Thanks so much for watching!

You are very welcome! Thank you for watching.

Thank you!! Thanks for watching!

Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching.

Thanks for watching!

Awesome! Thank you for watching.

Thanks so much for watching!

@@BuildingInASmallTown haha I’ve watched about 30 of ur recordings ☺️. Picking up some tips. Clearly. Very helpful

You are very welcome! Thank you for watching.

Thank you for watching!

Thanks so much for watching!

Thanks so much for watching! Great question that I don't have a super solid answer to. There is actually one window at the front of the barn that allows in natural light. Every space I have grown in has a natural light source (even if it's small), so I don't have any completely dark set ups to compare it to. Theoretically, you would be working with the lights on daily, so, there would be at least a few hours. There might be some studies about photo periods as it relates to rearing crickets, but I've never read them. Hope this helps!

Insect diet with meat from BioForge Labs in Huxley and sliced potatoes. It works well!

Hi Israel! I am in Iowa.

You can absolutely do 3 rounds! For me, once they get to that point they’re not super active anymore (declining and naturally expiring). Currently, I am only doing 1 48 hour round, but that’s how my barn is set up. Hope that helps!

Thank you so much!! I try to not be totally dry with the information I’m giving. I hope the crickets arrive happy and healthy. Please don’t hesitate with any questions. Happy to help and troubleshoot.

Hi!! Sorry I missed this comment and am so delayed in the response. There are quite a few things that can go wrong: build up of harmful bacteria, presences of pheromones that are toxic to eggs/pinheads, mite infestations, and more. If you can freeze or sterilize the substrate after each use, you might be able to reduce the risk, however, I've found that simply replacing it each round is the most cost effective and efficient for us.

This is an area with apparently very little to no research on 'reusing substrate'.. To say you can't reuse the substrate is kind of silly without any experimenting/ studies.. Crickets lay eggs daily so if you wait a week to change substrate as opposed to changing it daily (which is what some do) then wouldn't that qualify as resuing substrate to an extent if changed weekly? When you are in a commercial business raising house crickets and worried about the virus that can affect them, I guess it makes sense to take every precaution; but for sustainability and being cost effective I don't know about it..

@@bmzaron713 i use sand, and separate the eggs while washing the sand. Then dry and use it again.

@@indriawands how do you separate such small cricket eggs from sand which is probably smaller than cricket eggs?

@@davidmuniz5307 it's easy, if you use fine sand media for cricket eggs you just need to stir it in the water then pour the water into a cloth or filter then the eggs will be poured with the water. While the sand will settle under the eggs will be on top because it is lighter than sand.

oh, interesting! What brand was it? Was it in a blue, yellow, and white package? I haven't ever had a problem with hatching babies, but that doesn't mean it's not causing problems. That's something that perhaps I should mess with! Super interesting insight. Thank you for sharing!

@@BuildingInASmallTown If you are thinking of checking ph -- DO NOT Waste money on $20 Garden PH meters. The concept they are based on is a bi-metal reaction to ph changes. It was developed as a cheap crude method of see ph changes in and require the probes to be prepared each time you use them and they are NOT accurate or repeatable. If you are interested -- get one with a "Spear" tip - used in testing food. I have a Apera but its about $200. Amazon has a "Chinese" brand - "RCYAGO" for $41 - I don't know how good it is. Peat Moss is VERY acidic when you get it "unprepared" in the bag you show from a BIG Box Store. I have seen ph range from my low of 3.5 to just over 4.3. To use Peat Moss as a "Seed" mix or "Potting" soil - the ph MUST be adjusted to get it to at least 6.5 -- with 7 being Neutral. Dolomite Lime is used raise the ph AND provide a ph buffer. The reason I asked my question is that "dirt" from a "GOOD" garden will be around 6.5 --- and if THAT environment is BEST for breeding - than straight Peat Moss may have some negative impact on your eggs / baby crickets. If you want - send me a baggy filled with some of your Peat Moss and I will test it for you. At least you would have an idea of what the ph is.. You could then amend the ph and see if your yield changes. I'd be happy to test it for you if you wish.

Anything smaller than 3/4 is a great place to start. I started with 2 week old, which was a little smaller than I would recommend. 2 weekers aren't quite as fragile as pinheads, but they're certainly not durable. You'll learn more the younger they are!

That might work! They also might eat their way through it

LOL. Sounds like a t-shirt 🤣🤷🏼‍♀️

No lie.. if it weren't for your videos I would have wasted so much time and money. Thanks again!!

LOL It happens. One of the females likely got to work laying eggs before your gecko found it. Is the habitat glass? If so, they more than likely won't be able to get out. If any of them survive very long, they'll just be extra snacks it sounds like.

They might get competitive, but if you give them enough space, they should be able to coexist!

@@BuildingInASmallTown again many thanks!!💋

Love your channel!😉

I keep my incubators a bit closer to my heaters, but other than that, they’re kept in the same barn. An ideal set up would have an incubation room, but I’m not big enough to do that.

@@BuildingInASmallTown would you recommend a heating pad for someone small? Or how would you suggest someone small to do it

Yes! As long as the surface is rough enough for them to get in and out of (or you give them a little cardboard bridge in and out, either would work)

@@BuildingInASmallTown fantastic. Just a thought/ brain fart if these cricket do smell as bad as some say, then depending on the climate, air, humidity conditions (say they were on point) in the garden/ allotment shed, if kept there that would also keep the rats away as they hate the smell of ammonia. As well as not so noisy for us and neighbours.

@@majasmagic when kept in optimal conditions, there's little smell. When the humidity gets high and things get wet, it starts to smell terribly. Also, if you have a bunch of dead ones lying around, they will smell awful. It's essentially rotting meat!

@@BuildingInASmallTown I see. Thanks

That should be ok as long as there's no chemical fertilizer

@@BuildingInASmallTown so many thanks ☺️

I usually do two. If I’m really worried about having enough (which is usually an irrational fear!) I will do 3 for some of them

No need! They make it to the surface just fine.

5,000 should be achievable. I would shoot for ~900 per sq ft of growing space in the bin. Some of my egg flats have lasted over a year. Eventually, they get broken down and partially eaten.

@@BuildingInASmallTown wow thank you. So you don’t need to swap them out when they get too dirty? How often do you clean the storage bins to remove any fallen troops?

I do - until they start to eat too big of holes in them.

DEFINITELY separate them. Otherwise, you're 1/2 inchers will become little snacks quite quickly. Always keep separate generations in their own habitat.

Thanks so much for replying. Have a great day!!

Insect diet with meat from BioForge labs in Huxley, IA.

Hi Ken! I don't know that I have one specifically on keeping them alive after hatch , but some of the basics are covered in this playlist: kzfaq.info/sun/PL1GhU3DoORCSPE8TiK0H9FIh3ftIh5ajv Here's some other good ones: kzfaq.info/sun/PL1GhU3DoORCRc5QtQ_7PdD_NIPHqHX11t kzfaq.info/sun/PL1GhU3DoORCT6L5K7OwwLiC1Buo-ep86X Hope they help!

@@BuildingInASmallTown Thank you!

@@BuildingInASmallTown My operation is small and Im just growing to have my own fish bait.

it's the same feed we use for the adults. BioForge Labs Insect diet with meat. We also use sliced potatoes

escapees are bound to happen. Especially with pinheads. Are they climbing up the sides of the aquarium? If so, you can try a layer of packing tape around the top of the aquarium. They struggle to climb up it

@@BuildingInASmallTown yes they climb up the silicone like nothing. Thanks for the advice. I'll give the tape a try. I've baited a bunch of escapees into a dish. But losing a lot

@@Auditing.northern.N.Y. The packing tape should help!

@@BuildingInASmallTown awesome, thanks again

You can, but I would freeze or heat-treat it. There’s too many things that can go wrong (mites, other insects, bacteria build up, etc) that can drastically impact.

Most welcome 😊

I don't! I eat them believe it or not.

@@BuildingInASmallTown so what do you do with the Crickets?

thanks for watching!

Hi Dakota! We feed BioForge Labs Insect Diet with Meat.

With my current set up, a hatchery isn't possible, but, yes, warmer and more humid is ideal. I use the lids of the bins to create more humidity (but, it's a delicate balance, you definitely don't want condensation). We add a little extra heat with an additional heater near the incubators. It works well for us in this set up.

@@BuildingInASmallTown Good to know i was confused haha thanks for your help!

@@philippelabonte1246 thank you for pointing it out. I will probably do another video about it later in the week.

Probably 🤷🏼‍♀️

I typically don’t. If you’re going to, I would cook it to sanitize it.

@@BuildingInASmallTown how long do we cook it for nd how come we can’t reuse it?

Thanks so much for watching! What size crickets are you purchasing? If they aren't fully grown adults, they won't chirp. The males are silent the majority of their lives.

@@BuildingInASmallTown I order about 1,000 1/2" crickets, but i just have a few amphibians... They usually last a while. How long would you estimate it would take for them to reach maturity after I recieve them?

@@victoriacarson8320 That explains why they're quiet! They are about half grown. If you are keeping them at room temperature (72-ish degrees F) it will take about 3-4 weeks for them to reach maturity. If they're kept warmer than that, it will be a shorter time to maturity. Hope this helps!

@@BuildingInASmallTown Thank you. I know they're immature when I buy them, but I thought they'd be mature after a couple of weeks. Thanks for your help and fast responses!! ❤

It smells kind of like warm grains! It's one of our best indicators that something is wrong. If we walk in and there is a strong ammonia smell or dead cricket smell, we know something has a problem.

I could probably set up a pretty decent little side business with the live market. Diversify with all sorts of feeders/bait.

Is it? Tell me more!

That's why more than 2 billion people eat them everyday.

LOL. Yes, they definitely are 😅🤷🏼‍♀️