Bioactive Feeder Bin?

[Sticktongue]

Hello all,

Bioactive stuff is new since I last kept chams 10 years ago. I’ve seen some things on bioactive roaches, but is anyone keeping their crickets in bioactive bins? Mainly asking because this will be my first round of keeping since I got married and I need to figure out how to keep feeder smell down. I kept my cricket bins pretty clean and well ventilated before, but, the smell was certainly there. Anyone keep bioactive or new ways in the last 10 years that isn’t just highly ventilated bins and keeping clean constantly?

 

[MissSkittles]

I keep my roaches bioactively. I tried with crickets and they completely demolished the entire clean up crew. I kept the crickets fed and provided pieces of cork bark for the dwarf whites and springtails to hide under, but the crickets got them all regardless. Some keep their crickets on vermiculite to help keep the smell down. I just use a really big bin with lots of ventilation - not just on the lid, but along the sides too. Getting banded crickets instead of domestic ones might also make a difference.

 

[elizaann2]

I have mine in a well ventilated bin as well.

 

[Sticktongue]

Well I guess maybe it’s same ol same ol… I always had my bins ventilated on all 4 sides and the lids. Fingers crossed I can pull a miracle and somehow have it better now

 

[king.louis]

I keep my crickets in a huge 130L bin (I use Ikea's for C$40 but any bin works, an opaque one would probably be better) with ~2" of vermiculite at the bottom and 3 4" holes on the top. This large setup lets me buy 1000-2000 crickets at a time which is more cost effective. I've found that the vermiculite really helps with keeping the smell down. I also have Dermestid larvae in the bin (the store I buy my crickets from uses them so I usually get a few stowaways). The Dermestid will eat any dead crickets so they don't stink.

 

[Sticktongue]

I keep my crickets in a huge 130L bin (I use Ikea's for C$40 but any bin works, an opaque one would probably be better) with ~2" of vermiculite at the bottom and 3 4" holes on the top. This large setup lets me buy 1000-2000 crickets at a time which is more cost effective. I've found that the vermiculite really helps with keeping the smell down. I also have Dermestid larvae in the bin (the store I buy my crickets from uses them so I usually get a few stowaways). The Dermestid will eat any dead crickets so they don't stink.

Awesome I’ll try that, thank you!

 

[yoteango]

I have some escaped crickets in my bioactive setup that are still reproducing months later. They're a bit annoying because my guy will eat those instead of the dubia roaches.

My intended cricket bin was not done right and stunk and died.