13 replies to this topic

[Lillyrose]

I kinda wasn't planning on doing a heating element as they'll be inside with me .. and my house is about 74 degrees give or take ...

Do they need a heating cord? Or is it warm enough?

[Swirlysnowflake]

What species?

[ANTdrew]

74 is not really warm enough for most species in our area.

[WSantkeeper]

It depends on the species. I think some species of ants might be okay with that heat. 

[Lillyrose]

One is the pavement ant, the other are acorn ants.

Guess I'll grab a cable, I just don't know how to use it lol

[ANTdrew]

Heat cables are pretty easy to use. Just tape a portion of the cable on a side of the formicarium furthest away from the water. You just want to be careful not to cook the ants with too much heat and to prevent condensation.

[Devi]

Heat cables are pretty easy to use. Just tape a portion of the cable on a side of the formicarium furthest away from the water. You just want to be careful not to cook the ants with too much heat and to prevent condensation.

Heating is tricky... Depending on what species you have, the heating requirements can vary.  Just listen to what ANTdrew says.  Lol.  I agree with everything he says in that post, but be especially careful not to put it too close to the water tower or hydration source or the whole nest will fog up with condensation and look bad.  

[Mdrogun]

I kinda wasn't planning on doing a heating element as they'll be inside with me .. and my house is about 74 degrees give or take ...

Do they need a heating cord? Or is it warm enough?

A heating element of any kind literally changes the antkeeping experience. Over multiple generations, the shortened development time makes a hugeeeee difference. Your ants will naturally just grow a lot faster, eat more food, and be generally more entertaining.

That being said, 74F is probably fine for both of the species that you mentioned you had; Tetramorium immigrans and Temnothorax sp.

If you can spare the $10-30 that it takes to get a heating cable, it's certainly worth it in my opinion. If you can't, no big deal. Keep in mind that no matter what species you are raising you are going to want to create a heat gradient. Like other users have mentioned this often is as simple as taping it to just one side of the nest that you're using. That way the ants are free to choose the most optimal temperature for themselves and their brood.
 

Edited by Mdrogun, January 14 2021 - 10:51 AM.

[Chickalo]

One is the pavement ant, the other are acorn ants.

Guess I'll grab a cable, I just don't know how to use it lol

i don't think its needed for either but it does boost brood development.  once you plug it in place it on/next tube the side furthest from the water.  if they seem like it you can place it a little close, and vice versa,

[ANTdrew]

In my experience, Tetramorium hardly even eat at 74 degrees.

[aznphenom]

In my experience, Tetramorium hardly even eat at 74 degrees.

Hmm, I wonder if that is what killed my tetra.

[Lillyrose]

The acorn ants live in an acorn tho, how can I do that?

[ANTdrew]

Put the acorn in a foraging container with a lid. Put a loop of heat cable under one side of the container.

[Scherme]

the heating cable doesn't heat like I originally thought it would. It gets rather warm and can definitely raise your temps, but it shouldn't cook anything in my limited experience. My nests are built with a slot running down an entire side big enough for the cable. I stuff my cable in there and my tetras put their mountains of brood right next to the heated wall.

It guess it depends on nest size too tho, if you have a super small nest just lay the heating cable close to it. The point is to let them decide how much heat they want as Mdrogun said. 
 

my tetras loved my garage when it was 85 degrees or over. 

Edited by Scherme, January 15 2021 - 4:01 AM.