Whiteworms raising for tropical fish food

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Most popular comments
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asuziac - 6 years ago

Why my bread keep getting mold?

asuziac - 6 years ago

David Ramsey thank you!!!

David Ramsey - 6 years ago

If your bread will mold that is actually a good sign. You have bread without mold inhibitors in it. Good bread. Sometimes with a new culture that has not built up the bacteria in the culture yet the bread will mold after a couple of days. Just take it out and replace with fresh bread. It will stop as the bacteria in the culture build up.

Reid Chung - 6 years ago

I'm wondering can I use a sponge instead of soil?

David Ramsey - 6 years ago

I have not tried that. Give it a try and let us know!

Michael Wells - 6 years ago

Will White Worms live in coconut fiber and what's the difference between them and Grindal Worms?

Michael Wells - 6 years ago

Thank you for answering my questions. I wasn't expecting that.

David Ramsey - 6 years ago

I do not use the coconut fiber. Lots of people have told me they use coconut fiber for white worms and grindal worms. What is the difference between white worms and grindal worms? Everything. Completely different critters. Different conditions, different food, different size, different temperature requirements.

Harice Darien Medina - 7 years ago

how can I produce white worm without starter worm?

David Ramsey - 7 years ago

Have to get the first worms from someone.

Виталий Стукалов - 7 years ago

Hi David Ramsey I am from Ukraine please describe the ingredients !!!

Scott Taylor - 7 years ago

David Ramsey my zebra danios rosie tetras shrimp angelfish and carp gudgeons will love white wor,s when my culture grows

David Ramsey - 7 years ago

My white worms are still doing a little movement as long as 6 hours. They will usually live 12-24 hours in water. But once they stop wiggling around the fish ignore them. Then they are a problem.

Scott Taylor - 7 years ago

David Ramsey how long can the worms survive in water

David Ramsey - 7 years ago

whole wheat breae, plain yogurt or kefir, nutritional yeast flakes, Can add algae powder if you want.

heckelcross - 7 years ago

The wine chiller can be set to any temperature via a timer. It is then, for example, switched on every hour for 10 minutes. This is how my mine has been working for years.

Sai Krishna Mittapalli - 7 years ago

hi is that coco peat
or peat moss

Zahid creations - 7 years ago

what is that black thing below the box is that a sand or something and can i feed this white worm to my oscar and phirana

Zahid creations - 7 years ago

i mean in the box under the worms some soil or sand may be needed and i will try earthworms in rainy season

David Ramsey - 7 years ago

The black thing under the box is a black sheet covering a piece of wood used as a quick table for the video. If the food is big enough for the fish to eat I do not see any reason not too. Personally, I would raise earthworms to feed those fish. Larger and higher protein.

COOL CANADIAN - 8 years ago

Hi David Ramsey can i call you gordon ramsay please :D

10. comment for Whiteworms raising for tropical fish food

FishTankEnthusiasts - 8 years ago

Hi David
how do i get a starting culture i haven't had any luck trying to find out how?

FishTankEnthusiasts - 8 years ago

Thanks heaps for your help Appreciate it. :)

David Ramsey - 8 years ago

+FishTankEnthusiasts I bought several cultures on line. Stinking dead worms each time. I have tried sending to myself. Stinking dead worms each time. You have to go and get them handed to you from someone. If you are in the US, find the nearest killifish club. Email them onr get on their forum and see who has white worms. Go to one of their meetings. The area fish conventions nearly always has someone selling cultures. The Killifish convention always has live foods for sale. I actually got my worms from someone in Michigan that was at a fish workshop in Raleigh NC. I drove up there from Atlanta. I still have those worms going. Fed them to my fish last night.

Austre Campos - 9 years ago

What are those green "pills"???

Michael Hammond - 8 years ago

Algae wafers. ( Food for fish )

Austre Campos - 9 years ago

Excelente! thanks so much!

David Ramsey - 9 years ago

+Austre Campos
the powder is actually easier for eating. so sure.

Austre Campos - 9 years ago

ok! thanks!! mmmm.... powder can be used as well?

David Ramsey - 9 years ago

The green pills are spirulina pellets. Super nutrition to gut load the worms.

Shaik Amir - 9 years ago

Hi David
is there any method from which i can start culture without a starting culture...??

David Ramsey - 7 years ago

I do not know of any way to 'find' them. Have to get a starter somewhere. The temperature sensitivity makes it hard.

heckelcross - 7 years ago

Hi Amir, in jedem Garten, in nasser oder feuchter Erde die mit zersetztem Laub, Gras, Stroh etc. versetzt ist ist es fast nicht möglich dass man keine Enchytreen findet. Nicht immer viele, aber du kannst schon mit 10 Stück anfangen.

Shaik Amir - 9 years ago

Ok thanks for assistance..!!

David Ramsey - 9 years ago

I havenever heard of anyway to start a culture without a beginning culture. Maybe google them and see if you can find where they come from.

EviLBeatZ - 9 years ago

Finger licking good! yumm!

Ca Nguyen - 9 years ago

Hi David,
I live in Duluth, GA. I want some white worms start culture, can you provided me some white worms?.
Thank you

David Ramsey - 9 years ago

Sure, send me a private message so we can figure out when.

Stanislav Materna - 9 years ago

Hi David, can you tell me latin name of this worms?

Stanislav Materna - 9 years ago

thank you, i wanted to be sure that it's albidus.

David Ramsey - 9 years ago

a quick google search shows them to be Enchytraeus albidus

elizabeth vasquez - 9 years ago

This guy...is epic.

HiSuue - 9 years ago

starting my culture but my worms arrived before yeast, ive put in some fishmeal powder from my fishing tackles baits with yogurt/ bread, its good subsitute?

David Ramsey - 9 years ago

That should be fine.

Michael Baker - 10 years ago

HOBBYIST TIP: I got my "brand new" wine cooler that holds 12 bottles (descent size) for only $30 off of Craigslist and I see many more.

David Ramsey - 9 years ago

+Michael Baker
You have way too much media. I have at most an inch. Eventually you will get the masses up at the top, but not until they have filled up all that media. I would before feeding while they are down nice and deep take a putty knive or somthing and see if you can take off a couple of inches of material. Put it in another container and keep it going too. I am afraid that with the media that deep they will crash in all that poo before they fill up enough to be on the top.

Michael Baker - 9 years ago

+David Ramsey Question Dave... It's been 5 months and I can see good cultures along the bottom and lower sides of my containers which are in about 4" deep COIR and although they will come up for the food, they never accumulate as thick as you show in your videos (or in others I've seen) making it possible to harvest off good quantities to feed my fish. I tried the glass top method but they don't seem to attach to the glass like Grindal worms do (which I do fantastic at). I'm wondering if my temps are far too low and other than periodically coming up to feed, they are just staying dormant in the lower portions of the COIR.

What is the IDEAL temperature for them to be active and reproduce? I'm currently fluxuating a bit because of summer between 35-44F.

David Ramsey - 10 years ago

Good for you!! My first wine cooler came off of Craigs List. $50 for a half sized fridge wine cooler. Lots of them are rarely used and begging for a new owner. They are perfect for white worms.

Michael Baker - 10 years ago

Okay so the mold isn't going to spoil the soil or kill the starter culture in the mean time then in your opinion? I have purchased another 10 cups of worm cultures from different vendors so kind of hoping to expedite the process to start getting a beautiful and heavily propagating culture like yours!

20. comment for Whiteworms raising for tropical fish food

Michael Baker - 10 years ago

Hi Dave,
I don't see mold on yours yet I get a lot of mold in my cultures. How do you prevent that or am I just not seeing it in yours? It makes my cultures look completely spoiled.

David Ramsey - 10 years ago

Only give a small amount of food to start out. As you see everything being eaten then increase the food amounts. Some mold on a new culture is normal. You just don't have enough worms and bacteria in the soil to eat it all. change at least every other day with fresh food. It will stop as the worms increase.

Michael Baker - 10 years ago

p.s. What's the best temperature range for growing cultures of white worms?

Michael Baker - 10 years ago

+David Ramsey Done, went out and bought a wine cooler today and yes, 54 was the lowest setting it would allow which is where I have it set. Our temps here in So Cal have been around 70F and it appears to me my white worm cultures having been declining (and I'm not pulling from the container yet) so hopefully this will rev these little buggers up to breeding out. Thanks for your advice Dave!

Michael Baker - 10 years ago

+David Ramsey Excellent, thank you Dave.

David Ramsey - 10 years ago

best temperature is mid 50sF. I use a wine cooler. Comes with a 54F preset. Just perfect.

Michael Baker - 10 years ago

I'm a member of the So Cal Killifish Club and AKA and none of the guys are using them which is why I was asking. I was going to buy some for the guys. I don't know if you went but just this last weekend was the SAKE conference in Arizona and I was hoping to find some there because Killi keepers bring all kinds of stuff in but nobody surprisingly brought any in. I brought probably the largest supply of Paramecium, Micro, Walter, Banana, Grindal and Venegar worms but no white worms and it would be good to have a larger food source than the grindals I grow. I need to get a good supply of white worms and daphnia going (I did get a good bag of daphnia at SAKE).

Anyway, I just ordered some white worms from a guy on aquabid so hopefully enough arrive alive (it is cold out right now most everywhere for shipping) that I can begin a colony. Looks like they are very reproductive!

Michael Baker - 10 years ago

By the way, do you sell the white worm cultures? I'd like to get a nice sized culture from you if possible? I PM'd you as well. Thanks

David Ramsey - 10 years ago

White worms really do not ship. I know some people will mail them to you. I tried several times and always got a smelly mess in the box. Really have to get them handed to you from someone remembering the temperature requirements. Don't know where you are, but find a killie fish or betta club and contact them. They will have them. Some general clubs that have killie or betta people will also have them. The hardest part of raising them is actually getting some lively healthy worms to start with.

Michael Baker - 10 years ago

I'm sold, I grow nearly all cultures but haven't tried white worms yet. Looks like a great alternative to black worms. One question, what is the purpose of the needle mesh? Is it the same idea as using glass on my grindal worms to help sepperate them from the dirt?

David Ramsey - 10 years ago

Put the food on top of the soil, then the needle mesh. The worms will collect on top of the mess and can be removed very clean with a plastic putty knife.

suko-reef - 10 years ago

what type of land use to start growing?

David Ramsey - 10 years ago

potting soil or seed starting soil. Moist but not wet.

suko-reef - 10 years ago

how long it takes to have such a big production?

David Ramsey - 10 years ago

From a small starter culture I can get the production up like this in a couple of months. You will notice the media will change and get a different look to it. That is right before the production gets really good. Then later on, the media will start to look 'slippery' or something like that. Happens when you are getting close to a crash. Make a new culture when you see that.

Blah Blab - 10 years ago

You mention your basement is cold thus stunting shrimp growth. I have ideas for you to run through cost-benefit analysis. For starters, consider placing the air pumps in a heated room that is upstairs and near a heat source, and then running the air line(s) to the basement tubs. I imagine all the air lines could be run together through the floor (shortest route) via an HVAC vent perhaps. Could go a bit further by braiding the length of the air lines together (like braided wire). The braiding will serve heat retention by eliminating surface area, and ensure the tubs will be the same temperature. Insulating the length of the braided air lines with pipe insulators will better conserve the heated air now being pumped through them. Or, leave the lines separate so each tub has different temperatures and thus different growth rates.Your tubs are now heated. The other idea would be to plumb a 1/4" hot water line into the hot water supply. A the end of this new hot water line, where your tubs will be, tree the line off so that each tub will have its own line. Complete by running each respective line inside and lengthwise along the bottom of its tub and capping off. Desired water temperature can be obtained by gently adjusting the amount of line submersion in each tub. However, each line could be looped back into the cold water supply as well. Using an old radiator from an old air conditioner, refrigerator, or similar in each tub in this loop system would be ideal further honoring your shrimp and fish. Considering you have electric near the tubs, the heating element from an old stove or dryer could be used in lieu of a hot water line. Using heating elements over hot water radiant heating is not as legendary and thus serves lesser achievement. If god-like shrimp mastery is sought, epic achievement can be had through the utilization of rabbits. That's right, rabbits, nature's fuzzy little furnaces. The basement floor area with a drain is perfect. Using free saw dust from your local mill as litter would be beneficial. Spread a one inch layer of sawdust on the floor, and sweep it up just before becoming saturated for an outside compost pile. Rabbits can also be trained to use litter boxes to keep things neater and more organized. Saw dust infused rabbit excrement would be an excellent compost for a vibrant garden and in turn creating feed for the rabbits. Organic Rabbit Compost Tea could be marketed to bring in steady revenue to cover start up cost before making potentially unlimited income. Being that a rabbit puts off 8-40 btu/hr you will need 100 six month old rabbits (to ensure sexual maturity) comprised of 2 males and 98 females. This will bring up the temp in the basement for optimal brine shrimp conditions during winter. Once set up, turn the lights low and loop Fly Me to The Moon by Sinatra. Being that rabbits have robust reproductive rates, 2 rabbits can easily turn into 1000 by year's end, so we'll base approximations from this fact. At the end of the first month you would have 750 rabbits. Such a historic endeavor requires a solid plan at this juncture. At the end of the first year as few as 50,000 rabbits can be had. If each rabbit were to be sold at $1, that would be $49,900 (minus the 100 starter rabbits). However, if these rabbits were kept another year for a larger investment return, one could expect to yield $250,000. This takes into account not every female rabbit will give birth every month and for litter mortality rate. Feeding a family of four one rabbit each per day would not affect this projected monetary figure. If not sold for $1 each, a high grade organic small dog food could be produced marketed. If 1 rabbit, at 1lb lean meat, were used per 40lb bag of dog food to comprise required protein content per serving (454g per bag = 15g/day for 30 days). If each bag sold for $30, projected annual profit would be approximately $1,500,000. But how in the world could 50,000 rabbits be housed in this operation? Funny you ask. If 8c.f. per rabbit is used, five tiers of stacked cages in ten 50ftx100ftx10ft pole barns all comprising just one acre is the answer. At 5000 fuzzy furnaces, the avg winter temp inside a northern operation would hover around a tolerable 40F. +20F if the pole barns are insulated. In a slightly larger pole barn a multi-tiered hydroponics system could be utilized feeding both the rabbits and your family in return. Your stellar self sustaining way of life can take you from frugal brine shrimp master to millionaire rabbit master. But why stop there. Spread your wings and fly, David Ramsey.

Kimsotus Orelius - 6 years ago

Blah Blab ~ I'm enthralled.

Gambit58 - 10 years ago

Good Job David... I've never seen this much in any culture. I have a question.. How long would they survive without food? Ive never gotten any since I feat they'd die if I went on vacation. Any Idea on long term feeding? Supposedly you could keep them in a slightly cooler place but I have never tried so I do not know.

David Ramsey - 10 years ago

I have left mine for 5 days. Fed them within hours of leaving. Sprinkled extra brewers yeast. I have seen cultures left for up t o2 weeks that survived. Looked like it was dead, but with food enough worms made to keep the culture going. I think any culture that isn't just about to crash will survive a week. After all, feed them and they won't know you are gone for the first 3-4 days or more. I usually have fish that have eggs or fry when I leave them for 4-5 days.

Big Ian Builds - 10 years ago

I've tried a couple of times to get a culture going but never had any success. I don't know what I did wrong but every time I tried all I got was a handful of worms and a dreadful smelly mess.
Any tips as to how to get it going? Thanks

Big Ian Builds - 10 years ago

+David Ramsey I did it exactly the same way that you're doing it apart from the wine cooler. I got the stock online and it looked fine and healthy. I kept them in the fridge but thought it might be a bit too cold because it's between 4 and 6°C so tried them in a cool cupboard in winter the second time but that was even worse. I'm thinking about trying again with a little dedicated mini fridge or similar set at about 12°C because that's the only thing I did different to yours. Thanks Ian

David Ramsey - 10 years ago

you give me no info on how you are trying to keep the worms or how you got the worms. Any tips - watch the videos again, get healthy worms to start with and keep them at the right temperatures mid 50Fs.

30. comment for Whiteworms raising for tropical fish food

sam harlowe - 10 years ago

can you feed them to angel fish

David Ramsey - 10 years ago

you can feed these worms to any fish that will eat them. My angelfish have always loved them. The youngsters eat tons of them.

Tonya Smith - 10 years ago

Can I feed white worms to Bettas?

James King - 10 years ago

Thanks great video.

Frank Real Thick - 10 years ago

ewwwww distgusting

Nona'sArk - 10 years ago

wow ... would you be willing to part with a small starter culture of these lovely worms? I'd love to get one started for my own fishes. Thanks for a great vid!!

Ballistic N - 10 years ago

Hmm... I was looking for the White worms that come from food in garbage...

David Ramsey - 10 years ago

Sonds like the culture has some mites or other insect that is taking over. Try to start some new cultures from the 'clean' areas.

caderaid100 - 10 years ago

Look up Cichlid recipes that use plane jello mix. Mix those worms with some blended peas, spirilina, brine shrimp, anything really. Cool in the fridge then cut into pieces and freeze for later.

Ryel Dsouza - 10 years ago

I am facing the exact same problem that you mentioned. Small worms that look like micro worms. Once that happens my grindals diminish and finally no more in the culture box.

David Ramsey - 10 years ago

I never could get microworms to live at the 55F I keep the white worms. Sometimes grindel worms will live at that temp but never really thrive. So not sure what you have. Have gnats or little flies gotten into it? That could be there larvae.

kneal87 - 10 years ago

wow this is amazing I need this!

madcycle - 10 years ago

I'm having a hard time maintaining my culture. Mine do not look as successful as yours. My culture usually produces a sizable amount of worms but no where near the amount that you can produce. Also, the top soil that I use always seems to compact itself after a while and the mud on the bottom layers seem to go anaerobic and produce this vile smell when I shift the mud around. Am I spraying too much water? Not enough ventilation? I keep my worms at about room temperature (about 69F).

David Ramsey - 10 years ago

Congrats on a problem others wish they had. I have tried freezing (they just fall apart), no idea how to dry them. There are times I just put a whole culture in the compost pile. Right now I am producing at least 2x what I need. Usually I have enough people nearby that want cultures to keep mine under control, but they are all doing well too. David

David Ramsey - 10 years ago

You have to get your first worms from someone who has them. Try your local fish club. You can google fish clubs and try to find one as close as possible. Email them and see if anyone has worms. Trying to ship them is just awful They do not like room temps. David

MrTimjwilson - 10 years ago

Dave; My white worm project is too successful. Do you know a way to preserve them? Freezing? Freeze drying?

Ujwal Rai - 10 years ago

time and again I keep on watching this video.

animexkittenxfreak - 10 years ago

Hi I saw all your videos on whiteworms and I was wondering where do u get them? Can u get them from any pet stores? I'm kinda new at this so I might sound really stupid right now...

David Ramsey - 10 years ago

I would make a lot of small cultures in containers like margarine/yogurt containers. Put the worms in water, rinse over and over again and try to get them clean of mites. Then split with the different little containers. If they are clean they can be built back up to big cultures. David

David Ramsey - 10 years ago

40F - dead worms. got to be 50s or 60s. Tetras, danios, corys, apistos, killies, my shell spawners (African) all love the worms. Everything I keep loves them. I try to feed what is eaten in 2 days. At the beginning sometimes they eat the bottom bread/yogurt/brewers yeast and the top will mold. Just throw the moldy piece away and give them fresh. I don't get fungus, just some bread mold. Not a problem. David

bhimaniandsons - 10 years ago

3 questions for you, David: I zoned out perhaps, but didn't hear any mention of removing the food. I am assuming fungus would be an issue, so how regularly do you do that? What sizes/ species of fish would you feed these to? Looking for community tropicals like livebearers, danios, etc. to see if this is worthwile. If I were to use a standard fridge, meaning closer to 40 degrees F, would it be an issue, or simply slow the growth of the worms? Thanks in advance!

50. comment for Whiteworms raising for tropical fish food

Manny S - 10 years ago

thanks a lot, god bless you.

David Ramsey - 10 years ago

They are algae wafers. But I get even more results using brewers yeast. Not the yeast you bake bread with, but brewers yeast. A good size can of it is several $, but lasts a long time. That with either good plain yogurt, or kefir for those of you who know what that is, will work great for you. David

creamtt - 10 years ago

What are the greenish grey tablets that you are feeding these worms, couldn't catch what you called them.....TY

David Ramsey - 10 years ago

You definitely want to get white worms. They can be raised quickly in huge quantities very cheaply. My constant problem is what to do with all the worms! Any time I go to fish conventions or auctions I take a lot of whiteworm starters. It helps me 'use up' all the worms. I so wish they could handle regular temps so I could ship them to people. But they don't. David

Luis acuariomarcelino - 10 years ago

Thanks for the info David !! Very good your videos and very well explained, I'm trying to develop crops that can do almost sustainable fish breeding with live foods, again thanks for the info !!

David Ramsey - 11 years ago

Enchytraeus albidus. I have no idea where you would find them in nature. Since they need lower temps, it would have to be in an area that rarely gets to 70F long enough to raise the soil temp. Plus they do no like light. As far as I know you have to get a starter from someone who has them. And that is hard since they die at room temps. David

Luis acuariomarcelino - 11 years ago

Hi David, I'm on the other side of the world, in nature where you can find the whiteworms ? I would like to collect them to reproduce, I also would serve its scientific name to find information about them, thank you very much

David Ramsey - 11 years ago

I have to not have mites in the white worms. I always get them with grindals and have to start over with them every couple of years. (Like now). I just dumped my grindals after fighting the mites for several months. The water method doesn't work, mites both float and sink. I think with white worms I would rinse them a lot with a bunch in a brine shrimp net and put into fresh media. Try that. Grindals are too small and the rinsing destroys them. David

jmibetta - 11 years ago

White worm cultures sometimes come with mites. I can't see any in yours. What do you suggest for people to do to get rid of the mites. If you have any advise besides putting them into water and allowing the mites to float up and burning the surface--all mites do not float. What other methods do you advise as mites are not uncommon in these cultures. Moreover, your video culture doesn't seem to have any (or at a controlled rate), how did you do it/maintain it? Thx.

David Ramsey - 11 years ago

You have to get a starter of whiteworms from some one. When I go to fish conventions or work shops I always take a bunch f cultures for people. David

David Ramsey - 11 years ago

My soil is peetty much neutral. You can add a very small amount of lime mixed in well to help with the pH. I often add some chicken grit which is only ground oyster shells. Helps keep the pH up. As the soil 'ages' it wants to go acid and that will kill the worms.

rjs79g - 11 years ago

What might explain this not happening for you is the yogurt; the lactobacillus in that may very well be out-competing whatever bacteria makes them crash. Good call! Once wonders if pureed carrot might boost color a bit, it is almost certainly one of those things fish ingest indirectly in the wild that gives then greater color than tank raised fish.

rjs79g - 11 years ago

Pat moss is too acid. What you probably want is half peat moss, half potting soil - plain potting soil, stuff without fertilizer in it. I think he just wants to provide a link to this video David, not pass it off as his own. Even embedding the video is pretty normal, you can disable embedding in youtube if you don't want that. I'm shocked you get so many worms in such a small space - I use much larger containers and find then when the worms crawl up the side like that they're about to die.

andy325is - 11 years ago

Nice video! Thanks for sharing. Just subbed

Arnold Oyao - 11 years ago

did you buy some white worms to start the culture?

njw1383 - 11 years ago

Very interesting thanks for posting. Might have to try this sometime I've subscribed to your channel. Hope you can sub me back

john joseph - 11 years ago

Mate where did you get the white worm so i can start the process?

BettaFx - 11 years ago

hey david when there's leftover food and you put new food have you ever experienced when the worms dont even touch the food at all? it happens often to me it would explode in population then few weeks after they would stop producing and eating thanks buddy=]

David Ramsey - 11 years ago

I have done several of them that ar evey popular. Check my other videos. David

123Ronv - 11 years ago

Could you make a video about growing Brine shrimp? It would be appreciated.

tropicalfishman26 - 11 years ago

i don't make any profit out of them mate. i only sell them to keep my cultures down an stop them from crashing as i don't have enough fish to feed them all to. an what i sell i buy fish food out of. an as people would know what ever you sell on ebay by the time you pay selling fees an paypal fees theres nothing left anyway. thank's for the reply anyway

David Ramsey - 11 years ago

I do not grant to you or anyone else the right to use this or any other of my videos for your commercial use or profit. All videos of mine are copyright by me. Usage of my video in your ebay ad would imply my endorsement and that would be wrong. David

tropicalfishman26 - 11 years ago

i sell these worms on ebay is it okay if i use video on there please mate. thank's

David Ramsey - 11 years ago

Since I don't ship whiteworms, how did you get them from me? All you feed them is wet bread? At least use a good whole wheat bread (I use the Arnold Whole Wheat, cost around $4-$5 a loaf, sometimes get a bogof.) and use milk if not the yogurt. Add some protein in there.

David Ramsey - 11 years ago

Need information first. What do you feed, how often, where are they kept, what temp, what is the material they are in? With no information, my guess would be you have grindal worms. But just a guess without knowing anything about how you are keeping them. David

BettaFx - 11 years ago

hey =] i've finally got an explosion of white worms just like the one i had months back. I notice when i did not use yogurt surprisingly

David Ramsey - 11 years ago

I don't know where the 'greasy' comments would come from. The grindals are gut loaded with the greatest food I can get into them. That then gets into the fish. All good stuff. I feed grindals and whiteworms every single day that I can. The fish do great. I tend to feed these foods in the mornings so the fish guts are not sitting on this food all night. At night they get brine shrimp, flake and quicker to digest foods. David

David Ramsey - 11 years ago

Congrats on getting them going in quantity. I split as soon as the culture is going strong. A crash can happen over night and all the worms are suddenly gone. Try to get 3-4 going, even if a couple are small containers. Always have a backup. David

BettaFx - 11 years ago

i see yes i've tried doing that few months back I hope this worksout... maybe in 1-2 weeks ill upload a video how i prepare my food for worms and maybe you can critique?

David Ramsey - 11 years ago

You can always harvest what is on crawling up the sides, or on the lid. May not be a lot, but it is good for the fish and for the ego. A fresh start up can take a month to get it going strong. But by replacing half of the media and using it to tart another one you can cut that way down. And have a second culture started.

BettaFx - 11 years ago

the most i had for past week is palm size but im afraid of harvesting and having to wait longer for them to reproduce

David Ramsey - 11 years ago

When the worms really start reproducing you have to harvest a lot. The worms will contaminate the soil and kill them selves off. The soil for me lasts 4-6 months. If yours isn't lasting that long then replace maybe half of it with fresh soil. But only keep the soil if the worms are living in it. If they are just on top then the soil has gone bad. Move them to fresh soil.

BettaFx - 11 years ago

kinda odd i've done this for many months one time i had a huge explosion of worms but now my soil goes bad kinda fast and i have to replace it. the worms dont grow that fast =/ i use yogurt+bread+ brewer's yeast. do you know what the problem may be? thanks!

David Ramsey - 11 years ago

Never had fruit flies in the wine cooler. At that low of a temp I am surprised they would live or reproduce. I do get fruit flies all the time in my microworm and grindal worm culture when the air holes are too large. Hate that.

lee adams - 11 years ago

apart from getting fruit flies flying everywhere in your face and wine cooler, dave's method is pretty good

sparlin - 11 years ago

I followed Dave's methods and my white worms and grindals are doing great. Thanks, Dave!

sparlin - 11 years ago

I followed Mr. Ramsey's instructions to the tee, and my cultures really started pumping out lots of worms after about 4 - 5 weeks. Thanks!!

Grady Womack - 11 years ago

Do you sell any of your microworms or white worms or do you have any vinegar eels?

SlowChromeHand - 11 years ago

your whiteworms look really big. How long are those?

Deb Stewart - 11 years ago

Update Wheat grem was a failure just molded and went nasty.... so no go on the wheat germ..Something I will tell everyone is I didnt have a wine cooler but i did have a mini fridge, its highest temp is like 4o degrees ...burrrrr too cold for my worms . So took out thermostat and adjusted the controller and voila!!! it now maintains at about 57 degrees.... I prob wont usethe fridge till next summer when its warmer .. my worms now are on a nice cool basement floor ,.....

kelpme kelper - 11 years ago

Were can i find the whiteworm :-)

David Ramsey - 11 years ago

Give it a try. Just sprinkle some in a small spot in the culture and see what happens. It would be a good addition if it worked. Let us know! David

Deb Stewart - 11 years ago

Dave, I was wondering if I could use wheat germ instead of brewers yeast Im just starting a culture... Your thoughts on this idea..Love your videos

David Ramsey - 11 years ago

I would not think they would freeze safely without falling apart. I go to fish shows and take a lot of starters with me so I really don't have too many worms. There is always someone who needs a starter. No I don't ship, rarely gets worms alive to anyone.

TikiTak321 - 11 years ago

Do you freeze the excess worms?

David Ramsey - 11 years ago

not baking yeast, Use brewers yeast.

abaneyone - 11 years ago

All fish will eat these worms.

abaneyone - 11 years ago

Wow this is great! Can I still grow these worms using backing yeast?

David Ramsey - 11 years ago

It is in the 90s here. They would be dead before they got to the airport. Try a fish club or especially find some of the killi fish keepers in Hawaii. I know there are several good fish keepers in Hawaii. They probably have white worms.

kj31727 - 11 years ago

Hi, I am from Hawaii, will you sell me some white worms?

100. comment for Whiteworms raising for tropical fish food

David Ramsey - 11 years ago

why not. They are fish. They will love the white worms.

David Ramsey - 11 years ago

maybe they read the ingredient list on your bread and cereal and said 'yuck'! Seriously, you will get a whole lot more worms if you will at least add some brewers yeast. NOT baking yeast.

Deepak Srinivas - 11 years ago

Hi, I have a dozen adult discuss can i feed them with these white worms by cultivating them as shown.

rhy64 - 11 years ago

ok thank you

David Ramsey - 11 years ago

I never had gold fish. No idea what they eat.

rhy64 - 11 years ago

do goldfish eat that?

amatörce - 11 years ago

thank you....

Darcey Mussey - 11 years ago

Oh, gross... where can I get some? :D

David Ramsey - 11 years ago

I think your best option is to raise earthworms. They are easy to find, easy to raise, and can be chopped down to whatever size you need. Try to find the 'red wriggler' kind. They only get about 3 inches and stay thin. Easy to feed. One of my other videos shows how to raise them. The newly hatched earthworms are about the same size as white worms. My fish love them. Don't have to worry about bacteria. Just rinse, chop, rinse and feed. David

UK FISH KEEPER - 11 years ago

I love your videos, I have learned so much from you and my fish are better for it, so on behalf of my Tropical fishies and me THANK YOU !!

David Ramsey - 12 years ago

There aren't any 'cocoons'. And no , they don't get stuck. They eat it.

David Ramsey - 12 years ago

You have to get the initial white worms from someone. They ship very poorly. They are too sensitive to temperature changes to make it through the mail in good shape. Try the local fish club. A killifish club would be ever better.

William Cox - 12 years ago

Where did you get the white worms to start?

David Ramsey - 12 years ago

graindal worm is completely different. White worms are 1", require roughly 54F temp. EAt different food. Google it for the scientific name. I don't know it.

Ioan Fitiu - 12 years ago

which is the scientific name of the worm, is it grindal worms?

David Ramsey - 12 years ago

@GrollerG Potting Soil. If you use dirt from outside you will get a lot of contaminants that will mess up your culture.

Gröller Géza - 12 years ago

What is at the bottom of the plastic container? Earth?

Gautham Vijayan Kumaran - 12 years ago

Hey Mr.David... Thanks for the vids... I would also appreciate if you could give me some tips on culturing microworms..?

AweSomo84 - 12 years ago

@TheARMANDOVIDEOS :)

AweSomo84 - 12 years ago

Great video , I love people who things on their own way and find ways to make diy things . Love and peace

David Ramsey - 12 years ago

@rustytool100 A starter culture has to be obtained from someone. Usually by hand. They just do not ship. Get them up in the 70s and they die. High 60s and they just never really recover. Best places to find them? Try a killifish club. They are usually available at the American Killifish Association national conventions. Next year at St Louis. But go to AKA.org, affiliate clubs top center and find a club you can get to. I am in Georgia, got mine from someone in Michigan, met in Raleigh at weekend

rustytool100 - 12 years ago

30 years ago I was the Detroit king of tubafex worms. Collected them in the poluted Rouge River, as it ran through Detroit, and them cleaned them out under running water for about a week. Sold about four quarts of solid worms, per week, to local pet shops. Same sort of thing. Half your commenters want to buy a starter culture. How did you get them started?

NYREPS - 12 years ago

Hi will you sell and ship them? I want to buy some from you

JA RM - 12 years ago

EWWWW!! BUT COOL!

alpha1 - 12 years ago

do these boxes stink, can i keep them in the refigerator

David Ramsey - 12 years ago

I have never had any other stuff growing in the white worm containers. But small white bugs are bound to be tasty to the fish. They could be anything. The fish won't care, feed them all.

rune5878 - 12 years ago

David, Do you get a small white bugs in the soil (except worms :)? If yes what are they? Is it OK to feed that stuff to fish as well? Thanks!

David Ramsey - 12 years ago

I use Arnold's Whole Wheat Bread, less than $3 at Walmart. The yogurt I make myself, less than 50 cents per 6oz container. One container last me a month if I wasn't eating one myself every day. Pretty cheap when I was buying 2 lbs of blackworms a month. You can certainly feed them dog food, cat food, fish food, all that stuff. But you will not get the production levels that I achieve. But that may provide enough worms for your needs. And no comment on the quality of most people's diet.

captmicha - 12 years ago

Are you kidding? Whole wheat bread with organic yogurt? Those worms eat better than most people. Why not just feed them dog or cat kibble??

David Ramsey - 13 years ago

The medium is a good potting soil. Miracle Grow, Ferry Morse, any of the different brands of potting soil. Just be sure it is not just shredded peat. Just peat is almost impossible to hold at the right moisture level. Peat is either wet or dry, you want moist.

Ugrin Ilievski - 13 years ago

What kind of medium do you use?

dramey03 - 13 years ago

you are awesome, ive been looking for this type of info for a while and its crazy i find it from a guy whos name is only 1 letter different from mine great vid

David Ramsey - 13 years ago

for maximum production, I feed whole wheat bread with a thin layer of a good non fat plain yogurt with a sprinkling of brewers yeast. A really good dog food or fish food pellets or algae wafers can also be added. This makes a great gut load to get additional nutrition into the fish. I feed as much as the worms will eat every other day.

David Ramsey - 13 years ago

Whiteworms are VERY temperature sensitive. I can ship starter cultures to people in the spring when the weather is right. But I need to know where you are so we can watch the temps and find the right time. You can email that info to d j r a m s e y at h o t m a i l.com Take out the spaces. It will cost $13 - $16 depending on where you are. No payment wanted until I can ship to you.

David Ramsey - 13 years ago

Looking for whiteworms? Try your local fish club. Google your town, or the closest big town and find a club. You have to have a starter of whiteworms. They are VERY temperature sensitive so they do not ship very well. For me to send you a culture, my temperatures need to be in the 50F-60F and your temperature needs to be in the same range. They need to ship in a priority insulated box to have any chance of success getting to you. I provide a lot of starters to people close to me around Atlanta.

marcusangami - 13 years ago

Would be thankful if you could please send me a starter culture. Any idea on how to collect them in its nature-state, cause no one is selling them in the market.

David Ramsey - 13 years ago

the plastic mesh is from a craft/sewing store. It is the plastic mesh for needlepoint. Very inexpensive. When the worms get on top of it, you get clean worms without chunks of food or dirt.

martinethson - 13 years ago

Excellent video, thanks for sharing, guys btw check out the book "Culturing live foods" by Mike hellweg from TFH publications. Its going to rock you of your socks

Allen Deng - 13 years ago

@djrramsey can i get a lb sample

Ed Hurley - 13 years ago

Hi Dave Ex. vid & TY4all of the technical info.its perfect for what I need.I am retired from the USAF serving 40 years. This looks like what I need for my fish. My name is Ed Hurley I live in Niagara Falls, NY that’s at the western most part of NY. Do u know of any 1 in my area I could buy some white worms. I have checked with all of the pet stores in the area with no Luck. AgainTY4 taking the time to make the vid.

Austin Vavrovics - 13 years ago

check out our skit on fish food!!!

bobbymalta73 - 13 years ago

Thanks for sharing mate!

argam mahmoudian - 13 years ago

how do you make the worms

tropicalfishman26 - 13 years ago

how do you get big worms i dont seem to get many big ones in them only a few

CICERO ARAUJO - 13 years ago

THANK U FOR THIS VIDEO

Munuel Gonza - 13 years ago

hello, sorry but the English that utilis am Spanish and I am the translator google, the videos are perfect but I can not get the amount of worms that I see in the video, which is that with the feed at first glance appears coupled with slices of bread cheese? may be I am wrong? thanks

tropicalfishman26 - 13 years ago

@djrramsey ok thanks for the help will give it a go

David Ramsey - 13 years ago

@tropicalfishman26 Collect a bunch of worms and put them in some aquarium water. They will sink to the bottom. The dirt fleas should float. Then you can use a turkey baster and suck out the worms. Put them in a new clean culture. The worms will live just fine in the water for a while. This is also an easy way to start up new cultures. Good luck.

tropicalfishman26 - 13 years ago

brilliant video. i got whiteworm cultures but they keep getting dirt fleas i think they are have you got any idea how to stop them. thanks

David Ramsey - 13 years ago

@ABCba5tard The worms are about 1" long. I have not tried them with koi carp, but every fish I have fed them to have eaten them. I chop them with a razer blade for small fish.

Allen Deng - 13 years ago

does it work for koi carps??

bettaj - 14 years ago

Do you sell mature cultures? If so, please e-mail me price and postage. Thanks.

David Ramsey - 14 years ago

medium - spaghnum peat moss with some regular potting soil. About 1" thick. Add a little lime to help the pH stay neutral. Temperature - kept in a wine cooler. Hig 50s

Rafael Bocorny - 14 years ago

thank you for sharing this with us

AlphaKenN - 14 years ago

how do i start the culture..should i buy some whiteworms or can i start with this ''recepies''

David Ramsey - 14 years ago

algae wafers are available at any pet store. Even Walmart has them. Hikari is a good brand, so is Aqaurian. Petsmarts have their own brand of them.

doncielo7 - 14 years ago

where can i buy a algae wafers?

David Ramsey - 14 years ago

I have more trouble with mites with the grindal worms. Don't know why. They are tough to get rid of. The mites should congregate mostly on some dry dog or cat food pellets in the culture. Then pick out the pellets covered in mites and throw out. When your white worm culture gets going pretty good, harvest into a container of water. Stir it, let it settle, pour off the water. Do that several times and most of the mites will be gone from the worms. Use that to start a new clean culture. David

David Ramsey - 14 years ago

It will take a lot of grindals to fill up the fish you have listed. As adults they would much prefer the whiteworms. And since whiteworms start out smaller and grow up, the smaller ones will feed the baby platies and guppies. But the whiteworms need to be kept much cooler than the grindals.

David Ramsey - 14 years ago

I keep over 100 tanks. They are mostly 10 gallons, but range from 2 1/2 to 40 gallon. Whiteworms are much larger than girindals. Be like saying redworms are same size as night crawlers. Microworms to grindals to whiteworms to blackworms to redworms is my worm size pregression with my fish. whiteworms and blackworms are fed pretty much to same fish. Blackworms get chopped for the smaller fish.

David Ramsey - 14 years ago

wine cooler - I got mine off Craigs List for $35.00. Size of a dorm refrigerator.

David Ramsey - 14 years ago

the circle like pellet is a fishfood algae wafer. Fish food for plecostomus. Lots of companies make them. On top of the bread is plain yogurt.