Heating

Not always. Most common species do fine at room temperature. Warmth speeds up brood development, so a warm spot helps founding queens and small colonies grow faster, especially in a cool house.

Aim for a warm end, not a warm nest. Heat one part and leave the rest at room temperature, so the colony can move its brood to the spot it prefers.

• A heat cable. The Homestead and Four Corners heat troughs take a cable up to 3/16 in thick; reptile and antkeeping heat cables are the usual choice.
• A thermostat with a probe, every time. A heat cable plugged straight into the wall can overheat a colony.
• A thermometer, to check the temperature where the ants are.

Set the thermostat so the warm end sits at about 75–82 °F, and keep every part of the nest under about 85 °F. Tape the probe to the outside of the nest at the warm end, so it reads what the ants feel rather than the room air.

Fit the cable and run it for a day before the colony moves in. That way you can adjust the thermostat without disturbing anyone.

The Founder has an optional heating channel for giving the colony a warm end. Lay a thin heat cable in the channel so it sits in place without being forced, run it through the thermostat, and check the warm end with a thermometer.

A U-shaped heat trough runs under the dry left half, about 30% of the footprint. That half, with the three large chambers, is meant to be the warm side. The humid right half, with the queen chamber and both water wells, stays cooler and damp.

Lay a heat cable up to 3/16 in thick along the whole U and bring the ends out through the exits in the wall. The trough's bends are gentle, so a flexible cable follows them without kinking.

Leave the right half unheated. Warming the cotton cups can dry the cotton faster and fog the lids. The two lids open separately, so you can check the warm side without letting light onto the queen.

A heat-cable loop runs around the outer ring, so every quadrant gets the same warm outer edge while its cotton-fed water cup keeps the humid area damp. One cable and one thermostat heat all four colonies.

Lay a cable up to 3/16 in thick all the way around the loop and bring the ends out through the exits in the wall. Do it before any quadrant has a colony.

The quadrants share the heat, so set the thermostat for the colony that likes it coolest, and keep species with the same winter needs in one unit. You can't give one quadrant a winter rest while heating the others.

The Scout has no heating channel, and founding queens do well at room temperature. If your room stays below about 70 °F, you can warm the port end: set it over a small heat mat or cable on a thermostat, with the test-tube end off the heat.

Never heat the test tube. Warm water fogs the tube and the chamber with condensation, and droplets can drown eggs and young brood.

Many native species from places with cold winters need a winter rest, called diapause, to stay healthy and keep laying. Carpenter ants (Camponotus), cornfield ants (Lasius) and field ants (Formica) are common examples.

• From late fall, turn the heat off and let the colony cool gradually over a week or two.
• Keep it at about 45–55 °F for around three months. A wine fridge set in that range works well, or a basement or unheated room if a thermometer shows it holds steady there.
• Keep the water topped up. The colony eats little or nothing, so offer only small amounts of food.
• In spring, warm it back up gradually, then turn the heat on again.

Species from places without real winters, and tropical species, don't need a rest. If you're not sure, look up your species.

• Run every heat source through a thermostat.
• Keep nests out of direct sun. Sun through a window can overheat a nest quickly.
• Don't cross the heat cable over itself or bunch up the spare length. Loop the extra loosely, away from the nest.
• No heat lamps or space heaters aimed at a nest. PETG and acrylic can warp if they get hot.