29 replies to this topic

[Jonathan5608]

The water was brown when I made it

Edited by Jonathan5608, August 21 2022 - 2:34 PM.

[Serafine]

Sugar water at regular temperatures stays okay for about a week, hot temperatures (26°C+) can cut that down to 2-3 days.

It needs to be replaced regularly to prevent all sorts of bacterial and fungal growth taking over.

[Jonathan5608]

What is a long lasting sugar source

[ANTdrew]

byFormica Sunburst

[Serafine]

Inverted sugar syrup lasts for a bit longer than regular sugar water but generally there isn't really a long-lasting liquid form of sugar suitable for ants.

 

Even byformica recommends to change Sunburst after a week, although I've tried and you can leave it in the feeder for about 2 weeks, then add some drops of water (because it gets gooey due to the loss of water) and leave it in the feeder for about another week - which gives you about 3 weeks (4 weeks if temperatures are below 24°C).

 

Generally you should get used to replacing your ants' sugar water sources about once or twice a week - as long as your colony is small use small feeders (byformica 1-4ml feeders, small 5x1cm test tubes or some improvised DIY feeder), when it grows in numbers you'll need something bigger.

From my experience test tubes are the worst for sugar water as the cotton is an ideal breeding ground for all sorts of bacteria and fungi you really don't want in your ant setup.

[Jonathan5608]

I just ordered some byformica feeders but that sunburst stuff is expensive. Does honey water last long

Edited by Jonathan5608, August 22 2022 - 6:00 AM.

[aznphenom]

I just ordered some byformica feeders but that sunburst stuff is expensive. Does honey water last long

Expensive when you first buy it but it last forever. You may go through it fast if youre filling testtube worth but I'm going into year 3 with the big bottle. I might replace it soon just to have their new version of sunburst.

[Serafine]

I just ordered some byformica feeders but that sunburst stuff is expensive. Does honey water last long

It's kinda expensive on a per volume basis but it lasts quite some time and it's great for small colonies that don't drink much at all.

You don't fill an entire tube with it - a small colony will take weeks to just empty a 1ml feeder.

 

Honey water is even worse than sugar water, during summer you get 2-3 days before fermentation gases press the honey water out of the feeder.

The cheapest variant is to just fill your feeders with sugar water every 4-5 days. Use a small spatula to fill about a third of the feeder bottle with sugar crystals (works best with fine baking sugar) then add water and shake it violently until all the sugar is dissovled (this may take some minutes). Screw it into the foot, place it in the outworld and replace it after 5 days.

Sugar costs like nothing and you'll have to feed your ants some protein every 2-3 days anyway so replacing a feeder twice a week really shouldn't be too much work.
 

Edited by Serafine, August 22 2022 - 7:05 AM.

[ANTdrew]

Humans found out about alcohol by mixing honey with water and leaving it out too long. Honey water will begin fermenting very quickly.

[rptraut]

This setup looks pretty dry to me.  Ants require a certain amount of humidity, depending on the species, even in an outworld.  I don't think a water feeder is sufficient water for most ants.  A piece of wet sponge or cotton in a corner, remoistened when you feed them if necessary, ensures that there is humidity in their environment.  There might be some fogging when you heat them, but you should also have an amount of air circulation that will help keep it clear. 

 

Also, I have found that with small ants and founding colonies, that they really don't drink very well from feeders.  Three days ago I took a feeder out of a Tetramorium colony that they had finally emptied and replaced it with a sugar water tube.  They are still crowding that cotton like they had never seen sugar water before.  For small colonies I just use a piece of cotton  saturated with sugar water, on a small piece of plastic.  I usually have one beside it for fresh water too.  I refresh them each time I feed the ants with an eye dropper.  When they get mangy, I replace them.

 

I think humans learned to leave honey and water out just long enough!