Discoid roaches

[Psychedelic Chams]

Im going to be setting up a colony and was wondering if anyone can throw me any pointers i got a rubber maid tub egg crates i got repashy bug burger which i feed my crickets. Any other food i heard things like cat food and such repashy has 13% protein not sure if that makes a difference. Was wondering what kind of heat tape and how do you set up the tape . Also i know they needs greens and fruits but do they need a substrate ?

 

[Andee]

Do not feed any of your feeders animal protein (dog food, cat food, fish food) it can cause gout in your Chameleon. It also isn't that great for the roaches, they don't live as long and aren't as healthy, they produce more in shorter spans but it's not worth it. Discoid do not need substrate, they do fine with just eggcrates, think of them like dubias.

 

[Psychedelic Chams]

Okay so veggies fruits repashy and water crystals and im set? All i need to know is the heat tape

 

[fluxlizard]

Heat tape- I use flexwatt style heat tape. 12" wide. You will need some sort of controller as well. The manufacturer states that you should not run heat tape without one- it will burn itself up. Some here use a dimmer switch and thermometer- that will work OK if your room stays a fairly constant temp. Mine does not- my lizard building gets temp swings of 15 degrees or so right now between day/night temp, so I use a thermostat. Plus I had a fire last year and in the spirit of fire prevention- a thermostat is just much safer. For safety I use a US Robotics Herpstat. I feel it is the most reliable brand and has safety features built in. But any brand should work.

As far as water crystals- they really aren't needed for any insect. I never use them and at one point I was feeding up to 10,000 insects out of my colonies every day. So they aren't necessary to produce even large numbers of insects. Roaches, crickets, superworms, mealworms can all get the moisture they need from fresh fruits and veggies...

 

[Psychedelic Chams]

Thank you ill look into the thermostat

 

[Psychedelic Chams]

Do you have to order flex tape or does local stores sell it?

 

[fluxlizard]

You will need to order it and the connectors and covers.

Try beanfarm.com or boamaster.com

I got mine from boamaster. Price is better.

be sure to get not only the length of heat tape you want, but also the wire and clip and insulator set.
He also carries thermostats.

 

[Psychedelic Chams]

Flux your the best thanks a lot