Best way to store bulk Mealworms in the fridge

[Imperial Geckos]

For the people that store bulk (1,000+) Mealworms in the fridge, how do you guys do it? I am currently breeding mealworms, but am having some trouble. I have had a couple of big losses due to mold (do to sudden flooding of my Gecko room, the humidity blew up) and this past week i had a 40% massive die off of my medium mealworms I was keeping. I plan on storing around 10,000 mealworms in the fridge to protect myself from future die offs. Now i have tried storing some 3,000 mealworms in a 6 qt tub (no substrate) in the fridge, but i had most of them die.

Here are my specific questions.
1) How many mealworms do you store?
2) What type of container are you storing them in?
3) Are you using any substrate, if so what kind?
4) Temperature and location in fridge?
5) How long do you usually keep them for in the fridge?

Thanks for the help! :main_thumbsup:

 

[fl_orchidslave]

My mealworm colony kinda started itself behind my back. I was diligently working on getting a superworm colony going and had to order another thou of them to keep all sizes going so I went ahead and got 1000 meals at the same time in case they may be needed. About 300 were put in a 6qt shoebox with wheat bran and a veg, left uncovered. The rest went in the fridge on the door top shelf, in a large yogurt cup with ice pick holes punched in the top. Once a week they were taken out to eat a few carrot chunks for 24 hours. I added another 1000 to the container that was a promo from Timberline at the Daytona Expo. They lasted just fine for several months, feeding off as needed, and replaced with new ones. In the meantime the meals that had been set aside were pretty much ignored for several months while they pupated, beetled, then transfered to a 32oz tall deli cup with a screen insect lid and a small carrot chunk. The only time I had a little mold problem was too much veg moisture getting trapped in the bedding, so a small carrot works best for the beetles. Any remaining veg left in the fridge box is always removed prior to returning to storage, avoiding potential mold issues. About 200 superworm beetles are in a large round kritter keeper with about an inch and a half of bedding, the top lets a lot of air in so I can get away with a couple good sized carrot chunks. Their hatching/growing boxes are uncovered so they can have more veggies. Meals are in a 12" sterlite 3 drawer box and those get left open about 1/2 inch. Hope this helps

 

[Imperial Geckos]

Thanks, and for the mealies in the fridge, where they kept with wheat bran?

 

[fl_orchidslave]

Yes I use wheat bran in the fridge storage.

 

[Imperial Geckos]

Thanks for the tips!!