. I also personally add some calcium carbonate powder, since i have an excessive amount to use.

[@scottstevens7253]

@@FusionDeveloper Awesome man.. yeah I saw you post a question about artficial lighting, where she uses 120 watt daylight floodlights.. If a regular plain jane led bulb like hers works, which I believe it does, then I have no clue why all the 'bsf lights' that are sold online for 180+ dollars claim you need uva and possibly a little uvb.. With it being October near saint louis here, it's getting kind of late to start any experiment but anyways yeah when I took the flies from the shade to the sunlight today (I have them in a small tent), they went from statues to active fliers, moving everywhere.. Kind of strange how most of their life they do everything to avoid light, but then when they become flies, light instantly activates them.. Have you had any success finding an led? I looked into a 26 watt one from lucky herp brand, which comes in 5.0, 10.0, or 15.0% uvb in addition to uva depending on the model you want, though now that the one video of the lady in the green as well as the guy from nigeria are simoly using straight up, ordinary flood lights, I don't know if leds with uva or uvb, or any combination of the two is really necessary. As an aside, of the 3% of uv sunlight that gets through the ozone, 95% is uva and only 5% is uvb... Anyways, I might hang a light inside of a trash can with a cracked lid, maybe add a wet towel at the bottom for some humidity (not that it's dry in october) and a small container at the bottom with an apple and a little cardboard.. I'll send you some links of the stuff I'm referencing tomorrow if you haven't already found what I'm talking about.. Yeah, all in all the lighting seems to be the most finicky or what not, though I haven't tried yet, just relying on the babies I find in the food scraps outdoors..

[@tyfitzpatrick3606]

“I enjoy the chaotic element of possibility cutting my hand open” 😂 Me too! Hahahah 🎉That is one happy bearded dragon!!!

[@TheGardenGame]

That was the best part! 😂

[@socialleo21]

The BEST video that I’ve found that literally walks you through step by step. Thank you!!

[@folsterfarms]

I love the “use what you have” element to this tutorial!

[@soronos8586]

Awesome video! So cool to see how people make different set ups. Keep up the great work and have a wonderful day

[@valtarii]

Thank you!! 😄 You as well!

[@junaidhaneef3083]

​@@valtariiHalo beautiful I'm from Pakistan I want to start BSF farming in pakistan...I want them for farming please send it to me its a request

[@ecobluefarms223]

YOU MAKE ME PROUD WATCHING THIS VIDEO your instructions were clear enough that I believe I can follow and do the same 🎉

[@therandomguy1966]

That is the most jerry rigged thing ive ever seen in my life, i love it.

[@federicomachon8841]

You are great 😃 I love how you gat around every problem. Gritting from Peten Guatemala

[@hugo5149]

In here we separate reproduction and production, we have a few 7x7feet mosquito netting, it needs about a pound of pre pupae each a day to keep it at maximum egg production, the eggs are collected and grown into larvae in a different place. When I started I did a very similar thing to what you have done but I believe separating the 2 stages isn't necessary but it dramatically increases production, I would have problems where small insects and other animals would tear at the mosquito netting to get to the food, a few flies would escape as a result, you may find that the flies lay eggs in between the mosquito netting because of the smell of the subtrate, those eggs are almost always lost, the smell needs to be concentrated at a single area where the flies will lay the eggs, it is what they call the attractant. Anyway very good video and I hope to see more, cheers!

[@mrniusi11]

do you use anything for your attractant? Ideally something that isn't rotting as a normal compost would have?

[@عالمالزراعه-س9ع]

I started breeding the black soldier fly and I have little information, can you help me?

[@hugo5149]

@@mrniusi11 Unfortunately the fouler the smell the better. But to a degree anything that is rotting will attract the flies, things that have a worse smell will grab more of the attention of the flies, your compost is probably enough, but it wouldn't be if you lived close to a fishery for example. Do you add manure to your compost? The larva are more than happy to eat that, but they are not good at processing cellulose.

[@hugo5149]

@@عالمالزراعه-س9ع Sure, what question do you have?

[@chozami7759]

Nice work on this video. A lot of effort setting the camera up, narrating and editing. Also great that it's concise. 10/10

[@tt-ob6hr]

i was laughing how haphazard your product is😂 but no one will laugh after watch your product working really well. great vid!

[@DennisKenneybees]

Your inginuity is impressive. Great job.

[@thebeautifulones5436]

Not that I know anything other than watching You tube videos but the larvae move towards the light and I don't think they would see much through that pipe corner. Also there needs to be a few drainage holes in the bottom. Loving Chub Chub.

[@alisonb5796]

Hi,I am just wondering how this set up has worked for you? Would you change anything on it? I just ordered my larvae ...ty!

[@jacobyone883]

Exactly what I was looking for! Thank you!

[@tnfalpha5230]

Great and simple will definitely try this model.thanks 🎉🎉🎉

[@darwinraharja]

Awesome home project tutorial! Also it's fresh out on the youtube

[@virginiawest7666]

This is an excellent video. Awesome!

[@lemongrab6173]

6:03 ok I see a potato but what is that tar looking liquid down there ? I know it’s supposed to provide them with sustenance but what is it made of ? It looks nasty.

[@chandler_m100]

It is what is leftover from previous food placed into the bin, though from what other comments are saying, that much moisture is not good and dryer material should be added to balance it out

[@HoosierQuail]

Looks good. I started a giant bin for red worms for castings and breeding plus meal worms for frass. I’ll starting a BSF bin here soon for chicken feed. I’ll be using your example

[@beebop9808]

The insect waste and leftovers is good food for your worms. Just try to keep your BSF out of your worm bins.

[@growingorganicseedlings8660]

Way to go! Excellent job!

[@TheMaelmuire]

I loved it. Mine would be so similar, I would say I have a (insert proper tool here), but it is buried in the shed, and yeah, I'm just gonna melt that with my soldering iron; with a little "Too lazy to worry about measuring for accuracy on my maggot bucket, lol." I wonder if I should start taping some of the bizarrety of me?

[@zavierbuzard2408]

Great job and love the creative effort that went into your setup! Question... did you order mature black soldier flies to get the colony started or did you allow some of the larva to hatch? I have larva growing and have been taking some out and putting them into a bucket with dirt hoping they'll hatch & start reproducing.

[@chandler_m100]

Awesome cinematography and information! I have been thinking for a long time of making a system which is effectively identical to what you've constructed here. I would be interested in a future video of yours to see how your system is holding up and see it in action some more, a bit of a retrospective, ie do you think this is the best design for small-scale non-commercial applications, or what would you change if you were to remake it? Much thanks!

[@aMAYSingMetalWorks]

Awesome work. thank you for sharing. You were very determined to do this. Wish I could help you with tools.

[@binelouidane]

I love you chaotic.

[@JoseGonzalez-rd4xs]

Great job! I know your bearded dragon will love you for that. 😃

[@josiahkulwa34]

Great innovation

[@annuitcptis3032]

She enjoys the chaotic element of the possibility of cutting her hand open???!!!🙄😳🤣🙄

[@soilgardengro6942]

Very good video ❤❤❤❤

[@marcopolo9324]

What about old flies? How do you clean them up with such super compact structure?

[@Pete.karari]

Will the mosquito net kill your 😮😊bsf since it's treated with a repellant?

[@Paul.XTX.]

what medium do I have to put in at the start when my soldierflies arrive?

[@peacefulscrimp5183]

Great video 👍

[@stevejava4336]

Great video.

[@FusionDeveloper]

6:03 that is waaaaaaay too wet for the larvae. It's better for the bedding/substrate of BSF larvae to be a little too dry, than to be too wet. Other fly species don't mind or prefer or even require sopping wet substrate, but not Black Soldier Flies. I suggest mixing in Saw Dust (rehydrated pellets used for (food) grill smokers) to help absorb excess water/waste. I personally love adding in some lump hardwood charcoal broken up into smaller pieces. Activated Carbon would be better and less work, but it costs a huge amount more money and probably isn't much different for this purpose. A huge back of lump hardwood charcoal is $12-$30 (usually around $16-$18) for 8 to 20 lbs and would leave you with plenty to spare. While Activated Carbon for a 9oz container is around $8, which is less than 1 lb. Since we aren't trying to purify water with it, any absorbing done by regular lump hardwood charcoal will be beneficial enough, just don't pulverize it into dust, make the pieces around the size of a golf ball or as small as 1/4 that, of course any size is better than nothing if you just want to toss in whatever pieces you want.

[@karamh]

You are amazing..a beautiful idea

[@Hasan-wk6sz]

Very good job. I really liked it. It should give you endless food for your lizard pet. I learned about BSFL culture today in Turkey and thinking to learn more about it because chicken feed is very expensive in Turkey and maybe it might help some poor farmers to get their own protein rich feed for much cheaper. Also we could use this method to help poor refugees and poor people around the world to become self sustainable with their food.

[@MjPersonal]

Chicken in Turkey. Hmmmm. New recipe?

[@Chillpill30garrett]

Where did you order you “black fly larvae “?

[@williamreilly5469]

Ikr

[@valtarii]

I added a link to my description with the larvae I purchased. It's a pretty good price for the amount of larvae you get. I've ordered from them at least 3 times and I've always been pleased with the quality of the larvae.

[@Chillpill30garrett]

@@valtarii thank you very much…

[@al-moktashef]

you are amazing

[@JosuePineda-lz7jd]

Bery nice,thanks!!

[@dillmon1]

Subscribed

[@nanpac3699]

good job.

[@MichaelMartirez-bs4du]

How could i order for BSF PUPA?

[@dontbanmebrodontbanme5403]

So I'm doing one outside. I spent $8 to buy small BSFL to get it started, but supposedly if I just waited 2-3 weeks, I would have attracted them naturally. What's my point? If you're doing this outside, you shouldn't need netting to capture them so they don't fly away and you should be able to attract them naturally. HOWEVER, in the winter time, I LOVE the idea of still being able to do this, by capturing them in the netting. Awesome idea. Now, how to do so and not freak the rest of the family out! hahahahahahahaha

[@Naijamovierecap30]

I love her.

[@Ironbarkbob]

Really well done😊

[@adrianhart367]

What do the flies eat?

[@Diseaseisreversible]

Literally anything. Any kind of Kitchen scraps probably work best. Even meat and dairy. Paper, cardboard, and garden scraps also work. I had one in college that started on it own . I just used a peice of wood as a way for the flies to get out and it worked very well. I also had quails so I just fed them the fly larvae and it worked very well. I miss that bin

[@TheBritishbeeman]

Will this work in the uk ?

[@philliproberts3180]

Never mind the setting up of the apparatus. I need to know how do i catch a fly or get eggs or lavae. Not one video tells you those points. I am in Africa. All videos are shown in america or other countries.

[@kevreilly7]

Where exactly do the flys lay their eggs? Great video!

[@lix768]

In the cutted boxes she hanged

[@kevreilly7]

@@lix768 then why the net further up? I am confused. Not knocking her system

[@lix768]

Her setup is 2 compartments The upper is for the fly They come up after hatching out The lower is for the larvae and compost When the fly is ready to lay, they'll go to the down compartment were the boxes are and lay. She didn't bring the boxes to the upper part so that when they hatch they fall onto the compost

[@Chronic_Pothead]

they lay the eggs in whatever compost you are using old food etc.....

[@kevreilly7]

@@Chronic_Pothead thx

[@daji3801]

Good morning from Nimol, Cambodia. I am interested in your program

[@bigalharris]

💪💪

[@bongjamesbong00420]

😍

[@thereseayakouame596]

❤❤❤

[@MR-puffnstuff]

I love dragons but if that is a loose staple on the ground in its cage and not completely down it most likely will invest it and die.

[@valtarii]

Where are you seeing a loose staple?

[@MR-puffnstuff]

@@valtarii in its cage during feeding I use data saver to view so it may not have been what I thought if is has come out my dragons try eat strings off drugs in cages from shredding it and that get wrapped around organs to I love dragons URS looks like a big male.

[@valtarii]

@@MR-puffnstuff Yes indeed, he’s a male and he’ll be 8 this year! I’ve watched it back and I see no staple… maybe a piece of a plant or a cricket leg? Staples have never been used in or around the tank so I’m guessing it was just something staple shaped? But I appreciate those looking out for the dragons

[@junaidhaneef3083]

Halo dear I want to start farming of bsf in pakistan i want to buy them for farming in pakistan Please reply 😢

[@karamh]

There is a problem with not getting married because of the sun. Is there an alternative solution for closed places?

[@تمنمشكل-ر2ه]

I am from Egypt and have a small farm It is a desert land that has been reclaimed I would like to communicate with you directly to exchange information regarding this fly and vermicompost worm

[@MR-puffnstuff]

Loosing a eye excites you come on good video though wear safety equipment always.

[@Jason.Goldstriker]

thank god she didn't melt the PVC cuz god damn

[@SunSheepOfLight]

Free chicken feed.

[@adrianhart367]

Who puts a cat on a leash?

[@folsterfarms]

Someone who wants to keep the cat close if there are hawks in the area!

[@karencatlin950]

Who lets their cat get that fat?

[@kevreilly7]

Invest 20$ and please buy some gloves and wear them when sawing

[@Un11Hoe]

Acting like you finna cut a finger off with a hand saw 💀

[@cecilitaH]

Too complicated damnit

[@williamreilly5469]

Why ?

[@lilchristuten7568]

Why would you want to do this?

[@valtarii]

for fun

[@pristinephoenixx]

Black soldier fly larvae are one of the best feeders for reptiles as well. It can get expensive if you have multiple reptiles and continue to order these over and over again. Having your own breeding grounds really makes it better for you and a much better outlook for your reptiles!

[@AGsoloman5k]

working way too hard for this

[@malikdjeddi9667]

Hi great job am black soldier farmer can i have your whatsup . thank you

[@aladrasullivan9018]

Damn,cat woman,if you gonna do a video, get you some tools !😂