7 replies to this topic

[AntsLA-1]

I have a few Pogonomyrmex Californicus queens and want to heat them, does anyone have tips on how to get a space (like a drawer) 0ver 85 fahrenheit? Thanks! 

 

(Of course without the house burning down or the ants cooking)

[ANTdrew]

-Turn AC down or off, or
- run a 15 watt heat cable on one side of the drawer to heat up the space within. Experiment slowly and carefully to avoid baking your ants.

[Lentulus]

I’ve used controllers like this when I needed thing dialed in.

 

https://www.amazon.c...ag=toughjobs-20

 

Just hook you heat source to it, set and forget. 

[AntsLA-1]

Would a heating pad work? 

[PetsNotPests]

You could try, but never put the ants directly on it. 

Edited by PetsNotPests, June 29 2021 - 7:09 AM.

[AntsLA-1]

You could try, but never put the ants directly on it. 

Yeah, that would cook them.

[ANTdrew]

Heat pads are honestly just cables looped inside a casing. They work the same way. Just go SLOW, SLOW, SLOW.

[TestSubjectOne]

My heating setup consists of a thermostat like the one that Lentulus linked connected to a small heating pad, which you can find easily online. Simply connect the heating pad to the thermostat, then plug the thermostat into an outlet. Afterwards, place the pad and the thermostat's sensor into an insulated box and set a temperature. The thermostat will turn the pad on or off to keep the box heated to where you set, so there is no danger of overheating. I would suggest you set the temperature to high eighties for Pogonomyrmex. My setup looks like this:

 

Edit: In case anyone is wondering, I added silica gel packets to my setup to control humidity which I assumed would be harmful for desert spp. The packets lower it considerably and the few hours I have my box open per week seems to be enough to empty them.

Edited by TestSubjectOne, June 29 2021 - 1:01 PM.