264 replies to this topic

[Tai_pan1]

 

After using a router on the last build, I felt I could try something larger. I bought some Acacia wood cross sections and sanded off the finish they came with. Apparently Acacia wood is pretty durable as far as hardwoods go, so it should hold up to a large colony.

 

That being said, ants can chew through just about any wood with proper motivation. Seeing this can be a problem when space is limited in wood formicariums, I wanted this formicarium to be able to be easily expanded as the colony grows. So simply by plugging each of the three sections off from one another, and then when the time comes, removing the barrier from the tunnel between two sections the colony can naturally expand without a forced move, something Camponotus are notorious for being stubborn about.

 

This formicarium would probably be best for small Camponotus species that can have relatively large and fast growing colonies such as C. discolor

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Are you selling this?  I have a C discolor colony that would look great in it.

[UtahAnts]

 

 

After using a router on the last build, I felt I could try something larger. I bought some Acacia wood cross sections and sanded off the finish they came with. Apparently Acacia wood is pretty durable as far as hardwoods go, so it should hold up to a large colony.

 

That being said, ants can chew through just about any wood with proper motivation. Seeing this can be a problem when space is limited in wood formicariums, I wanted this formicarium to be able to be easily expanded as the colony grows. So simply by plugging each of the three sections off from one another, and then when the time comes, removing the barrier from the tunnel between two sections the colony can naturally expand without a forced move, something Camponotus are notorious for being stubborn about.

 

This formicarium would probably be best for small Camponotus species that can have relatively large and fast growing colonies such as C. discolor

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Are you selling this?  I have a C discolor colony that would look great in it.

 

 

I still have it, I'll PM you for details

[UtahAnts]

My take on a bamboo test tube, commonly sold online. It's not the prettiest formicarium I've ever made but the ants shouldn't mind. 

 

Materials:

An old large test tube I had laying around

Fine grain beach sand for the reservoir area, and red desert sand for the chambers

Hobby Lobby Perfect Cast

Vinyl Tubing

 

I started by drilling the tubing hole, plugging it and then filling the tube up with 2 cm of beach sand. I poured a layer on top of this and let it set. Then I moved the tube to a horizontal position and poured more perfect cast along the base, creating the floor. At this point I filled the tube with red sand before the casting material fully set, unfortunately the sand did not adhere to the floor for some reason. I washed out the sand and placed a long vinyl tube in the middle, which would allow for a central tunnel. I then placed the tube in a vertical position and filled in around the vinyl tube with new red sand up to the desired height, in this case 1 inch, and then poured another layer of perfect cast. I repeated the chamber making process again to get another chamber, and then removed the vinyl tube and washed out all the sand after the perfect cast had set.

 

The plastic tube I used here was quite thick which helped when drilling the resivoir hole. In the future I may attempt to make one of these bamboo test tube setups with a traditional 18 mm plastic test tube, but it may be to thin. If I do end up making another one of these, I will definitely pack the sand tighter when applying it to the surface of the perfect cast, allowing the sand to better adhere to the hardening substance.

 

All in all it's probably more efficient to buy these from Alibaba or eBay, however making your own can allow for more customization of the layout in ways not offered by commercial vendors.

 

 

 

 

[UtahAnts]

Acacia wood formicariums, I'm thinking of making some similar vertical crosscuts in the near future which should look pretty interesting.

 

 

 

 

 

 

And here's some more Cedar formicariums which should be commercially available in the future, so keep your eyes out.

 

 

Edited by UtahAnts, July 29 2022 - 5:09 PM.

[UtahAnts]

Here's a vertical crosscut Olive Wood formicarium designed to be hung on a wall. Olive wood is very mold resistant, making it a prime wood type to use when building a formicarium.

 

As far as design details go, each chamber coming off of the main shaft is split into two subchambers. There are two entrance ports for tubing which follow the grain pattern. The top entrance port was designed to accommodate a vinyl tube filled with water, providing a ready supply of drinking water. Alternatively, drinking water can be offered in the outworld. A large colony of Camponotus should have no trouble keeping the brood humid no matter where the water supply is.

 

 

 

[UtahAnts]

Modular crosscut formicariums. Wood type: Acacia

 

These formicariums are designed to be used as single parts, or put together to form a larger formicarium; all of which is supported by a base no matter what orientation the sections are placed in. The bases use a simple user-friendly peg system to keep the sections stable and upright. The magnets used on the sides of each section help secure the connection between each part, although a vinyl tube placed between each formicarium is still recommended.

 

Large Camponotus colonies would do best in these formicariums

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The vertical crosscuts placed together for size comparison:

 

 

 

 

[UtahAnts]

New setup for a small but growing C. vicinus colony. Being a ground dwelling species, Camponotus vicinus does particularly well in casted setups such as this one. The formicarium was designed to be expanded as the colony grew out of the smaller set of chambers, allowing for a larger nest without a forced move.

 

 

 

 

 

[Locness]

I have enjoyed seeing your creativity and skill level grow with each project you complete. Truly high quality and diverse products you're producing! 

[aznphenom]

How large is that glass? looks like a pre cut glass. I can't find a nice medium size. Either too large or too small. I also love the white fine sand.

Edited by aznphenom, August 23 2022 - 11:17 AM.

[UtahAnts]

I have enjoyed seeing your creativity and skill level grow with each project you complete. Truly high quality and diverse products you're producing! 

Thanks for the kind words, I've tried to explore different areas of DIY formicaria to house a broad range of ants.

 

How large is that glass? looks like a pre cut glass. I can't find a nice medium size. Either too large or too small. I also love the white fine sand.

The glass for the formicarium above is about 3 by 4 inches. I try to cut my own glass from large panes I get from the dollar.25 store. However the glass there is pretty thin, so cutting it to size is quite difficult. Another option is to buy smaller pre-cut panes instead. Just look in the picture frame section.

I've also used thin Plexiglas, which looks just like glass but is much easier to cut to size and shape.

[aznphenom]

I keep forgetting about dollar store. I just have this fear of cutting glass. I have an untouched cutting kit. I have searched locally for picture frame glass replacement and I don’t like the cost that much. And they tend to start at 5x7. I would love to find a precut of 3x4. Perfect starting size

[UtahAnts]

Flat Perfect Cast Formicarium V1 Update

 

One of the first formicariums I made with Hobby Lobby Perfect Cast, this nest is still completely functional after a year of use, which included housing both Formica and Pogonomyrmex colonies, both of which are relatively messy ants. The Pogonomyrmex occidentalis colony currently inhabiting this formicarium have designated the central chamber for seeds, and both humidity ports are being used for all stages of brood, although pupae and large larvae are often stored near the seeds. The ants placed red sand I provided around the humidity ports, they'll do anything to make themselves feel more at home.

 

The Perfect Cast itself is still hard as rock and there is no sign of any water damage or mold. 

 

 

 

 

 

[UtahAnts]

Another formicarium for a C. vicinus colony. I used natural red clay sand for the outworld and fine beach sand for the chambers. Plexiglass covering.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On another note, here's some single chamber THA style formicariums for pot and harvester colonies. The picture shows them stacked, and in the future I may try to create a single formicarium using multiple stacked chambers similar to the image.

 

 

Edited by UtahAnts, October 21 2022 - 1:37 PM.

[UtahAnts]

Here's a prototype vertical and horizontal view 'Pot formicarium. The tiers allow for repletes to hang and brood to be placed on top. The dual viewing sections are there to increase visibility and lighting. The mexicanus queen of this formicarium doesn't seem to like to hang as much, so taking a picture of her and the colony's brood through the top was easy:

 

 

 

[UtahAnts]

Dome Formicarium V2

 

This formicarium is a modification of the original dome nest. This one features five tiers, a removable dome, and LED capabilities. However this formicarium was probably the hardest build I've ever attempted. It took me a few weeks to buy the materials and plan it out, not to mention learn how to solder all over again. The build process itself took several hours so this might be a one of a kind formicarium.

 

The base of the dome hides the majority of the large water reservoir I used, a tubing port, and a wire outlet.

 

The LEDs are powered by an external 9V battery pack. The wires run up the spine of each tier, and each light is embedded in the ceiling. Each tier has a different strength of brightness. I think the top and middle tier have the best amount of lighting, so I'll replicate those amounts in the future.

 

I plan on housing a Mexicans colony in here in the future. The removable dome cover should make moving repletes in and out very easy.

 

Let me know if you have any ideas for other dome formicarium designs, I'm open to suggestions.

 

 

 

 

 

As seen in the image above, my DSLR camera has trouble shooting in the dark, so here's a grainy Iphone image showing the complete lighting system.

 

 

 

The removable dome for repletes and ease of cleaning

 

[FinWins]

Wow your nests are so amazing. Now I feel guilty if I use those designs though lol.

[NicholasP]

 

Dome Formicarium V2

 

This formicarium is a modification of the original dome nest. This one features five tiers, a removable dome, and LED capabilities. However this formicarium was probably the hardest build I've ever attempted. It took me a few weeks to buy the materials and plan it out, not to mention learn how to solder all over again. The build process itself took several hours so this might be a one of a kind formicarium.

 

The base of the dome hides the majority of the large water reservoir I used, a tubing port, and a wire outlet.

 

The LEDs are powered by an external 9V battery pack. The wires run up the spine of each tier, and each light is embedded in the ceiling. Each tier has a different strength of brightness. I think the top and middle tier have the best amount of lighting, so I'll replicate those amounts in the future.

 

I plan on housing a Mexicans colony in here in the future. The removable dome cover should make moving repletes in and out very easy.

 

Let me know if you have any ideas for other dome formicarium designs, I'm open to suggestions.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As seen in the image above, my DSLR camera has trouble shooting in the dark, so here's a grainy Iphone image showing the complete lighting system.

 

 

 

 

The removable dome for repletes and ease of cleaning

 

 

I have a feeling I know how you made that dome.

Edited by NicholasP, September 4 2022 - 8:07 PM.

[FinWins]

 

 

Dome Formicarium V2

 

This formicarium is a modification of the original dome nest. This one features five tiers, a removable dome, and LED capabilities. However this formicarium was probably the hardest build I've ever attempted. It took me a few weeks to buy the materials and plan it out, not to mention learn how to solder all over again. The build process itself took several hours so this might be a one of a kind formicarium.

 

The base of the dome hides the majority of the large water reservoir I used, a tubing port, and a wire outlet.

 

The LEDs are powered by an external 9V battery pack. The wires run up the spine of each tier, and each light is embedded in the ceiling. Each tier has a different strength of brightness. I think the top and middle tier have the best amount of lighting, so I'll replicate those amounts in the future.

 

I plan on housing a Mexicans colony in here in the future. The removable dome cover should make moving repletes in and out very easy.

 

Let me know if you have any ideas for other dome formicarium designs, I'm open to suggestions.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As seen in the image above, my DSLR camera has trouble shooting in the dark, so here's a grainy Iphone image showing the complete lighting system.

 

 

 

 

The removable dome for repletes and ease of cleaning

 

 

I have a feeling I know how you made that dome.

 

I think I know how you made the gypsum part

[UtahAnts]

I don't mind it if any of these designs are copied. That was one reason I made this thread. I was just saying this formicarium in particular had quite a time investment, so I didn't know if I our anyone else would try to make something similar in the future. 

 

To make this design I used the layer method, by pouring sequential layers over sand to get the tiers.

[Ants_Dakota]

 

I don't mind it if any of these designs are copied. That was one reason I made this thread. I was just saying this formicarium in particular had quite a time investment, so I didn't know if I our anyone else would try to make something similar in the future. 

 

To make this design I used the layer method, by pouring sequential layers over sand to get the tiers.

 

truly beautiful formicariums, and i am glad you are allowing the community to use your designs. i have been doing some formicarium design parallel in concept to what you are doing, so finally finding this thread has been quite refreshing. keep up the good work!