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UtahAnts' Formicariums and Outworlds

formicariums nest hobby lobby perfect cast wood plaster formicarium firebrick grout images diy

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#61 Offline antsriondel - Posted February 1 2022 - 7:08 AM

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So did you carve that design or cast it?

I think he cast it.



#62 Offline PaigeX - Posted February 1 2022 - 1:08 PM

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So did you carve that design or cast it?

Yea like above, I think he cast the main design then dug out the connection between each chamber.


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#63 Offline UtahAnts - Posted February 1 2022 - 1:50 PM

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So did you carve that design or cast it?

Yea like above, I think he cast the main design then dug out the connection between each chamber.

 

Yeah exactly, The bubbles rose to the surface of the mold (the back of the nest in this case), so I think I'll stick to carving in the future in order to have noticable ytong texture in the chambers.


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Leave the Road, take the Trails - Pythagoras

 

Utah Ant Keeping --- Here

DIY Formicariums and Outworlds --- Here

Honeypot Ant Journal --- Here

Photo Album --- Here

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#64 Offline UtahAnts - Posted February 1 2022 - 1:58 PM

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Another nest I made recently for a customer who wanted a mini hearth style nest.

 

I'm running low on image file space on my account, so I'm only going to be able to post a picture or two of future nests unless I delete my other images first.

 

IMG-4274.jpg


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Leave the Road, take the Trails - Pythagoras

 

Utah Ant Keeping --- Here

DIY Formicariums and Outworlds --- Here

Honeypot Ant Journal --- Here

Photo Album --- Here

Videos --- Here


#65 Offline antsriondel - Posted February 2 2022 - 11:20 AM

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Another nest I made recently for a customer who wanted a mini hearth style nest.

 

I'm running low on image file space on my account, so I'm only going to be able to post a picture or two of future nests unless I delete my other images first.

 

attachicon.gifIMG-4274.jpg

that's insane!! so awesome!!!! (y)



#66 Offline UtahAnts - Posted February 17 2022 - 4:46 PM

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My newest vertical nest, it's double-sided, 3 levels. You'll also notice I used slightly coarser sand grains then I usually do. The customer wanted to start a Laius queen in the nest, and seeing there was way too much space for a starting colony, let alone a queen, I created a partially closed chamber (in one of the top right chambers) with its own water tower and entrance to the outworld. I'm planning on making a temporary wall of sand-plaster over the chamber entrance, so once workers arrive, they should easily be able to chew through to access the rest of the nest and the outworld.

 

IMG-4420.jpg

 

IMG-4431.jpg

 

IMG-4407.jpg

 

IMG-4454.jpg

 

Size comparison between some different nest types.

IMG-4448.jpg

 

I have some interesting personal projects coming along, I can't wait to share them with you guys!


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Leave the Road, take the Trails - Pythagoras

 

Utah Ant Keeping --- Here

DIY Formicariums and Outworlds --- Here

Honeypot Ant Journal --- Here

Photo Album --- Here

Videos --- Here


#67 Offline UtahAnts - Posted February 20 2022 - 11:18 PM

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So here's some of the personal projects I was talking about. The nests are designed for Myrmecocystus, although other species such as Camponotus and Pogonomymex would be interesting as well. I used these cheap cloche domes I picked up from a Dollar Tree in Oregon. The dollar store seriously makes ant keeping so affordable. To cast the nest I used repeating layers of sand and perfect cast (orderly layers in the first nest, random chaotic levels in the second). Removing the sand was a challenge, as the perfect cast expanded and basically locked the dome in place. I had to use the small entrance hole in the bottom of the base to wash and remove all the sand. What's left is a ship in a bottle type aesthetic, although an interesting concept, the inability to remove the dome from the nest limits the long term effectiveness of the formicarium. I plan on still using perfect cast in the future for these nest types, but without any contact points with the dome. That way the dome and repletes can be easily removed without breaking the dome or leaving the repletes to die when the colony moves out of the nest. The noticeable stress-cracks in the domes are also another reaon to be careful when using an expanding cement material like Hobby Lobby perfect cast.
 
I'm still coming up with more possible designs for cloche dome nests. I really like the 360 degree view of these, and the large, hollow base allows the interior tubing and water tower to be hidden without taking up space in the dome itself. I think the possibilities of this nest type are nearly endless, you could use these domes for anything from leafcutters to honeypots.
 
IMG-4500.jpg
 
IMG-4516.jpg
 
IMG-4510.jpg
 
IMG-4502.jpg

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Leave the Road, take the Trails - Pythagoras

 

Utah Ant Keeping --- Here

DIY Formicariums and Outworlds --- Here

Honeypot Ant Journal --- Here

Photo Album --- Here

Videos --- Here


#68 Offline ANTdrew - Posted February 21 2022 - 4:43 AM

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Genius!
"The ants are a people not strong, yet they prepare their meat in the summer." Prov. 30:25
Keep ordinary ants in extraordinary ways.

#69 Offline ANTdrew - Posted February 21 2022 - 6:57 AM

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These remind me of Tschinkel’s nest casts!
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"The ants are a people not strong, yet they prepare their meat in the summer." Prov. 30:25
Keep ordinary ants in extraordinary ways.

#70 Offline UtahAnts - Posted February 21 2022 - 9:43 AM

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These remind me of Tschinkel’s nest casts!

 

They do look like his stuff. A couple years ago I remember seeing a cylindrical formicarium similar to the second dome nest above. It had seemingly random, sandy platforms. I can't find the image again, but perhaps that nest was one of his creations as well.

 

*Edit: Found the formicarium, doesn't seem to be Tschinkel's.

 

Stone formacarium (1).jpeg


Edited by UtahAnts, February 21 2022 - 9:56 AM.

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Leave the Road, take the Trails - Pythagoras

 

Utah Ant Keeping --- Here

DIY Formicariums and Outworlds --- Here

Honeypot Ant Journal --- Here

Photo Album --- Here

Videos --- Here


#71 Offline Guest_SolenopsisKeeper_* - Posted February 21 2022 - 3:07 PM

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Nice! Also, You shoudl try designing something for atta and trachymyrmex. Most ppl just keep them in some tuphoware with thick tubes. I have also currently been thinking of some sort of trachymyrmex formicarium and have only come up with one thing.

You have an acrylic box, rectangular with the tool being removable

Trash the top, and replace it with two acrylic squares, one 1/3 of the size of the other(smaller on top)

Connect acrylic with magnets

Mold a plaster to have a large chamber on the botttom, so you can easily transfer molds into it

Make the top of the nest have small chambers and tunnels, and the bottom be connected to a watering port.

Add an outworld on top.

(Note: I designed this mentally for trachymyrmex, particularly thinking of a semi-circular container. Rectangular part seems easier.


(Would this even work for Atta?)
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#72 Offline Guest_SolenopsisKeeper_* - Posted February 21 2022 - 3:09 PM

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Another nest I made recently for a customer who wanted a mini hearth style nest.

I'm running low on image file space on my account, so I'm only going to be able to post a picture or two of future nests unless I delete my other images first.

attachicon.gifIMG-4274.jpg

THA number 2?

Edited by SolenopsisKeeper-, April 14 2022 - 12:25 PM.


#73 Offline UtahAnts - Posted April 10 2022 - 8:44 PM

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For this custom build I used the same type of fine grain beach sand I used with my first multilevel nest. This was for a customer's large formica colony, although any large species would have done fine in this nest. With its 4 double-sided levels, this is the largest formicarium I've built so far. 

 

IMG 7277
 
IMG 7258
 
IMG 7268

 


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Leave the Road, take the Trails - Pythagoras

 

Utah Ant Keeping --- Here

DIY Formicariums and Outworlds --- Here

Honeypot Ant Journal --- Here

Photo Album --- Here

Videos --- Here


#74 Offline T.C. - Posted April 10 2022 - 9:05 PM

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These all look pretty good. I've experimented with wooden formicarium's for a long time. Several years now actually. Long term direct hydration to the wood will result in a dead colony from mold. Usually takes a few months though. Ants in the wild can do so because they are nesting in trees that are still alive that have natural hydration. 


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#75 Offline UtahAnts - Posted April 11 2022 - 12:19 PM

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These all look pretty good. I've experimented with wooden formicarium's for a long time. Several years now actually. Long term direct hydration to the wood will result in a dead colony from mold. Usually takes a few months though. Ants in the wild can do so because they are nesting in trees that are still alive that have natural hydration. 

 

I try not to have any areas where water makes direct contact with the wood in the formicariums, and I have never had any mold at all, but I'm sure a moldy wooden nest would quickly kill a colony.  All the tubes in my previous images are closed off with a plastic stopper on one end, preventing the water from leaking out the other end filled with cotton. Do you have any images of your wood formicariums? Any favorite tools you use?


Leave the Road, take the Trails - Pythagoras

 

Utah Ant Keeping --- Here

DIY Formicariums and Outworlds --- Here

Honeypot Ant Journal --- Here

Photo Album --- Here

Videos --- Here


#76 Offline antgallery - Posted April 11 2022 - 8:24 PM

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These all look pretty good. I've experimented with wooden formicarium's for a long time. Several years now actually. Long term direct hydration to the wood will result in a dead colony from mold. Usually takes a few months though. Ants in the wild can do so because they are nesting in trees that are still alive that have natural hydration. 

 

I try not to have any areas where water makes direct contact with the wood in the formicariums, and I have never had any mold at all, but I'm sure a moldy wooden nest would quickly kill a colony.  All the tubes in my previous images are closed off with a plastic stopper on one end, preventing the water from leaking out the other end filled with cotton. Do you have any images of your wood formicariums? Any favorite tools you use?

I just put liquid feeder's with water in them in my Outworlds for wooden nests. Also I use a wood router and a Dremel for carving my nest's

 

Your Formicarium's are beautiful by the way  (y)


Edited by antgallery, April 11 2022 - 8:26 PM.


#77 Offline T.C. - Posted April 11 2022 - 8:30 PM

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These all look pretty good. I've experimented with wooden formicarium's for a long time. Several years now actually. Long term direct hydration to the wood will result in a dead colony from mold. Usually takes a few months though. Ants in the wild can do so because they are nesting in trees that are still alive that have natural hydration. 

 

 Do you have any images of your wood formicariums? Any favorite tools you use?

 

Depends on what your going for. I've used boards, logs, and experimented with some other stuff. Years ago I built this log formicarium. That was the first one, I did. Since I have perfected them a little more. In due time I'll share some pictures.


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#78 Offline United-Ants - Posted April 12 2022 - 11:32 AM

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For this custom build I used the same type of fine grain beach sand I used with my first multilevel nest. This was for a customer's large formica colony, although any large species would have done fine in this nest. With its 4 double-sided levels, this is the largest formicarium I've built so far. 

 

cool nests  i might try to make some ant nest soon with some contares and test tubes some contares  and dirt when the snow melts 



#79 Offline Canadant - Posted April 14 2022 - 9:48 AM

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Those some great looking, well thought out nests. They're so clean looking. Beautiful.
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"You don't get what you want. You get what you deserve".

#80 Offline Guest_SolenopsisKeeper_* - Posted April 14 2022 - 12:24 PM

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For this custom build I used the same type of fine grain beach sand I used with my first multilevel nest. This was for a customer's large formica colony, although any large species would have done fine in this nest. With its 4 double-sided levels, this is the largest formicarium I've built so far.


Looks exactly like Tarheel ant nest designs(But much more cost effective). Was that an inspiration?





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