# New idea for keeping houseflys...



## darkspeed (Nov 7, 2007)

So I had my first experience with keeping houseflys recently, and I must say I sucked at it. Even after putting them in cold storage for a little while before trying to transfer them to my mantis enclosures, I still had several escapees, and then I guess I let them get dehydrated cuz 90% of them just up and died. I gave them honey/powdered milk to eat and "cricket gel" to drink, but I didnt spray them at all, and I kept them at about 80'f. One thing that bothered me about the whole experience was the inability to just pour out a few cold flys without having to remove the water dish and the food dish and the pupae dish. They warm up rather fast while you do all this and you end up with flys all over the house. So I got to thinking and came up with a way to change the fly's sustenance as well as meter out cold flys without removing a lid and giving the flys a chance at a fast getaway or spilling their food and drink.... observe.........................................................................

.................



























I simply put 3 holes in the bottom of a rubbermaid screwtop plastic jar using a butane torch. A drill and a big drill bit would have worked better, but I didnt have them handy. Then I hot clued the lids to some little 1.5 oz condiment cups. (these can often be found at resturaunts or ordered from foodservice suppliers. I'd be willing to bet Rebecca @ Mantis Place would know where to get some.) I first cut holes in the lids with a razorknife, and once they are in place the cups can removed and returned easily and quickly. This allows me to remove the cups as need be for refil, and also to remove cold flys through a small hole, lowering the oppurtunity for escapes. I decided on three as that would leave room for a pupae cup along with the food and water cup. I also hot glued 3 cotton balls to the inside, which can be moistened for maintaining humidity.


----------



## Malnra (Nov 7, 2007)

Interesting setup. I cringe when I think about having to mes with flies. I hope it is not as big a pain as I think it is. :lol:


----------



## Rick (Nov 7, 2007)

Interesting idea. For me I just put the maggots in a 32 oz deli container and place on a shelf. When they hatch I use a syringe to give them honey through a hole cut in the side. When I need flies I put the entire container in the freezer until they slow down. I feed them honey every other day. You do not need a water dish or anything complicated for them.


----------



## hibiscusmile (Nov 7, 2007)

I kinda like the idea, I am working on one too. I have the cups going onto the site, but as you said any resturant supply house will have them.


----------



## Sparky (Nov 7, 2007)

I just hate it when i put the flies in the freezer and forget about them &lt;_&lt;


----------



## asdsdf (Nov 7, 2007)

LMAO!!! That's what happened to me too!


----------



## Kruszakus (Nov 8, 2007)

Tell me - do you use some special honey to stuff the flies? Or can it be any type of it?


----------



## hibiscusmile (Nov 8, 2007)

I've done it with ffs. My hubby called me one day after I had been gone an hour, and asked me if they were supposed to be in freezer. ah hhaaha, He took them out and when I got home they were still not movin, a few hours later, good as new.They were in there probably an hour and a half. So if you freeze the ff cultures by mistake, they can still probably be good. Keep for a couple days and watch for the maggots to be moving.


----------



## Sparky (Nov 8, 2007)

Kruszakus said:


> Tell me - do you use some special honey to stuff the flies? Or can it be any type of it?


I use "pure honey" or 100% honey. Others have Fructose Syrup or other things. I think it should be ok though.


----------



## Kruszakus (Nov 9, 2007)

Well, if it does not kill the flies, then why should it be harmful to a mantis.


----------



## Mantida (Nov 9, 2007)

That's really creative. I've just recently started raising houseflies and my mom has been wondering why there have been so many in the house.  :lol:


----------



## Sparky (Nov 9, 2007)

mantida said:


> That's really creative. I've just recently started raising houseflies and my mom has been wondering why there have been so many in the house.  :lol:


Yeah and she thinks its MY fault that flies are in the house when someone stupidly leaves the balcony door open.


----------



## yen_saw (Nov 10, 2007)

Nice Darkspeed!! time to patent your product  Always great to see hobbyist giving their thought here to improve feeding method. Keep it up!


----------



## Moosashi (Dec 10, 2007)

what food do you put in the little condiment cup and what do you put in the water cup, just water or a water and honey mixture, or some kind of Fluker's cricket quencher I've been reading about (what is that stuff and where do you get it? if so) This container can be used to continuously culture flies from maggots to adult?


----------



## macro junkie (Dec 10, 2007)

Moosashi said:


> what food do you put in the little condiment cup and what do you put in the water cup, just water or a water and honey mixture, or some kind of Fluker's cricket quencher I've been reading about (what is that stuff and where do you get it? if so) This container can be used to continuously culture flies from maggots to adult?


pure water to drink and honey to eat..i dont put that in there i spray them,,i have 1 pint plastic cups..i put small cup with about 15 maggots on it..i then place the cup inside the 1pint cup..then then cover the top with netting and esastic band and cut hole in side and plug it with foam..i have some long metal tweezers the hospials use..i pull the sponge out and grab a fly by its wings.easy peasy..oh i dip beard on honey and put it in bottom of pint cup..i know your thinking what the heck..how much can he fit in 1 cup..lo...its a sqweeze but it works.


----------



## darkspeed (Dec 10, 2007)

Well I went through one generation of flies with the previously posted design before realizing further flaw in the design. The cups were too small to accomodate hundreds of flys and were not readily removeable without putting yourself in a hapless position to let several flies escape. So then created another enclosure using clear 3/4 hose to connect the main chaimber to small 8oz plastic containers, and I have found this method much easier, as it allows the small container full of flys to be removed from the hose only exposing a 3/4 inch hole, which can quickly be stopped with cotton balls.. I have been using a soldering pen to fashion holes in the plastic containers for the hose to penetrate, and hot glue to form a seal in case the hole isnt 100% equal to the OD of the hose.

The small container can be refrigerated and fed from without affecting the flies in the main chamber. As far as feeding goes I use a 50/50 mix of powdered milk and granulated sugar. They love it and it isnt sticky. As for water I have found that a wet cotton ball works wonders. Fly's actually drink more than they eat, and having a good water supply will go far to promoting the life of the flys. The cotton ball prevents drowning, and can easily be thrown out and replaced with another since they are a dime a dozen. I also use this same method with a honey water solution to feed my hydeis.


----------



## darkspeed (Dec 10, 2007)

You can get the big chamber bottles (Rubbermaid clear plastic w/ white lids) and the small containers (ziplock clear plastic w/blue lids five pack) at walmart in the housewares section. The clear hose is at home depot in the plumbing isle several sizes to choose from. With the new setup, and the bigger cups you can easily put food in one cup, wet cotton balls in the other and pupae in another and link them all to the big chamber by 3/4 hose. I would buy pupae from mantisplace. its alot easier than dealing with maggots. just put them in a warm place and you end up with hundreds of flies in a few days. If you would rather deal with maggots, once you have flies you can culture more by mixing dry dogfood with hot water and a small amount of bakers yeast. put a few inches of the dogfood mash in the bottom of one of those big rubbemaid jars and top it off with some cedar shavings (like the ones in a hamster cage) and the lid (drill some holes in it and put a coffe filter over the mouth of the jar under the lid or cut a big hole and fill with a peice of sponge. regardless it produces hundreds more, and then you have to deal with transporting the pupae from the culture to the fly keeping enclosure,which just consists of putting some cedar shavings and pupae from the culture into one of the ziplock cups and popping it back onto its lid with the clear plastic hose penetrating the lid going to the main chaimber when the hatch the will find their way back to the main chamber and to the other chambers where the food and water is. It is a bit industrious and maybe a few hours work to put it all together, but it certainly works well and keeps the flys happy and long lived. My camera batteries are charging, so ill have some pics up shortly.


----------



## Moosashi (Dec 10, 2007)

does the enclosure smell strongly or badly? I have to keep it all in my little apartment room that adjoins the living room with 3 other people's bedrooms coming off the living room, so I don't want them wondering what the smell is, lol.


----------



## darkspeed (Dec 10, 2007)

Moosashi said:


> does the enclosure smell strongly or badly? I have to keep it all in my little apartment room that adjoins the living room with 3 other people's bedrooms coming off the living room, so I don't want them wondering what the smell is, lol.


If you order pupae and just keep flies there is no smell... if you try to do a dogfood mash culture be prepared for one of the worst smells known to man. I would suggest just getting fly pupae from mantisplace and when the run out just get somemore.


----------



## asdsdf (Dec 10, 2007)

I think they stink.....Especially when they start dying. :blink:


----------



## Moosashi (Dec 10, 2007)

DARKSPEED said:


> If you order pupae and just keep flies there is no smell... if you try to do a dogfood mash culture be prepared for one of the worst smells known to man. I would suggest just getting fly pupae from mantisplace and when the run out just get somemore.


If I order $25 worth on their site, I get 50 free housefly pupae, but don't you have to hatch those immediately basically? Then the flies last for like 30 days? So every month I will need to place an order for more or else feed it crickets and stuff?


----------



## hibiscusmile (Dec 10, 2007)

Darkspeed, have u been watching me make fly containers.?, ha ha ha, I have made same setup, This is funny. tomorrow I will take pic of it. ha ha I cannot believe it, I was just telling Jasper about it and that it was almost ready. Mine is a little different though. But it has the hose and everything. ALSO, do not use cedar chips for the flies water or food mix, only use clean wood chips. The cedar will be toxic to them. Good job! Aslo, another tip, make sure the pupae cannot get wet with the water. This is what causes the smell, as long as it is not wet it will not smell, and what little does won't be bad!


----------



## Guest_BIGGUN_* (Apr 16, 2008)

DARKSPEED,

Could you please post a pic of our setup. I think I understand how you've explained it but a picture's worht a thousand words.

Thanks a ton,

Kevin



DARKSPEED said:


> You can get the big chamber bottles (Rubbermaid clear plastic w/ white lids) and the small containers (ziplock clear plastic w/blue lids five pack) at walmart in the housewares section. The clear hose is at home depot in the plumbing isle several sizes to choose from. With the new setup, and the bigger cups you can easily put food in one cup, wet cotton balls in the other and pupae in another and link them all to the big chamber by 3/4 hose. I would buy pupae from mantisplace. its alot easier than dealing with maggots. just put them in a warm place and you end up with hundreds of flies in a few days. If you would rather deal with maggots, once you have flies you can culture more by mixing dry dogfood with hot water and a small amount of bakers yeast. put a few inches of the dogfood mash in the bottom of one of those big rubbemaid jars and top it off with some cedar shavings (like the ones in a hamster cage) and the lid (drill some holes in it and put a coffe filter over the mouth of the jar under the lid or cut a big hole and fill with a peice of sponge. regardless it produces hundreds more, and then you have to deal with transporting the pupae from the culture to the fly keeping enclosure,which just consists of putting some cedar shavings and pupae from the culture into one of the ziplock cups and popping it back onto its lid with the clear plastic hose penetrating the lid going to the main chaimber when the hatch the will find their way back to the main chamber and to the other chambers where the food and water is. It is a bit industrious and maybe a few hours work to put it all together, but it certainly works well and keeps the flys happy and long lived. My camera batteries are charging, so ill have some pics up shortly.


----------



## darkspeed (Apr 16, 2008)

I dont have any pics to speak of...and since my garage was my only place to keep such a foul smelling culture I have not kept any due to the cold. But now it is warmer, and I have mantids large enough to need them, so I will probably start a housefly culture soon. Not to mention I am working on a whole new recipe based on milk as opposed to dogfood. So far my preliminary tests have shown promising results.... for more info on my tests read here:

http://mantidforum.net/forums/index.php?sh...2734&amp;st=20#


----------

