My Mealworm Farm - with Filter

My version of HALIBU77's Meal worm Farm. Watch his video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTjv5fek0=s In my version I add some fine food into the beetle drawer to keep the eggs from sticking to the substrate. This allows the eggs to fall into the egg drawer before the beetles can eat them. I will try to upload with an audio track later.

Category:

Pets & Animals

Tags:

• mealworms
• mealworm farm
• mealworm breeding
• mealworm care
• feeding birds

[eve2831]

I have used this system for 2 years and like how it works but recently I had to put the beetles into a regular tub. The beetles seem to chew on the plastic the inside of the drawer became so rough that the beetles were able to climb out. I am able to apply packing tape to the inside walls of the drawer to keep the beetles inside but it kept pealing off. So i have to ether make a new drawer of use a tub. For now its the tub until a new drawer gets made. I believe i will make a new drawer.

[TaliaVishnu]

When the pupa hatch how long after do the beetles begin to eat I finally got three beettles but they don't eat or move r they fin to die it's been 5 days they still reddish brown though

[eve2831]

@TaliaVishnu

The beetles begin eating fairly soon, its just hard to see. It does take a while, at first their shells are a little soft and they are weak from the long pupation process. They have to build up their strength. The color change and moving about and eating goes a lot faster if the beetles are warm. Room temperature or high 70's F. It generally takes a week to 10 days before the beetles become black. They need to be about 14 days old before they start laying eggs.

[R0WMaC]

I want to eat mealworms, is this a safe way?

[eve2831]

@R0WMaC

I found the video i mentioned its here on YouTube its called

Dirty Jobs Season 7 Episode 16 - Chicken Busters PART 4

It has nothing to do with chickens in this segment.

[loridodds1]

I cannot find HALIBU77 video. I think it is now off line. Do you know how i can find it? I like filter system video, but still need more info. I have been raising mealworms for the past year, and picking all stages out by hand is soooo time consuming. I want to try your ideas. So to be clear, the filter system allows you to skip sorting out dead beatles, right? do you wait til beeltes are all dead, then toss out? do you still hand pluck pupae? i really need to make this less intense

[R0WMaC]

@eve2831 thank you :D!

[eve2831]

@camgonecrazy

It was very dry in the house so i tried adding extra moisture in the drawer by adding a slightly damp sponge. The foil kept the feed from getting damp. I left the sponge in the drawer, dripping a little water on it while the worms grew and they ended up eating it. At first i didn't notice the little tunnels they made. The worms ended up hollowing out the sponge. Then unnoticed they pupated inside and i had to rip it apart to get all the trapped beetles out.

[eve2831]

@R0WMaC Well i have never ate the mealworms myself but i hear that people can. I feed them to the wild birds. I did watch a special on TV a long while back on how to grow mealworms and one of the growers ate some live ones for the camera. He immediately looked revolted and spit them out.

So good luck with that.

[eve2831]

Walmart