P5-Infinite Folding Ant Farm

P5 - Infinite Foldable Ant Farm

Addresses a pain point of the previous generation: limited to expansion in one direction

Can be used for more types of ants, such as various small and medium-sized harvester ants and carpenter ants

Often disassembling parts meant discarding hot-melt copper nuts, now replaced with hex nuts, saving materials and steps

For acrylic cutting files, please download the CAD file, named .DXF   

If you need SVG format, please download the ZIP compressed package

Features:

A total of 4 modules are designed for free combination

Stackable expansion saves more space

Horizontal expansion is limited to the Queen's Nest Type I

The water tower is changed to an built-in type with an overflow port, but it is not conducive to observing the water level

The Queen's Nest has added a shading board

The test tube is an independent module, independently sealed, making egg collection more convenient

Each module can be independently sealed, making ant management easier

All models do not require support printing

Modules:

1. Activity Area
2. Queen's Nest Type I (Horizontal Expansion)
3. Queen's Nest Type II (Stackable Expansion)
4. Test Tube Nest Type I (Stackable Expansion)
5. Foldable Rotating Channel

Module Descriptions:

• Activity Area

  1: Dimensions: 160x95x66 mm (LxHxD)

  2: 2 10mm expansion channels + 1 8mm foldable expansion channel

• Queen's Nest Type I/II

  1: Dimensions: Type I: 160x95x28mm Type II: 160x95x30mm (LxHxD)

  2: 5 queen areas, each with media humidification, dry and wet separation

  3: 1 large humidified media area + 1 small dry area

  4: Built-in large capacity water tower

• Test Tube Nest Type I

  1: Dimensions: 160x95x30mm (LxHxD)

  2: 5 15mm outer diameter test tube areas, test tubes can be individually removed for easy egg collection

  3: Built-in water tower + 1 small humidified media area or water-blocked test tube humidification is acceptable

  4: Channel diameter is 8mm

BOM Table for Each Module

• Activity Area

  1: Cut custom acrylic 1 set

  2: Chamfered hex socket screw: M2.5x8 15Pcs for acrylic plate

  Chamfered hex socket screw: M2.5x12 2Pcs for rotating foldable channel

  3: Hex nut: M2.5 8Pcs for acrylic plate

• Queen's Nest Type I

  1: Cut custom acrylic 1 set

  2: Chamfered hex socket screw: M2.5x8 13Pcs for acrylic plate

• Queen's Nest Type II

  1: Cut custom acrylic 1 set

  2: Chamfered hex socket screw: M2.5x8 13Pcs for acrylic plate

  Chamfered hex socket screw: M2.5x12 4Pcs for rotating foldable channel

  3: Hex nut: M2.5 4Pcs for rotating foldable channel

• Test Tube Nest Type I

  1: Cut custom acrylic 1 set

  2: Chamfered hex socket screw: M2.5x8 4Pcs for acrylic plate

  Chamfered hex socket screw: M2.5x12 4Pcs for rotating foldable channel

  3: Hex nut: M2.5 4Pcs for rotating foldable channel

  4: Silicone sealing ring: outer diameter 21x wire diameter 3mm 5Pcs

  5: Diameter 15x150mm glass test tube 5Pcs

• Test Tube Nest Type II

  1: Cut custom acrylic 1 set

  2: Chamfered hex socket screw: M2.5x8 4Pcs for acrylic plate

  Chamfered hex socket screw: M2.5x12 4Pcs for rotating foldable channel

  3: Hex nut: M2.5 4Pcs for rotating foldable channel

  4: Silicone sealing ring: outer diameter 22x wire diameter 2mm 5Pcs

  5: Diameter 18x180mm glass test tube 5Pcs

• Rotating Foldable Channel

  1: Cut custom acrylic 1 piece

  2: Chamfered hex socket screw: M2.5x8 4Pcs for acrylic plate

  3: Dowel pin: diameter 2x18mm 2Pcs

• Other Materials

  1: Colored cellophane - thickened, about 0.15mm thick, cut to appropriate size as needed to partition various channels

  2: 10mm silicone plug used to seal expansion holes

Notes/Printing Instructions: This is important, please read carefully

• Try to use the same slicing parameters for printed parts to ensure consistent fit and tightness of each module, especially for the stacked limit openings. If the assembly is too tight after printing, use a tool to process the protruding parts to avoid difficulty in opening due to over-tight assembly
• The original limit pin holes of the rotating foldable accessory are designed for a tight fit, please use a tool to hammer in the dowel pins
• The independent test tube module should install smoothly when correctly assembled. If it is too tight, please check if the printed model matches the drawing model, as excessive tightness will make installation and removal difficult
• When slicing, pay attention to checking that the bridging print angle is the shortest overhang, the default auto setting is the shortest angle
• If the rotating channel is too smooth after printing, use sandpaper to create a frosted surface to help ants with poor climbing ability
• When printing the activity area, you can add a pause at layer 141 (with a default layer height of 0.2) to change to other filament colors to make the text color more vibrant

----------------------------------------------------------------------2025-06-18----------------------------------------------------------------------

Updated Test Tube Type II module - adapted for 18mm test tubes

Independent test tube modules are on one printing plate, simply select the desired diameter to print

----------------------------------------------------------------------2025-06-24----------------------------------------------------------------------

Updated two parts, front/rear baffles

The front baffle can seal the channel without an activity area

The rear baffle is the Queen's Nest sealed channel

----------------------------------------------------------------------2025-09-15----------------------------------------------------------------------

Expanded dual-tower waste area, making it easier to clean waste for harvester ant species

It has been experimentally used for over a month, and most of the waste will be stored in the expanded area

When cleaning waste, cellophane can be used to close the channels, significantly reducing ant agitation and increased cleaning difficulty

Do not 100% clean the waste, keep some to let them recognize the purpose of this area

Use 2 sections of PC pipe with a diameter of 60mm, thickness of 2mm, and height of 50-60mm (common accessories for my other ant nest styles)

Apply talcum powder of 5000 mesh or finer to prevent ants from escaping

Designed with a lid, but requires a sealing ring. If needed, please check:

https://makerworld.com.cn/en/models/1506345-bio-ark-mini-ant-farm#profileId-1644948

They are universal designs

----------------------------------------------------------------------2025-01-03----------------------------------------------------------------------

Added a V2 version of the activity area, canceling the use of nut fixation, and directly using screws for peripheral tightening

As the surrounding area has been enlarged, it is not compatible with the old acrylic activity area. If you need to use the V2 version of the activity area, please download the V2 acrylic cutting file

The source files for the expansion layer are open source. If you need to modify the expansion, you can download the STP format file

If you have questions, you can join QQ group: 319960966