plaster nests?

[idahoantgirl]

hey, so I;m planning on building a plaster of paris nest in the spring for my lasius neoniger queen. just wondering if anyone has any experience with plaster nests?

[MadVampy]

Plaster nests are a very common thing. Down side of plaster is the cleaning of it. Once its dried it ok but moisture in the nest can cause a mold out break as with any nest but with plaster its not as easy to clean with simply water due to the plaster wetting again and becoming soft again. Many use grout to build nests but with that you have to make sure its the right type (many have chemicals added to make it dry faster and also resist mold, and those can be harmful to the ants). If you use plaster let it dry slowly so it doesn't crack. Don't please it in a window in the sun or put it in an oven, simply place it in a room out of direct sunlight and place a leaper towel over it (this will aid in the drying and also keep junk out it until it does dry).

If you want to add some texture to it you can use a wet paper towel to dab the surface until its kinda watery and sticky and sprinkle sand over it and then tap the sand in with a dry paper towel. This can be dine even after it has been dried.

Once its dried you can use a knife or dremel tool to clean it up and also sculpture it to your liking. Also with a dremel tool with the little wire brush attached at a very low speed you can also texture it.

Ok the safety warning part! Plaster is a very fine power that can very easily be inhaled into your lungs, once its the it will settle in your lungs with the moisture that is naturly present in your lungs it will not come back out on its own! So always use a dust mask when mixing, transferring the powdervfrom container to container or using a dremel tool on it!

[Gregory2455]

Use Hydrostone. It is basically the same thing as plaster of paris but it itself does not mold. I say that because no matter what you are using if the ants take food into the nest, it can and will mold. However, unlike plaster of paris, it itself does not get moldy.

[idahoantgirl]

I don't recommend plaster. Grout works better.

Yeah, I've looked into grout, but I'm not interested in sculpting the chambers. I plan to make mine this way:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rfqjqRjHR0U

[idahoantgirl]

Use Hydrostone. It is basically the same thing as plaster of paris but it itself does not mold. I say that because no matter what you are using if the ants take food into the nest, it can and will mold. However, unlike plaster of paris, it itself does not get moldy.

thanks! I never though about other alternatives that are alot like plaster of paris. I will look into that!

[Gregory2455]

Chrystal S's videos are great. And yeah, idahoantgirl, hydrostone is great but hard to find. I believe this is the one I got: http://www.ebay.com/itm/HYDROSTONE-38-Lbs-for-39-FREE-SHIP/161556357891?_trksid=p2047675.c100012.m1985&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D33430%26meid%3D173132e155aa4006b394656bc5c21ee0%26pid%3D100012%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D10%26mehot%3Dfs%26sd%3D400750425410
Most hobbyists do not need that much but I have around 50 colonies right now in need of formicaria so I was thinking about a dollar per pound was a good deal.

[idahoantgirl]

Plaster nests are a very common thing. Down side of plaster is the cleaning of it. Once its dried it ok but moisture in the nest can cause a mold out break as with any nest but with plaster its not as easy to clean with simply water due to the plaster wetting again and becoming soft again. Many use grout to build nests but with that you have to make sure its the right type (many have chemicals added to make it dry faster and also resist mold, and those can be harmful to the ants). If you use plaster let it dry slowly so it doesn't crack. Don't please it in a window in the sun or put it in an oven, simply place it in a room out of direct sunlight and place a leaper towel over it (this will aid in the drying and also keep junk out it until it does dry).

If you want to add some texture to it you can use a wet paper towel to dab the surface until its kinda watery and sticky and sprinkle sand over it and then tap the sand in with a dry paper towel. This can be dine even after it has been dried.

Once its dried you can use a knife or dremel tool to clean it up and also sculpture it to your liking. Also with a dremel tool with the little wire brush attached at a very low speed you can also texture it.

Ok the safety warning part! Plaster is a very fine power that can very easily be inhaled into your lungs, once its the it will settle in your lungs with the moisture that is naturly present in your lungs it will not come back out on its own! So always use a dust mask when mixing, transferring the powdervfrom container to container or using a dremel tool on it!

sorry for the crazy late reply. Thnx for the tips and tricks! I'm actually planning on doing it this way so that i don't have so sculpt https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rfqjqRjHR0U