Black Soldier Fly Larvae

[aqua]

hi gary,

i've just make by myself the harvest bucket for BSF. at earlier, just pust like fruit waste and peelings to feee by larvae soon. for how long the BSF will lay their eggs and breed on my waste? i'm from kuala lumpur,malaysia.

[GaryD]

Hi aqua,

When the conditions are right, the BSF will lay their eggs which will hatch out in about four days. They then take about 14 days (depending on the temperature) to grow to self-harvesting size.

Gary

[aqua]

thank u for reply gary,

after reaching self harvesting size that u said, can i put these larvae on refrigerator to let them die? because i do prefer to make meal by grinding the frozen one..just i know, grubs are robust and difficult to die..tq

[old trout]

Hello to all.
After reading such a great thread I have redesigned my BSF harvester. I started off with a model like Gary’s early tub unit (first photo). It worked fine at first and I still use it but some of the larvae were somehow escaping. After a while I figured out that some were going ‘A-wall’
I don’t have a spare $300 and I like recycling, so I copied the Bio-pod (see photos). It has the following features;
- Left over hydroponic hose for the ramp rim.
- Unit hangs by wire from the roof so is out of reach of vermin (the dog, rats, ants, etc.)
- Drains straight on to the ground or can be diverted into nearby drain to alleviate smell.
- Corrugated plastic egg laying discs.
-Coconut fibre layer on base.

I have a composing toilet which I highly recommend as a huge step in the sustainable direction. I built my own Clevis Multrum style, which is basically just a brick box under the house with a door, a drain and a stink pipe. It is fanless and odourless. Anyway it is absolutely teaming with BSF larvae which I can shovel into the harvester along with any compost.

If you don’t have a composting toilet then seriously consider getting one. If you have enough clearance (about 1m) under your house, and if local council permits, it is the best way to keep all your hard earned nutrients on your property where they can be used. We spend so much money on food so why then flush away all the nutrients in a water toilet. To treat all this waste at the STP is a huge drain of resources and on the environment.

So as aquaponicists we have an extra use for the composting toilet. Mine churns out truckloads of BSF larvae. If I can only figure out how to run a harvesting ramp straight from the toilet to the collection bottle. If I build another I will do just that.

[Magotmanuk]

good morning Gary, have you got any surplus lavae. we are trying to do breeding experiments in uk but need some soldiers

[GaryD]

Hi MagotmanUK,

I've replied to you by PM.....but, in short, we don't a have any larvae right at the moment. We're just coming out our winter and any larvae in our BioPod are still dormant.

Gary

[FeyWind]

I've made a BSF composter as per directions on www.blacksoldierflyblog.com but I seem to have a very healthy colony of house/blow fly larvae. Does anyone have or know where to get black soldier fly larvae in SW Sydney? It would help kick start my colony.

[GaryD]

Hi Feywind,

The House/Blow Fly maggots will be appreciated by your chickens.....or your fish when you have some. They self-harvest just the same as the BSF larvae.

Just keep putting your food scraps into your BSF harvester and they'll find you eventually.


Gary

[FeyWind]

Yep - noticed that they did the same - just a little worried about disease and breeding too many house flies. Am already a bit worried about too many chickens on a small block of land - if I get reported to the council I might have to get rid of them all. Between meat chickens and the fertile eggs I bought (bantam Araucana) I've got 19 chooks!

[GaryD]

Hi Feywind,

Yep - noticed that they did the same - just a little worried about disease and breeding too many house flies.

Don't be too concerned.......there's not much that will survive a trip through a chook's guts.....and feeding the larvae to chickens is certainly going to take the flies out of circulation.

Am already a bit worried about too many chickens on a small block of land - if I get reported to the council I might have to get rid of them all. Between meat chickens and the fertile eggs I bought (bantam Araucana) I've got 19 chooks!

That's a more realistic concern. The secret is to keep things clean and quiet.....and to move the occasional dozen eggs over the fence.

Gary