Uploaded May 2015 | Updated September 2026, 6 hours ago
Updated ideas: youtube.com/watch?v=of0e9lW4Rkw
How to Maintain a Healthy Mealworm Farm (Rancher Mike June 19, 2019)
◙ Warning (okay not warning), In this video I show Sifting out mealworm pupae is a difficult and potentially harmful method. Just separate while still worms. (This method is no longer recommended.)◙
sift pupae
Item used (either of these two, their the same hole size):
vvvvvvvv... [link to product below!]... vvvvvvvvvvv
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Commenter said (3/2022):
"Wal-Mart 10x8x6 Mainstays Mesh Basket $4.98"
walmart.com/ip/Mainstays-Mesh-Basket-Kitchen-Pantry-Organization-with-Keyhole-Handles-for-Easy-Carry-Steel-10-x8-x6/501014422
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What I used (may be no longer available):
Style Selections 10.69-in W x 5.5-in H x 14.25-in D Silver Iron Bin
Item #: 8314 | Model #: HD-138597C ($13)
lowes.com/ProductDisplay?productId=4076122
Style Selections 10.69-in W x 11-in H x 10.69-in D Silver Iron Milk Crate
Item #: 8268 | Model #: HD-138597B ($12)
lowes.com/ProductDisplay?productId=4076120
(3/21/2017: http://i.imgur.com/ADh1lz8.png or http://i.imgur.com/sTBMJjM.png which could be stacked and easy to expand a little at a time)
New idea to increase your population without losing pupae to beetle cannibalism. What you do, is put mealworms (any size) in individual micro drawers with food/carrot piece and once they become beetles, they can be put in with the rest of the beetles. The advantage of this, is that you do all the sorting during the *Mealworm phase, which is by far the easiest time to sort.* Once you sort out the worms to single occupant homes, there is no more sorting to be done. Even if you don't build/buy enough to do all your mealworms, just having a 99% guarantee to survive into the beetle stage and be unable to kill any pupae, that will keep your population going.
If you are suffering deaths of mealworms, and you decide to use 2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10 mealworms in each, know that you should only count on a single beetle surviving from each, since the first beetle will likely kill all pupae it can. If you scale this up to 100/500/1000/10000 in each, you end up with the problem I had, which is having 60-90% HEALTHY pupae killed by beetles.
I think their name Darkling Beetle, should be changed to "Pupae Assassin Beetles". Honestly, the beetles are vicious cannibals. The next task, is to figure out, how to minimize the beetles from eating the eggs, since the beetles WILL lay their eggs in and on EVERYTHING. You can put screens at high spots, where there is a chance they will lay eggs through the screen and drop down into food below where no beetles can get to, but they seem to find a way to get food up there eventually. Another idea is to change their bedding/food out frequently, but this seems impractical, especially since you will likely have hundreds of beetles and need a hefty amount of food, and setting aside large amounts of food on a possible daily basis, is impractical, due to the cost and since the hatched eggs would eat about 0.00000001% of that food. If you have any ideas, such as having smaller groups of beetles together or some 75%+ estimated success rate at saving the eggs, let me know! Even though I'm not raising these anymore, I would LOVE to know how to conquer this, in case I ever get back into it. I want to be creating so many mealworms, that I'm giving them away by the cup full, because I have nowhere to put them and need the room for the new mealworms which could even become a business either online or locally.
One last thing, one of the biggest issues, is that their waste becomes airborne and causes respiratory problems, when raising for population growth. This means it is best if they are raised in a place outside of your home, like in a shed and wearing a dust mask when working with them, but then you have to consider the temperature may reach levels that could kill them. I'm sure you could rig up a science lab looking place with a HEPA and Carbon filter, but now your talking about spending a LOT of money, because those filters would clog VERY FAST and the cost of electricity to run those fans, for worms that are worth around 1 to 3 cents each, so that is impractical. Maybe in a shed, have the normal cheap fan "evacuate" the air on a timer, and it could be electric or solar powered.
Updated ideas: youtube.com/watch?v=of0e9lW4Rkw
How to Maintain a Healthy Mealworm Farm (Rancher Mike June 19, 2019)
◙ Warning (okay not warning), In this video I show Sifting out mealworm pupae is a difficult and potentially harmful method. Just separate while still worms. (This method is no longer recommended.)◙
sift pupae
Item used (either of these two, their the same hole size):
vvvvvvvv... [link to product below!]... vvvvvvvvvvv
------
Commenter said (3/2022):
"Wal-Mart 10x8x6 Mainstays Mesh Basket $4.98"
walmart.com/ip/Mainstays-Mesh-Basket-Kitchen-Pantry-Organization-with-Keyhole-Handles-for-Easy-Carry-Steel-10-x8-x6/501014422
--------
What I used (may be no longer available):
Style Selections 10.69-in W x 5.5-in H x 14.25-in D Silver Iron Bin
Item #: 8314 | Model #: HD-138597C ($13)
lowes.com/ProductDisplay?productId=4076122
Style Selections 10.69-in W x 11-in H x 10.69-in D Silver Iron Milk Crate
Item #: 8268 | Model #: HD-138597B ($12)
lowes.com/ProductDisplay?productId=4076120
(3/21/2017: http://i.imgur.com/ADh1lz8.png or http://i.imgur.com/sTBMJjM.png which could be stacked and easy to expand a little at a time)
New idea to increase your population without losing pupae to beetle cannibalism. What you do, is put mealworms (any size) in individual micro drawers with food/carrot piece and once they become beetles, they can be put in with the rest of the beetles. The advantage of this, is that you do all the sorting during the *Mealworm phase, which is by far the easiest time to sort.* Once you sort out the worms to single occupant homes, there is no more sorting to be done. Even if you don't build/buy enough to do all your mealworms, just having a 99% guarantee to survive into the beetle stage and be unable to kill any pupae, that will keep your population going.
If you are suffering deaths of mealworms, and you decide to use 2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10 mealworms in each, know that you should only count on a single beetle surviving from each, since the first beetle will likely kill all pupae it can. If you scale this up to 100/500/1000/10000 in each, you end up with the problem I had, which is having 60-90% HEALTHY pupae killed by beetles.
I think their name Darkling Beetle, should be changed to "Pupae Assassin Beetles". Honestly, the beetles are vicious cannibals. The next task, is to figure out, how to minimize the beetles from eating the eggs, since the beetles WILL lay their eggs in and on EVERYTHING. You can put screens at high spots, where there is a chance they will lay eggs through the screen and drop down into food below where no beetles can get to, but they seem to find a way to get food up there eventually. Another idea is to change their bedding/food out frequently, but this seems impractical, especially since you will likely have hundreds of beetles and need a hefty amount of food, and setting aside large amounts of food on a possible daily basis, is impractical, due to the cost and since the hatched eggs would eat about 0.00000001% of that food. If you have any ideas, such as having smaller groups of beetles together or some 75%+ estimated success rate at saving the eggs, let me know! Even though I'm not raising these anymore, I would LOVE to know how to conquer this, in case I ever get back into it. I want to be creating so many mealworms, that I'm giving them away by the cup full, because I have nowhere to put them and need the room for the new mealworms which could even become a business either online or locally.
One last thing, one of the biggest issues, is that their waste becomes airborne and causes respiratory problems, when raising for population growth. This means it is best if they are raised in a place outside of your home, like in a shed and wearing a dust mask when working with them, but then you have to consider the temperature may reach levels that could kill them. I'm sure you could rig up a science lab looking place with a HEPA and Carbon filter, but now your talking about spending a LOT of money, because those filters would clog VERY FAST and the cost of electricity to run those fans, for worms that are worth around 1 to 3 cents each, so that is impractical. Maybe in a shed, have the normal cheap fan "evacuate" the air on a timer, and it could be electric or solar powered.
