Hi guys! I hope you’re doing well!
Today I’m going to make a little review of a really cool ant nest made by the company Anthouse. You can find the nest here!
Let’s see if it’s any good!
The Company
For those who don’t know the company, Anthouse is one of the main European online shops regarding ant keeping.
They offer a very large catalog of ant-keeping-related products, everything you need to start your own journey in this amazing and fascinating hobby. From ant nests to ant food, they always have the right product for your needs.
Now let’s talk about the nest!
General Info
This one is called Acrylic NaturColor 5x5x1.3, the one with the foam as the humidity system.
Like most Anthouse products, this nest is made of a particular type of transparent plastic. It comes in 10 different colors, including a transparent one. This one right here is the black version, in my opinion, the best-looking one!
The build quality is really amazing! The pieces fit together perfectly, leaving no gaps between them. The plastic is super clear, which makes watching the ants really easy and enjoyable.
The nest has a round shape, measuring 7.5cm in length, 7.5cm in width, and 1.3cm in height. This particular size is perfect for housing medium and small ant species, like Pheidole pallidula or Tetramorium caespitum.
On the other hand, some large species like Messor barbarus may find it pretty hard living comfortably inside this nest, given the very limited space. Having said that, It doesn’t mean that the nest can’t be used as a funding setup for large queen ants.
The nest can be used indeed as a valid alternative to the standard test tube setup, offering similar characteristics in terms of space, humidity, and easy feeding access. This formicarium has 5 chambers, connected to one another by little passages. If you don’t wanna connect an external outworld, no problem!
The Outworld
This version of the nest also features a tiny outworld, which makes It an all-in-one solution!
The outworld has a round shape, and it measures 3 cm x 3 cm. The lid is very easy to remove and It’s made of two acrylic plates, sticked together by a bolt. Despite being very small, the outworld has even the space to put the escape prevention oil!
If you’re planning on adding an external outworld to this nest, I would suggest you check out this other article! In this one, I make a detailed review of a very cool and spacious outworld made by the company Esthetic Ants. This outworld is perfect for a medium-sized ant colony, and it’s the perfect add-on to this nest!
Connections
The nest also offers the option of expanding the inside space by using the built-in auxiliary port. With the provided adaptors you can easily connect other nests or outworlds, giving your colony more space to grow comfortably.
In the package you will find 2 different types of connectors, along with the nest entrance blocker. The first connector is made for attaching a test tube to the nest, facilitating the initial move of your ants.
The second one is a standard 10mm connection port, perfect for attaching plastic pipes for expanding the nesting space or for connecting an external outworld.
The Humidity System
The humidity system consists of one single sponge, placed at the center of the nest. It is able to deliver the right amount of moisture to the surrounding chambers, without flooding them with water.
Sadly the sponge is too small in my opinion, and can hold very little water. For this reason, to keep an adequate amount of moisture in the nest, you are forced to refill it daily. Luckily, this is the only negative thing I found about this nest.
If a high humidity level is needed and you don’t have time to constantly refill the sponge, I would suggest you opt for another type of nest, like this other one! This 3D-printed ant nest is based on the gold standard of starter nest, the test tube setup, and it’s the perfect option if you wanna found a colony starting just from a single newly mated queen ant!
The Top Lid
As an additional accessory, you can get the top lid, made of a particular type of red transparent acrylic. This is very useful if you wanna create a dark space for your colony, as most ant species do not see the red light spectrum.
To get the lid, simply follow the buying procedure in the Anthouse shop. When you add the nest to the shopping cart in the online shop, It gives you the option to purchase the lid made specifically for the type of nest you are buying.
The Acrylic Layers
The nest is built using a clever technique: As you can see the main body is made of various acrylic layers positioned one above the other to create the structure of the chambers.
This particular layer composition makes the nest practically escape-proof! The acrylic layers fit perfectly to one another, making it impossible for the ants to find openings from which to escape.
If you wanna replace the sponge or clean the nest a bit, you can easily disassemble the various layers by unscrewing the 4 bolts that keep them together.
If you find it difficult because the bolts are too tight or because your hands are too big, feel free to use a little wrench like this one to help you in the process.
Once the layers are separated you can manage them individually, a very good feature that makes the cleaning process a lot simpler. When the pieces are clean and everything seems alright, simply do the same steps in reverse order to rebuild the formicarium.
Rating
BRUMA Ants Rating
Overall
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Pricing
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Build quality
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Features
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Aesthetic
Summary
A very good escape-proof ant nest made of various layers of acrylic, perfect for a small colony. The outworld included in the nest does its job fairly well, providing a good-sized feeding area. With the nest you can also get an extremely useful red lid cover, perfect for creating a comfortable and dark space for your colony!
I hope you have found this guide helpful!
If you’re planning to buy some other ant nests, I would suggest you check out this other review! It’s a really cool ant nest made by the same company!
Real-world impact!
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