Equipment Comparison: Watering Systems

Watering systems have historically used a couple of different base principles to work: osmosis/wicking, moistened substrates, and covered flowing water systems. When designing or implementing watering systems, keep the following in mind:

• Crickets drown: As noted in earlier drafts, crickets are stupid and will drown themselves if possible. This is particularly true of pinheads. Barriers, walkways, and screens can all assist when there’s open water.

• Physics operates differently at cricket scale: Especially at pinhead size, osmotic action, surface tension, and water viscosity take on whole new dangers. A pinhead touching a drop of water will be sucked into the drop and drown.

• Water needs to be pure, but not too pure: Reverse osmosis and distilled water are too pure on their own for crickets. Differential testing at Big Cricket Farms with the help of Jakob Lewin (now founder of BuggingDenmark) confirmed a small amount of salt (or even Gatorade) result in crickets drinking more water and growing faster. Anecdotal reports from OG cricket farmers have mentioned microdosing Vitamin A in the water to aid proper wing development in adults. More differential testing is needed to determine appropriate levels of electrolytic solutions for optimal growth.

• Standing water becomes filthy. Crickets will poop anywhere, including water dishes. Particularly for standing water systems, serratia marascens (a chitinase-producing, omnipresent bacteria responsible for “redbelly”) may also grow. Sick crickets may vomit into the watering systems, spreading disease.

• Crickets will infiltrate flowing water systems if possible: Flowing water systems need multiple redundant ways to notice if any portion of the system is overflowing, as it is inevitable that some crickets will work their way into the system at some point and jam up a valve.
• Water outside of the watering system is very dangerous. And smelly. Wet frass stinks unbearably and allows for rapid proliferation of microbes and molds. Avoiding spills is mission-critical.

Chart: Watering Systems- What (Sort Of) Works

Type	Chicken Waterer & Plastic Ring or Makeup Sponge	Foam Pad
Description	Standard chicken industry waterer with a standing surface for the crickets. Water is continuously refreshed from the reservoir.	A foam pad or wad of wetted paper towel.
Time between refills	1 day for small reservoirs, 2-3 days for medium, 3-5 days for large**	4-6 hours w/o reservoir
Advantages	Easy to clean Easy to set up Inexpensive Reuseable	Very inexpensive Very simple Uses commonly available materials Won’t drown pinheads Larger/shapeable surface area Best for pinheads or very small populations
Disadvantages	Spill easily Heavy Have to be refilled frequently Standing water- greater chance of s. Marascens and other waterborne pathogens Limited surface area = limited number of crickets can drink Labor Intensive	Dries out quickly May accumulate filth Paper towels aren’t reusable Somewhat labor-intensive High turnover/quick replacement time.
Picture
Variations	Instead of foam, people often use: Rolled paper towel Coconut coir Cloth	Cotton cloth
Link	Donut 1-Gallon Chicken Waterer	Armstrong Cricket Farms

Type	Packed substrates (coconut coir, peat moss, etc)	Figure 8 PVC wicking systems
Description	Substrates packed in ½ PVC pipes, laying trays, or other similar container. To refill, add water to substrate and mix as necessary.	Common in Thailand. ~3” PVC with a slot cut in the top, assembled into a figure-8 shape. Cotton strip rope is used to wick water from the reservoir inside the pipes to the crickets. Best for large cricket containers
Time to Refill	Varies, typically daily.	Weekly
Advantages	Compostable Uses materials used elsewhere on farm Low cost Tends to stay cleaner [citation needed] Great for pinheads Easy- fits into other daily activities	Low refill rate Inexpensive materials Great surface area and distribution within the rearing space. Low labor costs.
Disadvantages	May grow mold more aggressively OpEx purchase instead of CapEx Adults will lay eggs in substrate. Young crickets hide in substrate, resulting in loss every time substrate is changed.	May grow bacteria Chance of water getting stagnant As system ages, leaks develop. *More data needed*
Picture
Variations
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Type	Screen-covered flowing water systems	Wet Feed
Description	Using corrugated plastic, u-shaped PVC pipe sections, etc, covered in loose screen. Channel/pipes are gently flooded, allowing crickets to walk on screen to drink. Pump (often Raspberry Pi and micropump) on one end and drop valve on the other refill and drain at periodic rates.	Potatoes, carrots, squash, and other high water-content veggies are used as supplemental water. Specially formulated wet feed provides all necessary water.
Time to Refill	Once per cycle	Daily
Advantages	Really cute. Crickets look like lions drinking on the Serengeti. Largely automates watering system, greatly decreasing labor costs. Self-cleaning for whole cycle. Decreased contamination Some bacteria cannot grow in flowing water.	Combines feed and water. No risk of spilling Decreased labor costs
Disadvantages	Typically expensive Moving parts- prone to breakage. Prone to overflowing.	Can be messy Feed may be expensive or require stabilization.
Picture	Source: Entomo Farms	Source: Cricket Smart Farm
Variations
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Contraindicated Methods

• Water gels: Although commonly used in reptile feed, the FDA has historically expressed alarm at people eating insects watered with gels. Additionally, if the gels dry back into crystalline or semi-crystalline form, crickets may eat these diminished crystals, only to have them swell back up when the cricket drinks again.

Chart: What Could Use More Testing

Watering System Design Considerations: Questions to ask yourself while designing a watering system

• Reservoir capacity: how long can the system go without needing to be refilled?
  • Standing water systems typically range from overnight to 3 days (recommended), 6 days (realistic if you don’t have enough time in your day). The same standing water system that lasts a week for pinheads lasts a day for ¾” crickets.
  • Flowing water systems will typically need parts serviced before exhausting their water supply.
• How long does it take to service? How often do components need to be replaced? 
• Ideally, maintaining watering systems should be a minimal part of your day. In too many farms, it ends up being the bulk of the labor.
• How long will the water (or substrate) stay clean enough to drink from?
• How easy are the components to clean? How long does it take to clean them, and how long to dry?
• How expensive is the system?
• Where does the watering system fit into your existing operations?