Before you read any further, please note that I understand that simpler is better. However, I have a craving for bizarre and elaborate DIY projects. Occasionally, the results may be useful. I wanted to share this latest "invention" with you all in case any of you feel the same. Or you might just want a deluxe house for your flies.
After a short time of keeping Musca domestica and having them escape all over the place, I noticed that they are A. faster than the D. hydei I'm used to and B. much more capable of short flights than D. hydei. In addition, the larvae need certain conditions, the pupae others and the adults need food, water and some space. Complicating factors; 1. I need very few flies each time I feed; 2. I cannot keep maggots in the fridge because of girlfriend veto; 3. I prefer to have one container.
My combined academic and military background immediately made me prefer over-elaborate planning. So I set up criteria;
- Modular design (maximized flexibility) with easy and fast module switches
- Maximum security / minimal exposure to escape opportunities
- Standardized replacement parts and modular components
- Accomodation of all three stages (larvae, pupae, adult) in a single container
- Easy extraction of 1-5 flies without having to risk escapes
The work process then commenced and after no more than a couple of hours of shopping for parts and construction, it was finished. It has been operational for almost a week now and so far, I'm very pleased. I drilled and sawed a hole in the lid of the container. Then I cut off the bottom of a plastic mug and put it in the hole, securing it with silicone. Below the plastic mug, I a plastic jar lid after cutting out the middle. Two bottle caps were also glued to the bottom of the container. I drilled a series of holes for ventilation and glued some insect net to make them escape proof. Finally, I drilled two more holes and put green aquarium hoses through the holes.
The design concept is that the plastic mug is the modular section. It has a removeable lid and since it supports standardized lids, I already have a few different specialized lids for different purposes. In addition, it also supports standardized inserts, being made of plastic jars for dairy products which I eat to a considerable extent. These inserts can be easily replaced. Currently, I have a culturing substrate insert and a low-ventilation lid (i.e. a lid with only a few small holes). The lid keeps the humidity up and keeps at least most of the smell inside. If I want to, I can easily remove the culturing insert and put a different lid on. I have several extraction lids (i.e., lids designed to let only a few flies at a time through) in case the container becomes overpopulated (making it difficult to extract flies without having many escapees). In addition, I have a thin "plastic barrier" that I can add to block access to the culturing insert, in case I want to stop the flies from further breeding.
This is the finished product
http://hugin.homelinux.org/tony/terrariet/...k/flugburk2.JPG
Side view. Note the plastic mug.
The two green hoses are for food and water supply. The two bottle caps are glued to the container. I use one hose to add water and one to add sugar water and similar fluid food stuffs. The plastic syringe is from a pharmacy, they gave me two of them for free since they cost almost nothing anyway.
The removeable lid, with culturing insert in place.
The culturing insert in place, note the two plastic straps I use to lift it up when I want to remove it. Also note the access holes for the flies.
This is the barrier. It was as simple as cutting up another identical plastic mug. It fits perfectly inside the first plastic mug and blocks the access holes, preventing flies from getting to the culturing insert.
This is what it looks like with the culturing insert removed. Note that the plastic lid glued to the bottom means that I can put thin bottle caps with honey in the container without having them slide away beyond reach.
Another modular option. I can put a plastic mug on top of the other plastic mug and let the flies walk into it. If I need to secure the mug, I can simply use two standard lids glued together with a hole in the middle.
Another modular lid, this one has a thick green hose for evacuating manageable numbers of flies in case of drastic overpopulation.
After a week of operation, I'm very happy with this construction. It allows me to add water and food in a secure manner and I can tinker with experimental culturing substrates, removing them if they fail. But most of all, it was fun to plan and construct.
Yes, I am a bit crazy and yes, I love to plan and design DIY stuff.
After a short time of keeping Musca domestica and having them escape all over the place, I noticed that they are A. faster than the D. hydei I'm used to and B. much more capable of short flights than D. hydei. In addition, the larvae need certain conditions, the pupae others and the adults need food, water and some space. Complicating factors; 1. I need very few flies each time I feed; 2. I cannot keep maggots in the fridge because of girlfriend veto; 3. I prefer to have one container.
My combined academic and military background immediately made me prefer over-elaborate planning. So I set up criteria;
- Modular design (maximized flexibility) with easy and fast module switches
- Maximum security / minimal exposure to escape opportunities
- Standardized replacement parts and modular components
- Accomodation of all three stages (larvae, pupae, adult) in a single container
- Easy extraction of 1-5 flies without having to risk escapes
The work process then commenced and after no more than a couple of hours of shopping for parts and construction, it was finished. It has been operational for almost a week now and so far, I'm very pleased. I drilled and sawed a hole in the lid of the container. Then I cut off the bottom of a plastic mug and put it in the hole, securing it with silicone. Below the plastic mug, I a plastic jar lid after cutting out the middle. Two bottle caps were also glued to the bottom of the container. I drilled a series of holes for ventilation and glued some insect net to make them escape proof. Finally, I drilled two more holes and put green aquarium hoses through the holes.
The design concept is that the plastic mug is the modular section. It has a removeable lid and since it supports standardized lids, I already have a few different specialized lids for different purposes. In addition, it also supports standardized inserts, being made of plastic jars for dairy products which I eat to a considerable extent. These inserts can be easily replaced. Currently, I have a culturing substrate insert and a low-ventilation lid (i.e. a lid with only a few small holes). The lid keeps the humidity up and keeps at least most of the smell inside. If I want to, I can easily remove the culturing insert and put a different lid on. I have several extraction lids (i.e., lids designed to let only a few flies at a time through) in case the container becomes overpopulated (making it difficult to extract flies without having many escapees). In addition, I have a thin "plastic barrier" that I can add to block access to the culturing insert, in case I want to stop the flies from further breeding.
This is the finished product
http://hugin.homelinux.org/tony/terrariet/...k/flugburk2.JPG
Side view. Note the plastic mug.
The two green hoses are for food and water supply. The two bottle caps are glued to the container. I use one hose to add water and one to add sugar water and similar fluid food stuffs. The plastic syringe is from a pharmacy, they gave me two of them for free since they cost almost nothing anyway.
The removeable lid, with culturing insert in place.
The culturing insert in place, note the two plastic straps I use to lift it up when I want to remove it. Also note the access holes for the flies.
This is the barrier. It was as simple as cutting up another identical plastic mug. It fits perfectly inside the first plastic mug and blocks the access holes, preventing flies from getting to the culturing insert.
This is what it looks like with the culturing insert removed. Note that the plastic lid glued to the bottom means that I can put thin bottle caps with honey in the container without having them slide away beyond reach.
Another modular option. I can put a plastic mug on top of the other plastic mug and let the flies walk into it. If I need to secure the mug, I can simply use two standard lids glued together with a hole in the middle.
Another modular lid, this one has a thick green hose for evacuating manageable numbers of flies in case of drastic overpopulation.
After a week of operation, I'm very happy with this construction. It allows me to add water and food in a secure manner and I can tinker with experimental culturing substrates, removing them if they fail. But most of all, it was fun to plan and construct.
Yes, I am a bit crazy and yes, I love to plan and design DIY stuff.
