sbayley2

Hi.If you build the fly box you won't really have excess fluids. The maggots are ok in very wet environment but with the heat they need to breed your mix quickly dries.

Well wood allows you to get the exact shape you need. I tried to do it with plastic containers before and the maggots didn't self harvest. This box makes a perfect shape that you can hold the food while the maggots quickly self harvest into a bowl of your choice.

Hi NYincPC.The nice thing about Dutch buckets is that they are not flood and drain. So, once you start them running the 5cm of water in the bottom stats full. .So you don't really need a big sump. Just fill the water slot and then top up your sump and it'll be fine like that for good. That means that the only water you need in your sump is for your fish tank and for evaporation and plant use. My whole system runs on a 800L sump tank but I am now stuck, unable to expand because the sump is too small for my flood and drain beds...I like Dutch buckets and I'm sure you will too. I hope this answer helps.Happy building.

Black soldier flies are incredible because they stop other flies from breeding. So, if you make a fly box using BSF you should be able to limit the production of other species of flies...good luck.

Hi there.in my experience, trout are perfectly happy up to 25°c this is not what is call cold. I have had issues with deaths during really hot spells.As for greens, most of them rely on the ambient temp. the water stays pretty close to the ambient temp so you would have no issue growing greens in winter in my system.

Hi Kingers As it stands, the box does not require any constant circulation. the reason for the larger fan and filter is to bring down the temp fast when it gets too hot.During winter the extractor barely ever runs and that has had no impact on the flies in any way.As for circulation, I used a 6" clip on fan. it does the job well and is pretty reliable.I hope this answers your question.The box is amazing and I have a constant supply of maggots. I am in the process of experimenting with the maggots to make food for non predatory fish like Koi.I will let you all know how that goes.Be well.

See below!

Hi Zane. I chose wood because it's easy for me to work with. I also prefer to have a completely custom box to fit my breeding box. My other instructable that allows me to breed flies year round. As for chickens, yes, they love the BSF maggots! The maggots are very high in calcium. These flies will eat everything from meat to veg and even chicken poo. So it's a great idea to keep them together. Anyway, have a great time building! I do think that plastic will be an issue for self harvesting but I have no doubt that you can work that out yourself.

Hey, thanks for the instructable. I wanted to know if you have ever tried to make biodiesel out of insect oils? It's an avenue I would be interested in exploring. thanksSheldon

What made you choose the globe and laurel? Are you a bootneck yourself?

Hello again. You will love my current project. I am building a double glazed greenhouse using glass from old windows that I picked up for free at a glass fitter. They strip down windows and doors into glass and PVC. Tons of free glass + some hard work and I'll have a climate controlled greenhouse year round. I even plan on having LED grow lights installed in the roof supports to allow me to grow strawberries in winter. That will be one long instructable though. It's going to replace my current greenhouse and hopefully it all comes to fruition. As for our pipes, if you get a large tank and bury it in your garden, have it a good 50cm below the surface and use it as your sump tank then you will find the heat loss won't be too bad. You could go a few steps further if you decide to do it jus...

Hello again. You will love my current project. I am building a double glazed greenhouse using glass from old windows that I picked up for free at a glass fitter. They strip down windows and doors into glass and PVC. Tons of free glass + some hard work and I'll have a climate controlled greenhouse year round. I even plan on having LED grow lights installed in the roof supports to allow me to grow strawberries in winter. That will be one long instructable though. It's going to replace my current greenhouse and hopefully it all comes to fruition. As for our pipes, if you get a large tank and bury it in your garden, have it a good 50cm below the surface and use it as your sump tank then you will find the heat loss won't be too bad. You could go a few steps further if you decide to do it just ask. Remember that large bodies of water are good at regulating temperature so if you had a 3000L buried sump tank it would hold a lot of heat. Then wrap all pipe work in pipe insulation sleeves and your Dutch buckets in a jacket. Wrap it in soft loft insulation then Mylar plastic sheeting. That will limit heat loss. Last thing, from my plans for my greenhouse. Buy a portable pool heater mat. Made of black PVC then build a box around it covered with double glazed glass and facing your most direct sun. Attach a solar pump so any time the sun is shining, your sump water is being heated for free. Hopefully all of that together will limit heat loss. Fortunately, even if the pipes did freeze, the trees would be in hibernation and the fish don't eat much in winter so the water flow is not a major factor, especially when it's only for a few of the coldest hours.Hope that helps.

Hi Frank.. Not in the first year, but that may be an issue of when I planted the bare root trees. I don't think mine had time to get set up before spring/summer hit. I planted mine about 4 weeks ago and I think it was too late. If I had planted them in the middle of winter then I think I would have had fruits in spring/,summer. It also matters how old the tree is that you buy. I think mine are first year dwarf trees so that's also a factor in what I didn't get fruit this year. Fortunately, the other plants in the Dutch buckets have done very well. I planted a Kiwi in the bucket on the left in the picture. It was pitiful and damaged when I got it but it's doing a lot better. In the middle one I planted a cherry tomato plant and it's going crazy! In the right hand bucket I planted a grape...

Hi Frank.. Not in the first year, but that may be an issue of when I planted the bare root trees. I don't think mine had time to get set up before spring/summer hit. I planted mine about 4 weeks ago and I think it was too late. If I had planted them in the middle of winter then I think I would have had fruits in spring/,summer. It also matters how old the tree is that you buy. I think mine are first year dwarf trees so that's also a factor in what I didn't get fruit this year. Fortunately, the other plants in the Dutch buckets have done very well. I planted a Kiwi in the bucket on the left in the picture. It was pitiful and damaged when I got it but it's doing a lot better. In the middle one I planted a cherry tomato plant and it's going crazy! In the right hand bucket I planted a grape vine and you can see it up the back fence.Overall I really like my Dutch buckets and I think it's worth building. I hope that answered your questions. Forgive me for being a little incoherent today as I'm quite out of it...

What temps are we talking?

Hi Fear. Firstly, the larvae are not sterile. So if you find some culci/bsf larvae then with time and the right conditions they should work perfectly. If the ones you receive are still white in colour and wriggle a lot then you will need to feed them up until they are ready to pupate. As for changes. Not many to be honest. I think the only real change I would make is to change my 4" extractor fan, that removes air through the carbon filter, into a 6 or even 8 inch extractor. This is because, during summer the super insulated box actually over heats without extra airflow. You could also install a 4' fan to force cool air into the box from the bottom. Power both fans using the thermostat controlled plug and when the box needs cooling they both kick in and cool it down. Now that I thi...

Hi Fear. Firstly, the larvae are not sterile. So if you find some culci/bsf larvae then with time and the right conditions they should work perfectly. If the ones you receive are still white in colour and wriggle a lot then you will need to feed them up until they are ready to pupate. As for changes. Not many to be honest. I think the only real change I would make is to change my 4" extractor fan, that removes air through the carbon filter, into a 6 or even 8 inch extractor. This is because, during summer the super insulated box actually over heats without extra airflow. You could also install a 4' fan to force cool air into the box from the bottom. Power both fans using the thermostat controlled plug and when the box needs cooling they both kick in and cool it down. Now that I think of it, I might also make a muck schute so you don't have to open the main door to throw in your food waste. It could be as simple as a couple of smaller doors above each bin so flies don't escape each time you add food waste. I hope that helps. lastly, if you need more Larvae and you are not producing enough food waste then buy cheap raw oats and min some with a bit of water. They eat that happily and grow fast. Depends on how many maggots you need.

Hi there. I hope this helps. There are a few things that influence mating. 1.Light intensity: Throughout my research I discovered that the flies will not breed under a light source less than 3000 Lumen. Some believe that colour/light temp is also a factor so I went with 6000K which is close to summer light colour.2. Temperature: The flies require a temp above 25°C to mate regularly. Mating has been seen at lower temps but the for regular mating you need between 25-30°C hotter is not good. The same paper says 27°C gives best mating and strongest flies. Flies bread above 30°C were smaller and had shorter lives. Here is a link to the exact light I use. Check this out at Amazon.co.uk50W Super Bright LED Floodlight, Outdoor Garden Waterproof Light, 3800lm,Cold White 6000k flo...

Hi there. I hope this helps. There are a few things that influence mating. 1.Light intensity: Throughout my research I discovered that the flies will not breed under a light source less than 3000 Lumen. Some believe that colour/light temp is also a factor so I went with 6000K which is close to summer light colour.2. Temperature: The flies require a temp above 25°C to mate regularly. Mating has been seen at lower temps but the for regular mating you need between 25-30°C hotter is not good. The same paper says 27°C gives best mating and strongest flies. Flies bread above 30°C were smaller and had shorter lives. Here is a link to the exact light I use. Check this out at Amazon.co.uk50W Super Bright LED Floodlight, Outdoor Garden Waterproof Light, 3800lm,Cold White 6000k flood light, Security Light, light-weight Lamp https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00UUSR780/ref=cm_sw_r_sms_apa_RiiEybW6S3G04

Thanks. I hope it serves you well! If you build it, ofc

Hi Eddivine. OK , so I'm a maker but not at all clued up on arduino. I have a large Aquaponic system that has 3 tanks (soon to be seven) and I have twice now left the water off in one of my tanks leading to a mass death of my trout. I am disabled and on bad days I am barely lucid so mistakes happen. I am looking for a multi function Arduino solution to warn me when the water flow stops in my system. I have a step up transformer I'd like to switch on in the event of a power outage and I'd like an alarm or text if one or more of my tanks are not receiving constant water flow. Is there any chance that you could help? (Picture is what happened this time I left the water off for 2.5days while bed bound. That is my maggot box where my Black Soldier Fly Maggots grow up as fish food.)