Glass Test Tube 16×160 mm — Round Bottom Founding Tube
4,99 zł
In stock
Fits Any Setup
Keeper-Tested
Clean, Simple Feeding
Small Parts, Big Difference
Made to Last
Top-Quality Gear
Description
Every colony begins in a test tube. This one, 16 × 160 mm borosilicate glass with a round, water-tight bottom, is the founding tube keepers across Europe rely on. Fill a third with water, plug with cotton, add the queen, and you have the dark, humid chamber she needs to lay her first brood. Crystal clear so you can watch without disturbing her, heat-resistant, reusable for generations. Sold as a single tube.
Start your colony the way experienced keepers do, and add one to your order.
Additional information
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Glass test tube 16 × 160 mm — the standard round-bottom founding tube for ant queens
Every successful colony starts in a test tube, and this 16 × 160 mm borosilicate tube is the founding format keepers use across Europe, the UK and Asia. The round, seam-free bottom holds water without leaking: fill it a third with water, plug it with cotton, add the queen, and you have the dark, humid, sealed chamber she needs to lay and raise her first brood. The clear glass lets you watch the queen and her eggs without opening the setup. It is reusable for generations, easy to sterilise, and takes a standard cotton plug from any pharmacy. Sold as a single tube and shipped from Poland with tracked EU, UK and worldwide delivery.
Why borosilicate, and why round-bottom
Borosilicate is heat- and chemical-resistant, so it shrugs off boiling for sterilisation and sudden temperature change without cracking, where cheap soda-lime tubes can craze or shatter. The 16 mm diameter is the workhorse size of the hobby. The round bottom, rather than a flat seamed base, leaves no corner for water to creep past and no seam to trap debris. Kept clean and crack-free, one tube houses founding queen after founding queen.
Which queens it fits
The 16 × 160 mm format suits the vast majority of European, Mediterranean and South-East Asian queens — from small Lasius niger, through medium Camponotus, to most Messor — up to roughly 14 mm body length. For very large queens such as Carebara, Dinomyrmex or a mature Camponotus gigas, a wider 20 mm tube is the better fit.
Setting up a founding tube
Fill the tube a third with clean tap water. Push a cotton ball in with a thin object, such as a chopstick or pencil end, until it meets the water and soaks through; this wet cotton becomes the back wall of the chamber. Pack it tight enough that the queen cannot slip past, loose enough that humidity passes through. Add the queen, plug the open end with a second piece of cotton, and keep the tube dark for the first weeks. Check it weekly. When the water runs low, usually after 3 to 6 weeks depending on humidity, prepare a fresh tube and move the queen and brood across with soft tweezers before the old cotton dries out.
Care and maintenance
Sterilise between colonies: boil for 10 minutes or wipe down with isopropyl alcohol, rinse, and dry. Borosilicate tolerates rapid temperature change and is dishwasher-safe, though gentle hand-cleaning is kinder over the long run. Check for hairline cracks before every reuse, since a crack becomes an escape route. Cotton plug not included — any pharmacy cotton-wool ball works.
Pairs well with
A heating mat for tropical species that need 26–28 °C during founding. Soft or ultra-soft tweezers for moving the queen and brood at the migration. A magnifying loupe to read eggs and early larvae without disturbing her. Modular formicarium connector tubes (16 mm outer) for when the colony outgrows the tube and expands into its first nest.
FAQ
Is this one tube or a pack?
A single tube. Any image showing several is for context only; the price is for one.
What size queens does it fit?
Small to medium queens up to about 14 mm body length. For very large queens like Camponotus gigas or Carebara, use a wider 20 mm tube.
How long does the water last?
Usually 3 to 6 weeks, depending on humidity and how tightly the cotton is packed. Check weekly and move the colony to a fresh tube before the water side dries fully.
Can I reuse it after the colony moves out?
Yes. Clean, sterilise, then inspect for cracks. Borosilicate is reusable until it is physically damaged.
Does it include cotton?
No. Use any pharmacy or supermarket cotton-wool ball — standard cotton fits.
Do you ship outside the EU?
Yes. We dispatch from Poland with tracked delivery across the EU, the UK and worldwide.
A note on care: each item is built for a specific job — please use it only as intended. Responsibility for correct, safe use rests with the keeper; ANTonTOP accepts no liability for misuse or damage from improper use.
Klaus (verified owner) –
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