Bullet Proof Dubia Bin

[Pap]

Hello Everyone.!
So i finally got around to setting up a Dubia roach colony... Built the bin a few nights ago and the colony showed up this morning... Used a 30 gallon smooth plastic tub i found at walmart.. Drilled 1 1/2 inch holes on two sides and covered them with 4 layers of aluminum screening held in place by nuts blots and washers... Then hot glued twice to make sure there was no lifting of the edges of the screen.. I cut a hole in the lid and attached the screening the same way... Lid then has 8 extra blots with wing nuts to make sure the lid is held down extra tight... As of now my heat source will be coming from a 5.5 inch dome with a red 75 watt bulb... ( had it laying around not being used ).. Placed 3 containers on the one side... 1 for water crystals 1 for dry gut load and 1 for fresh fruits and veggies... Future plans would be to build some kind of rack system for the egg flats and to change the heat source over to flexwatt...
Colony Size:
16 Females
4 males
10 extra large nymphs
50 small/med nymphs
250 baby nymphs
This is my first time giving this a go so any extra information you guys may have or insight would be awesome... and i think the biggest question i have right now would be how big are the nymphs you are feeding off... I know the rule of thumb being nothing bigger then how wide your chameleons mouth is... So does that mean if you let them get to full sized adult males/females they are useless for feeding and are the babies so small they are pointless too... If anyone has pictures of how they built their roach feeder cup id like to see them because that will be my next mini project... Here are a few pictures... As always Thanks

 

[wodesorel]

They can't climb plastic and they can't fly. I kept mine in an open-topped bin for four years. The only escape I had was when I knocked part of a bag into the bin and some were able to crawl out using it as a rope.

 

[Pap]

@wodesorel you're brave.! Haha I had read that they can't climb once they are bigger but that baby's still could... I had the time so building it up a little extra didn't bother me... And the idea of them in the house wasn't my favorite...

 

[jpowell86]

That looks great!

 

[alphakenc]

Every male roach can live with 10 females....pimping aint easy,I wonder how do the females handle their jealousy ? Monogamy or polygamy.....mmm.....yup....yup

 

[MSMorgan]

Pap,

That sounds like quite an enclosure. I use a Rubbermade clear 20 gal bin for my small colony, with a heat mat underneath that keeps the colony @ 85-90* respectively. They do fine kept at this temp. (less if the colony's getting too big and a little warmer if the colony's not producing as well) Yes, the larger breeders male and female are too big for my guy. But, I'm in luck. I pick off the males, when over crowded and give them to my buddy that has chickens. I get eggs now and again for my trade. The smaller ones get bigger with time, just go through and pick off your older adult males so there is a good ratio. 3 F to 1 M, or approx. is what I've been told and is working well for me.

 

[bobcochran]

Definitely go to heat tape, the roaches hang out in the bottom of the box mostly, they're nocturnal and seem to eat and reproduce more if kept in constant darkness while still warm. Also I don't use water crystals, they get enough moisture from the fruit and vegetables. You chose a good container with opaque plastic so it's easy to keep it darker inside. Good roaching!!

 

[DaChameleonKing]

I wanted roaches, but my parents said no. i cri evry tiem

 

[Pap]

@MSMorgan Didn't know that chickens would eat them... That's good to know... I live by plenty of farms... Most defiantly had planned on keeping a good male/female ratio just didn't know what to do with the extra males... How big are you letting the nymphs get till you feed them off.?
@bobcochran I could not find flex watt anywhere local... And I've never used it before so I wasn't 100% sure on buying it online... I could not find anywhere selling a complete kit... It was all kind of mix match parts... Any idea where to find a full plug and play kit.?

 

[bobcochran]

I got my heat tape on line. I used an extension cord and cut off the female end and connected it to the heat tape. It's pretty simple, if you need help there's plenty of videos online showing how to hook everything up.

 

[MSMorgan]

@MSMorgan Didn't know that chickens would eat them... That's good to know... I live by plenty of farms... Most defiantly had planned on keeping a good male/female ratio just didn't know what to do with the extra males... How big are you letting the nymphs get till you feed them off.?

Pap, 1/2 " +/- or so is what I'm currently feeding Lucky. Well, at least that's what I'm putting in the feeder cup. I usually find them crawling around in the cage later on in the day. As far a chickens go, I understand that dubias are very good for them. My friend shakes them out of the cup and the "fight is on" with the hens trying to snatch them up.

 

[Tree gem]

Nice Roach Bin OP! Yes the dubias for the most part cannot climb the steep walls. Unlike red runners which despite my best efforts always seemed to find ways to escape. My gf waking up at night to a stray roach scurrying accross her face was bitter-sweet to say the least! Figured if she can handle that, she might be a keeper!

The dubias are definitely easier to keep and work with, but my chameleons seemed to prefer the animation of the runners.

 

[wodesorel]

@Pap You should be able to sell them. Adult Beardies eat them, and many people don't want to breed their own. If you live in a feeder desert like where I am, they can fetch a decent price and nab you repeat customers. When I put my small colony up for sale I got more than I expected and it was gone in days.

 

[MelissaB]

[

I could not find anywhere selling a complete kit... It was all kind of mix match parts... Any idea where to find a full plug and play kit.?

I bought mine assembled on Ebay. They look really easy to put together, but I wanted it ready to go.

 

[Direwolf]

Very impressive!!! One day here in the near future I hope to start a colony myself. Trick is not alerting the spouse to what's actually going on in that black storage tub!

 

[misshissingroaches]

I wanted roaches, but my parents said no. i cri evry tiem

Aww. I have an entire colony in my room that my parents tolerate. Maybe try turning it into a responsibility thing, or a moneymaking thing. I have hissers who each are wonderful and have individual names and personalities (or at least I think so!). My mother has fallen in love with them and loves to walk around town with my baby, Little, on her shoulder. My dad, not so much :3

 

[Pap]

[

I bought mine assembled on Ebay. They look really easy to put together, but I wanted it ready to go.

Any chance you have a link... And was it digitally temperature controlled or like a hardware store dimmer switch... I like the idea of the digital controllers but it seems like you can get into some money going that way... Not that I'm too worried about the cost but I had the light and figured it would do for now seeing how I've spent a small fortune with Christmas being so close haha

 

[Pap]

@Pap You should be able to sell them. Adult Beardies eat them, and many people don't want to breed their own. If you live in a feeder desert like where I am, they can fetch a decent price and nab you repeat customers. When I put my small colony up for sale I got more than I expected and it was gone in days.

Have Deffinently thought about that too once things get up and going... It is a feeder desert around these parts haha

 

[Pap]

Nice Roach Bin OP! Yes the dubias for the most part cannot climb the steep walls. Unlike red runners which despite my best efforts always seemed to find ways to escape. My gf waking up at night to a stray roach scurrying accross her face was bitter-sweet to say the least! Figured if she can handle that, she might be a keeper!

The dubias are definitely easier to keep and work with, but my chameleons seemed to prefer the animation of the runners.

A keeper is an understatement.! Haha that is about 90% of the reason I built my bin the way I did haha...

 

[MelissaB]

Any chance you have a link... And was it digitally temperature controlled or like a hardware store dimmer switch...

Sure, this is where I bought mine: http://www.ebay.com/sch/Reptile-Supplies-/1285/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_from=&_ssn=egg-incubator

They do offer a dimmer on a cord for more money. I would just buy a separate temp controller. I don't have a controller on mine, I keep meaning to buy one.