Crickets Freakin' Stink! any suggestions on de-oderizing them?

[jannb]

Keeping your crickets very clean cuts way down on the odor.

Feed your crickets less veggies and more dry gut load to make the poop firm.

To clean move all the egg crates to one side and remove food dish and water dish. Take a dry paint brush and sweep all the droppings into the corner and then scoop out.....I use a tiny dust pan that I got at the dollar store. Then wipe bottom with damp paper towels. Move eggs crates to the clean side and repeat. Keep them cool and they live longer. Give them fresh water every 2 to 3 days. Clean cricket bin at least twice a week.

 

[Bob 1000]

NO LATERALIS ROACHES STINK,,,lol.. My guy seems to love them but the smell is strong.. I clean there cup once a week with bleach and it still stinks after a 1/2hr soak..

 

[sandrachameleon]

Keeping your crickets very clean cuts way down on the odor.

Feed your crickets less veggies and more dry gut load to make the poop firm.

To clean move all the egg crates to one side and remove food dish and water dish. Take a dry paint brush and sweep all the droppings into the corner and then scoop out.....I use a tiny dust pan that I got at the dollar store. Then wipe bottom with damp paper towels. Move eggs crates to the clean side and repeat. Keep them cool and they live longer. Give them fresh water every 2 to 3 days. Clean cricket bin at least twice a week.

agreed. Although I use lots of wet gutload myself, and skip the water. But the more dry food they eat, the less they stink. ventilation and cleaning is key. But to me even freshly cleaned crickets stink.

I also agree with the vote for roaches and other feeders. Breeding other bugs means I no longer buy crickets in bulk, just a few every other week. So no more stink in my house!

dried Aflalfa is awesome as a part of your dry gutload. BUT watch what you buy, read ingredients. Things like Aflalfa pellets for rabbits has other stuff in it, usually including preformed vitamin A and D3 (which you may not need to be gutloading with)

oatmeal has the wrong calcium to phosphorous ratio, so doesnt make for the best gutalod choice.

 

[tkilgour]

Keeping your crickets very clean cuts way down on the odor.

Feed your crickets less veggies and more dry gut load to make the poop firm.

To clean move all the egg crates to one side and remove food dish and water dish. Take a dry paint brush and sweep all the droppings into the corner and then scoop out.....I use a tiny dust pan that I got at the dollar store. Then wipe bottom with damp paper towels. Move eggs crates to the clean side and repeat. Keep them cool and they live longer. Give them fresh water every 2 to 3 days. Clean cricket bin at least twice a week.

Excellent pointers jann!

NO LATERALIS ROACHES STINK,,,lol.. My guy seems to love them but the smell is strong.. I clean there cup once a week with bleach and it still stinks after a 1/2hr soak..

Very true, they smell awful. Not to mention infest very easily. B.dubia isnt anything like lateralis IMO. My favorite now are BBflies!

agreed. Although I use lots of wet gutload myself, and skip the water. But the more dry food they eat, the less they stink. ventilation and cleaning is key. But to me even freshly cleaned crickets stink.

I also agree with the vote for roaches and other feeders. Breeding other bugs means I no longer buy crickets in bulk, just a few every other week. So no more stink in my house!

dried Aflalfa is awesome as a part of your dry gutload. BUT watch what you buy, read ingredients. Things like Aflalfa pellets for rabbits has other stuff in it, usually including preformed vitamin A and D3 (which you may not need to be gutloading with)

oatmeal has the wrong calcium to phosphorous ratio, so doesnt make for the best gutalod choice.

Great tips, once again! Thanks.

 

[bugman]

Thanks Everyone!

I am using the orange theory and keeping my heard to 50 no more stench! I would like to move back to a larger colony but worry about that odor again

 

[aliguori]

Keeping your crickets very clean cuts way down on the odor.

Feed your crickets less veggies and more dry gut load to make the poop firm.

To clean move all the egg crates to one side and remove food dish and water dish. Take a dry paint brush and sweep all the droppings into the corner and then scoop out.....I use a tiny dust pan that I got at the dollar store. Then wipe bottom with damp paper towels. Move eggs crates to the clean side and repeat. Keep them cool and they live longer. Give them fresh water every 2 to 3 days. Clean cricket bin at least twice a week.

I go through about 1000 crickets every few weeks. I use 66-quart Sterilite bins with two very large holes cut on each end covered by aluminum window screening. I use flat egg crates that are cut in half and then glued together so that they stand up vertically. This way all of the droppings fall to the bottom of the bin.

I clean the enclosure every day by picking up the two sections of glued up egg crates and placing them gently into another bin. I then scope out any droppings and dead crickets. It probably takes 30-60 seconds overall.

There's really no smell at all using this method. I have very few crickets die too. The key is to be very consistent in cleaning every day.

I've done this for a long time now with very consistent results.