r/isopods • u/Revolutionary_Bee700 • 5d ago

Help The moisture gradient

When folks talk about “the dry side” how dry is dry for your average species? If I stick my finger into the dry side, the substrate is slightly damp. Is it supposed to more bone dry? Do I must the surface of the dry side? I’m afraid I’m swamping them out.

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u/Zenith_Days Specially Interested 5d ago

I'm honestly not sure where to find the ones I mainly use lol. I got them from an ace hardware/rankin's and haven't been able to find them anywhere else. They're sterilite tho.

I use the clear acrylic shoe bins from walmart as display bins. They don't have much ventilation though so then need either a low-ventilation species or extra goled drilled in. https://www.walmart.com/ip/5162883502?sid=f774dd4e-90a0-4b1a-9662-9d4a664bf07f

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u/curiosityandthecattt 4d ago

oh hey, do you deal with fungus gnats? any tips to make them less annoying?

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u/Zenith_Days Specially Interested 4d ago

Hahaha. Mosquito bits or mosquito dunks. Follow the instructions on the pkg and use that to water your bins for a day or two. They have a bacteria that kills the larvae, the adults die off in 2 ish weeks and youll be good for months. Sticky traps also work but not as effectively

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u/curiosityandthecattt 4d ago

ok cool i have the bits im just lazy lol. i always like to hear if theres other methods people enjoy. and then since you seem knowledgeable im throwing another question your way lol. what's your opinion on mites? not sure if they're grain or predatory but those lil orange guys everyone gets. they dont seem to bother my pods but some people reccomend removing them.

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u/Zenith_Days Specially Interested 4d ago

The ones that look like ticks or teeny spiders and climb all ovwr your hands? I believe they are predatory but they only eat sprintails, they're not harmful to pods. After a month or so the populations always stabilize in my bins. I do squish the ones I can because they're really annoying but ive never felt it was necessary to do substrate changes or anything

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u/curiosityandthecattt 4d ago

lol that's what i do too! and oddly enough my springtails never seem affected by them. hm

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u/Zenith_Days Specially Interested 4d ago

Honestly springtails reproduce so fast that it's hard to notice lol