Escape proof bin and enclosures- ultimate feeder container and tips on silicon for tank

Franquixote

Franquixote

Established Member
I found this product and information and thought I would share.

Most probably don't think this is an issue, but I am very paranoid about anything escaping because it would mean a very unhappy family. Besides the liquid silicon and various tape people use in bins, I thought that this container was the best around because it has a gasket to seal the edges with a screen in the middle for ventilation:

http://www.pritchettssmallpets.com/products.php?product=Escape-Proof-Roach-Breeding-Kit

Also, I researched silicon to use in your enclosure to plug up any small holes or cracks where bugs could escape- no need to buy the expensive aquarium stuff, anything labeled "pure silicon" such as the GE type 1 caulk is fine. Actually, even the type 2 that has mildew suppressing chemicals would be fine, many reef keepers have used it to build custom tanks and report that once it cures they have had no problems with corals or other highly sensitive organisms.

Does anyone know of a liquid teflon that does the same job as the very expensive versions of the stuff marketed to the pet trade? Around the edges of my enclosure I am going to go to great lengths to be sure that there are no gaps, but the door is only sealed with a felt that is tacked in the crack and I'm not 100% sure it's totally gapless.

I plan on feeding using a bowl mounted in the middle of the enclosure and will put teflon around the edges of this so there won't be any free roaming feeders, but better safe than sorry.
 
Are you gonna get one? If so, let me know if it seems like a good quality product. It might be just what I'm looking for. How is all the bug research going on your end?
 
Sorry i cant help more, but ive never had escapees from just regular tubs other than when ive stupidly dropped things. I bought airtight locked bins and cut the lid off with a dremel. Hot glue screen in place. That keeps my climbers in.
 
Scott, I am either getting one from that inked source or going to find one on Amazon- I have 2 days worth of academic stuff to take care if (I am a teacher and need to square away some stuff before start of school year) and then I am going to sort out at least 3 colonies of feeders.
I am leaning toward orange heads, Indian sticks, silk worms, and blue bottle flies. I have a small scale snail experiment going on, but it is apparent already that the snails will be a lot of work-right now only 1 survived and I have it in a 4 quart plastic tub yet the waste it produces every day is a lot- it is also pretty stinky for just 1 snail- it is only a half inch diameter at most.
If you get a chance see if you can find a bin on Amazon with gasket seals- if not I will do so ASAP.
 
I've been looking on Amazon for a while and I can't find anything cheaper by more than a couple bucks. I cant find anything with the built in vents. I think you found a nice product. I did notice that when you opt for the vented one the price does go up by $13 but it looks nicer than a DIY vent. Also, I have heard roaches can chew through silicone and hot glue so id rather have the vent built in. I think I'm gonna pull the trigger on this.
 
I am thinking of actually doing tomatoes plants in the basement and trying my luck with hornworms when my collection gets bigger. To me, all the bugs seem like a big part of the fun of this.
 
After looking closer, the large bin is 48 bucks vented. Too rich for my blood! I found the same containers on Amazon under the search "iris storage container" and they are MUCH cheaper. I guess I'll just vent the top with aluminum screen.
 
I'll look into it tomorrow I have a project I have to get done ASAP - I'll let you know what I find, I have a bunch of ideas just need a few days-
For example for hiking/hunting/boating there are tons of gasket sealed storage options- I'll let you kno what I find ASAP

Hey watch it with tomato plants- remember they are in the same family as nightshade and I think the leaves are toxic- not sure if a hornworm that has been eating tomato would be safe.

I have to look into silicone- I am planning on sealing up cracks around edges of my custom setup with it- would suck if stuff chews throughit!
 
Thanks for the nightshade reminder. I totally forgot about that. I just remember picking hornworms off the tomato plants as a kid and just assumed that's what they ate. Close one. Thanks again!
 
Glad I could help. I assume that we want clear or at least semi-transparent containers to house the colonies, right?
Any idea of what the minimum size should be? I was thinking 10 gallons.
Also, another feature has to be the ability to wash it quickly in a slop sink if necessary, and I was thinking that glass would just be asking for disaster if it fell and broke. The only exception for me would be snails and walking sticks because they are slow and/or don't pose the same infestation risks. Petco has 10 gallon tanks on sale through this weekend for $9 or so.
I am getting one for the snails, I should have the replacements for the ones that died today or tomorrow from the Ebayer in Greece. The snails are pretty dirty - I have only 1 alive in there and it craps a lot more than I thought it would and also smells a bit too.

I'm just about ready to take this on, cleared up most of the work I needed to so I will be ordering in about a week for sure.
Looking into 10 gallon gasket sealed clear containers now...
 
I asked Andee about the size of bins and she said it depended on how big of a colony
you want. She has one that's 60 or 70 gallons. I am thinking of getting 40 - 60 qt. bins. I still haven't decided on which feeders. Crickets, OH, and hissers for sure, but a few others under consideration. Kenyans for when the cham eggs hatch, but possibly Cubans or banana. Still researching. I am going with plastic for my bins. So far I am leaning towards the sealed iris brand bins on amazon.
 
just got my schedule for next year, I teach high school English and usually get seniors and sophomores- I have 2 senior classes and 3 sophs next year.
We are a public HS but also a regional tech school so the place is huge- like a college campus- and I have access to all sorts of cool toys up in the science labs... one of my colleagues that teaches bio has a classroom with at least 30 different species of reps and amphibians.
 
I do not have a 60-70 gallon XD could not find the space for it currently though I could likely use it. I currently have a 40-45 gallon rubbermaid and will be splitting some of my breeders in a slightly smaller bin around a 45-55 quart to allow for more breeding and a larger colony.
 
I jut watched the video on blue bottle flies from Josh's Frogs (GEEZ do they send out a lot of emails!)



defintely want to do these! So I think that I am going to get most of my stuff from Josh- Andee, do they have generally good prices or should I shop around? I want to do silks (I'm told coastal silkworm is the way to go on those), Indian Sticks, and orange heads. I have a snail and some more OTW but I doubt that is going to work.
I figure that plus trips to Petco weekly to fatten up a few crickets (I REFUSE to keep them!) will work.
Also guys I finally got that Madagascar jasmine and after I seal up the tank with silicon I thik I'm ready to go!
Andee, have you had bugs chew through silicon?
TY for all the tips.
madagascar jasmine.jpg
 
Generally I know my roaches will chew through hot glue, but are kept in by duct tape, I don't know about silicone, but only use aquarium grade and let it cure correctly. If you can get all your feeders from one site you usually save more that way. But I know Josh's frogs has relatively high prices on roaches... but a lot of sites do in my opinion, especially on breeder colonies. I refuse to sell mine for that much. Coastal silkworms has good worms yes.... but you have to be prepared for line breeding with their stuff and likely won't have really healthy worms that can survive diseases easily for several generations of line breeding. I do not recommend feeding Petco crickets ever.
 
Never occurred to me that even if I gutloaded for like a week Petco crickets might still be bad (parasites and similar I assume?)
I didn't realize that you sold stuff Andee, is it a regular thing or just once in a while ?
I would love to get started with stock from someone that cares about the health of their bugs -do you have Indian sticks and orange heads? Maybe something else that's not likely to bite, infest, or stink?
If you do, let me know!
I never thought about doing the silks through their whole life cycle- I thought maybe I could do like 4 orders a year to keep me in bugs.
 
Yeah petco takes horrible care of their crickets, I used to work there and I was the only one who cleaned them out during my shift, every time I didn't work I would come back to phorid flies everywhere. The only time Ryker has ever gotten parasites from his feeders if when I fed petco crickets, he got pin worms.
I do not have OH yet, want to start a colony really bad, will likely buy some at the expo. I don't sell indian sticks but I sell a better stick insect in my opinion which the Vietnamese (Ramulus Artemis) but they won't be ready for a couple months, and I won't ship until then either do to weather issues causing DOAs currently.

I do sell silks as well, but currently not yet. Doing a small amount out of this group who I owe. But mine are line bred and genetically superior especially if you ask @jamest0o0
 
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