83 replies to this topic

[dspdrew]

Nice. You should cut that wick down, because that's a lot of unnecessary surface area that's just going to cause more evaporation.

[Foogoo]

Good point, thanks for the tip!

[drtrmiller]

Well it's been nine days, and the feeder is still working fine. You can see the difference in the amount of evaporation between this feeder, and the ByFormica feeder. This one only experienced about 25 percent the evaporation.
 

 
I think you'll find that the substantial difference in osmotic pressure between the two units is responsible for this observation.
 
With the wick having an inverted pressure differential compared to a gravity-assisted feeder, you have pretty much reached the threshold for what is possible—about 1 inch—given the solution's viscosity and composition.
 
After this point, it will be nearly impossible for ants to recover the remaining liquid, because the pressure will be at equilibrium lower down the wick.
 
You can repeat this experiment with a sponge or paper towel drawing up the liquid from the top of the wick, and come to the same result much more quickly—within a few seconds, the liquid will stop flowing.

Edited by dspdrew, June 20 2020 - 11:09 PM.

[dspdrew]

The experiment was to check the rate of evaporation. Basic science would tell you that a much larger surface area will result in more evaporation, so that is no surprise. I just wanted to get a feel for how much more it would be.

 

Were you talking about the distance that capillary action would move the liquid?

[drtrmiller]

Yes.

[dspdrew]

Well that distance depends on the cohesion/adhesion properties of the material and liquid, and the size of the capillaries.

[dspdrew]

This is about the limit for the distance capillary action will pull this liquid up the kevlar strands. This feeder was just starting to dry out.
 

 
 
I decided to put it to the burying test by giving one to the real professionals.
 

 
 
So far they aren't trying to bury anything.
 

 
 
This on the other hand, is what my Myrmecocystus navajo did to one. if this is all they do to it, there's no problem at all.
 

[Crystals]

With my colonies, the worst ones for draining waterers only put a bit of dirt on top.  Not enough to go over the edge, so they don't drain.

I would stick with the flat top type, besides, it can be hard to clean triangular ones.

 

http://s445.photobuc...xbhjzy.jpg.html

[dspdrew]

Hmmmm. I will think about that.

[dspdrew]

So it's been months now, and this is the worst mess the ants could make... any of them. It's not a mess at all.
 

 
 
Anyway, the actual design I had in mind wouldn't even allow for that.
 
I guess you can call this the Feeder of Providence. I should have one made very soon.
 
 

[john.harrold]

I guess you can call this the Feeder of Providence. I should have one made very soon.
 
 

 
Are you going to make the outside surface textured? Also is it going to be translucent so the liquid level can be seen from the outside?

[klawfran3]

Don't say I didn't warn you if your ants elect a new pharaoh, Drew!

Also it would be a shame to not use this with Monomorium pharaonis!

Looks good, how much liquid will it hold?

[dspdrew]

Looks good, how much liquid will it hold?

 

About 5 ml.

[Shaye]

Is the lid going to be like a twist and click?

[dspdrew]

Just friction-fit.

[Barristan]

I was inspired by your idea and created a feeder for sugared water too. That's how it looks like:

 

 

 

 

[dspdrew]

Looks good. Funny how it took a while before I realized looping it over solved a lot of the minor problems with this design. Are those wicks sponges?

[Barristan]

Looks good. Funny how it took a while before I realized looping it over solved a lot of the minor problems with this design. Are those wicks sponges?

 

I made the loop so that more ants can drink simultaneously. Those are called sponge cloths but it's not a sponge. It's made out of cellulose and cotton. It's food safe and compostable so It's safe for ants.

[dspdrew]

I see. I looped my wick over because I wanted something small (to cut down on evaporation) and clean looking. All the other ideas I had to accomplish this had a wick that could easily fall out, which would be a bigger problem. So that was my reasoning.

[dspdrew]

I finally got my 3D printer.
 
It took a while because of the small size, but I finally got these to print out correctly. The caps fit nicely, and they are water-tight.