List of roaches that will breed at room temperature.

[DonaldJ]

What about B. Orientalis I don't personally breed them but they live in the basement / crawlspace and occasionally venture to the house during humid stretches. So pretty sure they're good 65f - 75f.

I've had B. Orientails for about a year now, and they can tolerate quite a range and don't mind the cooler temps. I've read that they can live outdoors in the winter in parts of western Europe but I don't know how cold they were talking about. I'd guesstimate that around 50F is a safe lower limit; they may not breed but it shouldn't kill them. They really slow down above 80F, more than 87F may be fatal...I don't know. It hasn't gotten that hot in my apartment yet (no air conditioning).

When I transfer them to a different container I put them in the 'fridge for a while, about 40F...it puts them in a stupor and makes for easier handling. No ill effects unless they're adult females ready to drop an ootheca. They may abort and die shortly thereafter.

 

[thesavageprojects]

What should we use for a rack? Metal? To avoid fire? I've always wondered how so many people confidently use the heat tape. I suppose it works good, I just have carpetting all over my apartment and it boggles my mind.

electricity and metal = shock risk (not really a problem if you ground it), wood = fire risk, pvc/plastic are the safest by far. If you build with plastic get a plastic welder (looks like a soldering iron). carpet tends to melt more than it burns.