Springtail collection system
Posted: Sat Oct 15, 2022 11:03 pm
I've been researching Springtails and decided to get some, like the tight wad I am, I didn't want to cough up $15 for a culture, so I decided to find some and make my own. My springtail traps weren't yielding results, so I decided upon direct collection. I realized there were hundreds crawling about the soil and concret around my house, so I whipped up a collection device and thought I would share.
I based the design off of shop vacuum cyclone filter systems and made it with the following materials:
4ish feet of aquarium tubing{amazon}
2 2oz plastic cups, one ounce may work, but two is better.{hobby lobby}
hot glue
a mesh square and damp paper towel filtration(optional)
I estimate total materials would come out to under $2
The design causes the air to swirl in the container, keeping the particles and spring tails at the bottom, while still allowing air to pass. I added a second container as a failsafe in case something somehow got through the first, but it's unlikely so could be used without it. It sounds a bit gross, but it's quite safe and worked really well. Nothing solid passed through the first chamber.
To create it, I took a few lengths of tubing, and put a hole in the side near the top and lid of each container, then inserted the tip of a tube and hot glue it in. The first chamber has the nozzle out the side, then is connected to the second containers side by the top, the second contain is connected to the mouth tube by its top. It may work in a different configuration, but this one seems to work the best to create an air cyclone. Put glue around the inside and out of each tube to create an airtight seal.
On the inside of the lid, I glued a very thin mesh screen. This step is optional. The design should prevent anything from being sucked through to your mouth, but it is a nice just in case feature. I'm sure a cotton ball or other breathable fabric would work just as well. Inside the second container, I added a wet paper towel to collect any of the very fine powder dust that carries along the air. I live in a place with fine clay dust, in most it may not be an issue.
It took me maybe 5 minutes to make the vacuum with things I already had lying about. After about 20 minutes of collecting, I had well over 50 springtails. They were so easy to get I may not need to breed them to begin with haha. Additionally, I cannot be sure because of just how small they can get, but this seems to be a mite free way of collecting, since you can pick and choose which springtails you want to take.
Thats my second round
As for my breeding tank, I don't feel qualified to say either way, as this is the beginning of my experiments, but there are plenty of guides out there and I'm happy to share my attempt if someone would like.
Hopefully this can help another, happy to answer any questions.
Edit, my images dont seem to have worked so here they are in a google drive https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/ ... sp=sharing
I based the design off of shop vacuum cyclone filter systems and made it with the following materials:
4ish feet of aquarium tubing{amazon}
2 2oz plastic cups, one ounce may work, but two is better.{hobby lobby}
hot glue
a mesh square and damp paper towel filtration(optional)
I estimate total materials would come out to under $2
The design causes the air to swirl in the container, keeping the particles and spring tails at the bottom, while still allowing air to pass. I added a second container as a failsafe in case something somehow got through the first, but it's unlikely so could be used without it. It sounds a bit gross, but it's quite safe and worked really well. Nothing solid passed through the first chamber.
To create it, I took a few lengths of tubing, and put a hole in the side near the top and lid of each container, then inserted the tip of a tube and hot glue it in. The first chamber has the nozzle out the side, then is connected to the second containers side by the top, the second contain is connected to the mouth tube by its top. It may work in a different configuration, but this one seems to work the best to create an air cyclone. Put glue around the inside and out of each tube to create an airtight seal.
On the inside of the lid, I glued a very thin mesh screen. This step is optional. The design should prevent anything from being sucked through to your mouth, but it is a nice just in case feature. I'm sure a cotton ball or other breathable fabric would work just as well. Inside the second container, I added a wet paper towel to collect any of the very fine powder dust that carries along the air. I live in a place with fine clay dust, in most it may not be an issue.
It took me maybe 5 minutes to make the vacuum with things I already had lying about. After about 20 minutes of collecting, I had well over 50 springtails. They were so easy to get I may not need to breed them to begin with haha. Additionally, I cannot be sure because of just how small they can get, but this seems to be a mite free way of collecting, since you can pick and choose which springtails you want to take.
Thats my second round
As for my breeding tank, I don't feel qualified to say either way, as this is the beginning of my experiments, but there are plenty of guides out there and I'm happy to share my attempt if someone would like.
Hopefully this can help another, happy to answer any questions.
Edit, my images dont seem to have worked so here they are in a google drive https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/ ... sp=sharing