Mealworm farming

[evemfoster]

My question is: does anyone know what the mesh size should be of the screen so the eggs could fall through?

Lee, I used the screen and shelves method for a couple years. So can help you but I stopped using them. The screen and shelves are simply more labor intensive. In the long run it's extra labor that didn’t need to expended in the first place. A lot of people quit after a short while because the farm is just too much work. So simpler is better.

That said I have no room to talk. I did start with the more complicated system first. I eventually changed over to a sweater box and am quite happy with it. The box takes nearly no work at all. It’s as simple as adding some moisture as needed when collecting worms . And worry about cleaning the frass out when the feed is gone, about once a year.

Anyway I’m off my soap box now so to answer your question and more you didn’t know to ask.
I’m pasting in a copy of directions I wrote up a couple years ago for a drawer system. Hope this helps.

Use metal window screen. Has to be metal the worms can chew through the cloth screening. Glue the screen on the inside of the container. If you put it on the outside it will come off.

Use all-purpose hot glue and make sure it is hot as possible when applied (sticks better). Don’t remove any hot glue that drips out onto the screen. The hot glue de-tempers the wire enough that the worms can chew through it after a few weeks. So the dripped glue acts as a seal over the damaged spot.

You will need to check the screen for bad spots in about a year then every few months after that. You can replace the screen, cut it out and put in a new screen. You can even use the glue gun like a sodering iron and melt the new screen into the old glue.

When preparing the drawer leave 1 to 1 ½ inches of plastic all the way around the outside edge. You will need the lip to glue onto and it helps support the bedding. The actual size of the openings depends on how wide the shelving supports are below the drawer. If there is an opening over the drawer supports the feed and baby worms will build up on the shelf support and be pull outside the drawer every time the drawer is opened. Pay attention to the drawers themselves, sometimes the drawers have a lip at the top that will need to compensated for. It helps if you take a sharpie and draw on the drawer all the areas that has something under the drawer then plan the openings in the remaining space.

Now for cutting the holeS. After some time the screen will start to sag and drag on the shelving opening. So it’s wise to plan for this. For more support under the screen and to make it easier to open and close the drawer narrow lengthwise bracing helps the drawer slide in and out easer. Cut out 2-3 lengthwise rectangle holes (2 to 3 inches wide) for the length of the drawer. Leave at least an inch wide plastic strip to help support the bedding between the holes (WIDER IS BETTER). The width of the hole you cut out depends on the width of the unit you bought. Try to avoid a brace that goes side to side. Lengthwise bracing is far harder to cut but they do keep the screen from dragging on the shelve supports. Sideways braces catches on the edge of shelving under the drawer, thumping or stopping the slide altogether, making a mess every time the drawer is closed.

To cut the drawer plastic without breaking it you will need to use a box knife. Using very gentle pressure cut very shallow groves and go over it repeatedly until you have cut all the way through.

 

[agapefarmfhl]

Lee, I used the screen and shelves method for a couple years.  So can help you but I stopped using them.  The screen and shelves are simply more labor intensive.  In the long run it's extra labor that didn’t need to expended in the first place.  A lot of people quit after a short while because the farm is just too much work.  So simpler is better.

That said I have no room to talk. I did start with the more complicated system first.  I eventually changed over to a sweater box and am quite happy with it.  The box takes nearly no work at all. It’s as simple as adding some moisture as needed when collecting worms .  And worry about cleaning the frass out when the feed is gone, about once a year.   

Anyway I’m off my soap box now so to answer your question and more you didn’t know to ask.
I’m pasting in a copy of directions I wrote up a couple years ago for a drawer system.  Hope this helps.

Use metal window screen.  Has to be metal the worms can chew through the cloth screening.  Glue the screen on the inside of the container.  If you put it on the outside it will come off. 

Use all-purpose hot glue and make sure it is hot as possible when applied (sticks better).  Don’t remove any hot glue that drips out onto the screen.  The hot glue de-tempers the wire enough that the worms can chew through it after a few weeks.  So the dripped glue acts as a seal over the damaged spot.

 You will need to check the screen for bad spots in about a year then every few months after that.  You can replace the screen, cut it out and put in a new screen.  You can even use the glue gun like a sodering iron and melt the new screen into the old glue.

When preparing the drawer leave 1 to 1 ½ inches of plastic all the way around the outside edge. You will need the lip to glue onto and it helps support the bedding.  The actual size of the openings depends on how wide the shelving supports are below the drawer.  If there is an opening over the drawer supports the feed and baby worms will build up on the shelf support and be pull outside the drawer every time the drawer is opened. Pay attention to the drawers themselves, sometimes the drawers have a lip at the top that will need to compensated for.  It helps if you take a sharpie and draw on the drawer all the areas that has something under the drawer then plan the openings in the remaining space.

Now for cutting the holeS.  After some time the screen will start to sag and drag on the shelving opening.  So it’s wise to plan for this. For more support under the screen and to make it easier to open and close the drawer narrow lengthwise bracing helps the drawer slide in and out easer.  Cut out 2-3 lengthwise rectangle holes (2 to 3 inches wide) for the length of the drawer. Leave at least an inch wide plastic strip to help support the bedding between the holes (WIDER IS BETTER).  The width of the hole you cut out depends on the width of the unit you bought.   Try to avoid a brace that goes side to side.  Lengthwise bracing is far harder to cut but they do keep the screen from dragging on the shelve supports.  Sideways braces catches on the edge of shelving under the drawer, thumping or stopping the slide altogether, making a mess every time the drawer is closed. 

To cut the drawer plastic without breaking it you will need to use a box knife.  Using very gentle pressure cut very shallow groves and go over it repeatedly until you have cut all the way through.  

Thank you for the info! I appreciate it, so if i understand correctly you dont use this method? What method do you use and how would i set it up? I would like to do it right the first time.

Thanks!

 

[evemfoster]

Thank you for the info! I appreciate it, so if i understand correctly you dont use this method? What method do you use and how would i set it up? I would like to do it right the first time.

Thanks!

I now use a Sterilite 28 quart box. Its 23” x 16 ¼” x 6”. The farm is large enough that it produces enough mealworm treats for my small flock of chickens.
I cut 2 large rectangular holes in the lid and covered them with the same window screen I used before.

I later stuck sticky back foam insulation strips around the inside edge of the lid because moths were finding their way inside the farm through a gap manufactured in the lid.

I put in about 1 to 1 ½ inches of feed. I keep the feed level down because I found that deeper feed tends to hold more moisture. When moisture levels build up I would then have a mite farm. Horrible little monsters.

For a farm this sizes a couple hundred beetles are more than way plenty. I did get behind on feeding the worms out one time and had well over 500 beetles. That was just disturbing. The extra beetles got feed to the birds. You can feed all life stages to the birds, even the old dead beetles.

As for their food I like bran best but have used oats and other grains. I toss in any leftover grain based food I have as long as it’s dry. I let leftover bread dry out before crunching it into small pieces and tossing them in. I have given them breakfast cereal, layer crumbles, fish food and a while back I gave them a whole bag of ginger snaps that got spilled. So don’t limit the food to just one thing, they will eat anything even paper.

I prefer carrots as the moisture source but have used a wide range of things. Potatoes, corncobs, apple cores, celery, lettuce and peels from potatoes to apples. Whatever is on hand at the time. I have never baked the feed to kill mites like you see people recommending here. I do keep a close eye on the moisture sources and am careful to not over feed (water). Thereby keeping the humidity down so I have less of a chance to get mites.

 

[Dipstick]

Hi all, its been a LONG while since I was on here, but after much trial and error we have worm farming down pat. In fact due to our newest techniques we have seen our numbers increase exponentially by comparison to when we were doing things the way we have read about online.

We are in the 2nd year of production and have reached a rather large population, and now have enough to begin selling. We are well into the 10's of thousands if not hundreds of thousands of worms and at least a thousand beetles currently, maybe even twice that. We should be into the millions by this time next year based upon our ACTUAL current growth rate. There is a lot to doing this if you want to speed things up, and a lot of time required if you do not. We have found that our customers report that their animals prefer our worms to the worms they used to purchase, and tell us that ours are far larger. And our cluckers go nuts when they see the bowl everyday. In fact, they ask for it. So we know that we have gotten it right.

We use the 28qt. Sterlite boxes, no lids, on a wooden shelving system, in our storage room. We do not worry about the humidity or moisture levels as we once did. We do not have to. We go through a 50lb. bag of high quality wheat bran per week and close to 30lbs. of carrots or potatoes in the same period. BUT our mortality rate is down 99% and our production has skyrocketed! The following pictures show some of our older failed techniques, but they will give you an idea as to the level of production we were headed to. At the time these pics were taken we had only 8 worm bins and 7 beetle bins. This does not count our 2 pupae bins, or our sifting bins. We are now nearly double that, and our worm bins have nearly 2" of worms across the entire surface. We currently have 3 of the 58qt. bins full of hatchlings.









As you can see here, we are serious about producing. Our goal is high productivity for online sales as well as local market sales, and I will be writing a short book on how to do it right. One word of advise.....

They aren't joking... WEAR A MASK!

I didn't because I was a tough guy... Now I live on antihistamines! It does not matter if you work with them outdoors. The frass dust is so fine that it is nearly invisible and the slightest breeze, even one you cannot feel, is strong enough to carry it to your face. YOU WILL DEVELOP ALLERGIES. In fact, the dust is SO fine that it can penetrate a commercial dust mask. Get the heavy duty ones.

Remember, when starting out, it is better to have too many than too few. You can feed the extras if you have them, but at least you will have a buffer to recover from your mistakes if you need it.

OK, I hope that helps.

 

[dstinett]

Hi all, its been a LONG while since I was on here, but after much trial and error we have worm farming down pat. In fact due to our newest techniques we have seen our numbers increase exponentially by comparison to when we were doing things the way we have read about online. We are in the 2nd year of production and have reached a rather large population, and now have enough to begin selling. We are well into the 10's of thousands if not hundreds of thousands of worms and at least a thousand beetles currently, maybe even twice that. We should be into the millions by this time next year based upon our ACTUAL current growth rate. There is a lot to doing this if you want to speed things up, and a lot of time required if you do not. We have found that our customers report that their animals prefer our worms to the worms they used to purchase, and tell us that ours are far larger. And our cluckers go nuts when they see the bowl everyday. In fact, they ask for it. So we know that we have gotten it right. We use the 28qt. Sterlite boxes, no lids, on a wooden shelving system, in our storage room. We do not worry about the humidity or moisture levels as we once did. We do not have to. We go through a 50lb. bag of high quality wheat bran per week and close to 30lbs. of carrots or potatoes in the same period. BUT our mortality rate is down 99% and our production has skyrocketed! The following pictures show some of our older failed techniques, but they will give you an idea as to the level of production we were headed to. At the time these pics were taken we had only 8 worm bins and 7 beetle bins. This does not count our 2 pupae bins, or our sifting bins. We are now nearly double that, and our worm bins have nearly 2" of worms across the entire surface. We currently have 3 of the 58qt. bins full of hatchlings. As you can see here, we are serious about producing. Our goal is high productivity for online sales as well as local market sales, and I will be writing a short book on how to do it right. One word of advise..... They aren't joking... WEAR A MASK! I didn't because I was a tough guy... Now I live on antihistamines! It does not matter if you work with them outdoors. The frass dust is so fine that it is nearly invisible and the slightest breeze, even one you cannot feel, is strong enough to carry it to your face. YOU WILL DEVELOP ALLERGIES. In fact, the dust is SO fine that it can penetrate a commercial dust mask. Get the heavy duty ones. Remember, when starting out, it is better to have too many than too few. You can feed the extras if you have them, but at least you will have a buffer to recover from your mistakes if you need it. OK, I hope that helps.

thanks a ton!!!!! I lost almost my entire colony after having a baby and neglecting them. After just a little care, they have started producing again

 

[Dipstick]

thanks a ton!!!!! I lost almost my entire colony after having a baby and neglecting them. After just a little care, they have started producing again

You are welcome. Not sure what I did to help, but glad I was able to!

These things are easy. The biggest problem is making it hard by trying to hard not to screw it up. Put them in wheat bran ONLY. No A/C in the room where you keep them. No lids on their containers. And keep a moisture source in there at all times. Bread that is dipped in water works. You can even drip water into the bran, but do not over do it or you can get mold... you may not, but you may. The biggest trick is starting with a large batch, and not panicking when things do go wrong.

We have several plain all natural meal worms that are nearly 1/2 pencil in diameter and are almost 2" long... not giants treated with hormones, but all natural. It has everything to do with the way you feed and care for them. Mine self harvest at their most nutritious level, and the beetles self harvest as well.

OK, hope that helps.

 

[chickensfinally]

Mine self harvest at their most nutritious level, and the beetles self harvest as well.

Ok, how do they self-harvest? This would be a convenient trick to "teach" mine. I know BSF larvae can be set up to self-harvest, but mealworms? Do tell!

 

[dstinett]

I've been using cornmeal for my bedding for 2 years. Do you think I would have better productivity with bran? I'm not having problems with cornmeal. Just wondering why everyone uses bran

 

[tashayar]

Hi all,

I'm thinking of trying this. My question is, I know some worms will arrive dead. Should I go through them all when they arrive and cull the dead ones? Or will they just be "absorbed" by the live ones?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Just a heads-up- I ordered worms awhile back from the Worm Man and never received them. I did some research and he has an F BBB rating for taking money and not mailing orders. This time I'm trying Rainbow Worms on Amazon.

 

[subhanalah]

Hi all,

I'm thinking of trying this. My question is, I know some worms will arrive dead.  Should I go through them all when they arrive and cull the dead ones?  Or will they just be "absorbed" by the live ones?

Thanks in advance for your help.  

Just a heads-up- I ordered worms awhile back from the Worm Man and never received them.  I did some research and he has an F BBB rating for taking money and not mailing orders.  This time I'm trying Rainbow Worms on Amazon.

have you contacted BYC about this? I almost ordered from them when I saw an ad on the forum.
I would think having ads here means the two entities endorse one another.