# How much light is needed to culture blackworms?



## ObiQuiet (Oct 9, 2009)

Thinking of using an old 5g aquarium to keep a colony of blackworms. There are a lot of good instructions around (like this).

But, does the tank need light at all? Could it be kept in a dark closet? Or is light needed for the biological processes? How much?

Thanks for any advice!


----------



## gigihforlife (Aug 19, 2012)

what is blackworms? and for what?


----------



## ObiQuiet (Oct 9, 2009)

gigihforlife said:


> what is blackworms? and for what?


As a live food. There's a good description of what they are here:
http://www.skepticalaquarist.com/lumbriculus


----------



## captmicha (Jul 12, 2009)

I keep them without any light besides what filters in through the window. They like a lot of air so an air stone *in addition* to a sponge filter is a good idea unless you keep the water really shallow, but less water means it pollutes faster so I just aerate deeper water better. The sponge filter prevents you from having to do so many water changes. I throw in expired fish food or uneaten fish/snail food. Just a little bit.

They don't like sand, they like large gravel much better. They like to hunker down in it, eat what collects there and wedge their ends in so they can wave in the current (ew).

To harvest them, turn off the air and in a little while, they'll start sticking up out of the gravel and you can grab them with tweezers or suck them up with a turkey baster.

I've only done this is a 1 gallon tank. I have yet to try it in a larger tank. So, based on my tiny tank experience, they're really slow to reproduce. To keep up a worthwhile supply, you've got to put them in a pretty large set up.


----------



## bryanmc1988 (Apr 4, 2012)

u can keep them without light... i used to do this but one thing i can say is that they are dirty.... making the water all nasty looking so i hope u have a good filter and something to cover the hole so they dont get suck in... cause no one likes a bloody tank lol/...


----------

