CricketOps Alert Configuration: Setting Up Notifications That Matter
CricketOps users who configure temperature alerts within their first week see 45% fewer die-off events in month 1. That improvement comes before any other management change -- just from catching problems faster. Alerts are the single highest-value configuration task in CricketOps, and they're also the most commonly skipped during initial setup.
This guide walks through how to configure every category of alert in CricketOps and what thresholds to set.
TL;DR
- High temperature alert threshold: Set at 93F.
- Above 95F, heat mortality begins.
- They're the result of a gradual temperature or humidity excursion that goes unnoticed for 2-4 hours before it reaches the threshold where mass mortality begins.
- A temperature sensor alert at 80F -- not 65F -- gives you time to respond before notable mortality.
- Once sensors are paired to zones, navigate to Settings > Alerts > Temperature.
Low temperature alert threshold: Set at 80F, not lower.
- At 80F, your crickets are stressed but not dying -- you have 1-2 hours to respond before notable mortality begins.
- If you set your threshold at 70F, you're already 2+ hours into a dangerous event when the alert fires.
High temperature alert threshold: Set at 93F.
- Above 95F, heat mortality begins.
Alert delivery: Configure text message (SMS) as your primary alert channel, not email.
Low temperature alert threshold: Set at 80F, not lower.
- At 80F, your crickets are stressed but not dying -- you have 1-2 hours to respond before notable mortality begins.
- If you set your threshold at 70F, you're already 2+ hours into a dangerous event when the alert fires.
High temperature alert threshold: Set at 93F.
- Above 95F, heat mortality begins.
Alert delivery: Configure text message (SMS) as your primary alert channel, not email.
Why Alert Configuration Is Your Highest-Priority Onboarding Task
Most die-offs on cricket farms are not instant. They're the result of a gradual temperature or humidity excursion that goes unnoticed for 2-4 hours before it reaches the threshold where mass mortality begins. By the time you notice a problem on your morning walkthrough, the damage is done.
Alerts change this dynamic. A temperature sensor alert at 80F -- not 65F -- gives you time to respond before notable mortality. A harvest window alert means you don't miss a batch at its peak weight. A missed feeding alert means a staff oversight doesn't turn into a FCR hit.
The three alert categories that deliver the most value, in order:
- Temperature alerts (highest value; directly prevents die-offs)
- Harvest window alerts (medium value; prevents missed harvest timing)
- Task-based alerts (operational value; prevents SOPs from being skipped)
Setting Up Temperature Alerts
Temperature alerts require sensor integration. See your CricketOps account's sensor setup guide for pairing compatible sensors with your account.
Once sensors are paired to zones, navigate to Settings > Alerts > Temperature.
Low temperature alert threshold: Set at 80F, not lower. At 80F, your crickets are stressed but not dying -- you have 1-2 hours to respond before notable mortality begins. If you set your threshold at 70F, you're already 2+ hours into a dangerous event when the alert fires.
High temperature alert threshold: Set at 93F. Overheating is less common but can happen with malfunctioning thermostats. Above 95F, heat mortality begins.
Alert delivery: Configure text message (SMS) as your primary alert channel, not email. Email is too easily ignored when you're asleep. Enable push notifications as a secondary channel if you have the CricketOps mobile app installed.
Escalation contact: CricketOps allows you to set a secondary alert recipient who gets a notification if you don't acknowledge the primary alert within a set window (15-20 minutes is standard). Configure this before you need it -- it's the backup that protects you on nights when your phone is dead or you sleep through the first alert.
Test your alerts before trusting them. Create a temporary test alert set at your current room temperature. Verify that you receive the notification within 5 minutes. Then delete the test alert and restore your real thresholds. This confirms your alert pipeline is working before you're relying on it at 2 AM.
Setting Up Harvest Window Alerts
Navigate to Settings > Alerts > Lifecycle.
Harvest window alert timing: Configure an alert to fire when each bin reaches the target harvest age for its species. For Acheta domesticus, this is typically 42-49 days post-hatch. The alert fires when the bin's age (calculated from the hatch date you entered at bin setup) reaches your configured harvest window.
Alert timing options:
- Pre-harvest reminder (3 days before): Useful for scheduling your harvest day and preparing equipment
- Harvest window open: Fires on the first day of the target harvest window
- Harvest window closing (2 days before end): If you haven't logged a harvest, this reminds you that optimal harvest timing is closing
Batch completion: Configure an alert to notify you when all bins in a target harvest group have been logged. This ensures you don't miss a straggler bin.
Setting Up Task-Based Alerts
Task-based alerts fire when a scheduled maintenance task hasn't been logged by its due time.
Navigate to Settings > Alerts > Tasks.
Daily feeding alerts: If you have staff performing feedings and logging them in CricketOps, configure an alert to fire by 10:00 AM if the morning feeding log hasn't been entered. A missed feeding log usually means a missed feeding.
Mortality count alerts: Configure weekly or semi-weekly mortality count reminders to ensure consistent die-off tracking for accurate FCR calculations.
Environmental check alerts: If you're manually logging temperature and humidity checks (rather than automated sensor logging), configure alerts to prompt these at your target check frequency.
Substrate replacement reminders: Set a recurring alert for substrate replacement cycles (typically every 2-3 weeks for standard production bins).
Alert Fatigue: Keeping Alerts Meaningful
Configure only alerts you'll act on. An alert system that fires constantly (because thresholds are too sensitive or alerts are too frequent) trains you to ignore alerts -- and then you miss the one that matters.
Best practices:
- One text alert per event, not repeat alerts every 15 minutes. Set your system to escalate rather than repeat.
- Review your alerts quarterly. Remove alerts for events that turn out not to matter; refine thresholds based on actual events.
- Don't configure informational alerts as text messages. Reserve SMS for urgent events (temperature breaches, overdue harvests). Use email for informational updates (weekly production summaries, scheduled report deliveries).
See the CricketOps onboarding guide for step-by-step initial account setup, and the CricketOps platform overview for the full system overview.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I set up temperature alerts in CricketOps?
Go to Settings > Alerts > Temperature. Pair your temperature sensors to the appropriate zones first (Settings > Sensors). Set your low temperature alert at 80F and your high temperature alert at 93F for Acheta domesticus production. Configure text message as your primary delivery channel (not just email) so alerts wake you up at night. Set a secondary escalation contact who gets notified if you don't acknowledge within 15-20 minutes. Test by setting a temporary alert at your current room temperature, verifying you receive it within 5 minutes, then deleting the test and restoring your real thresholds.
What threshold should I set for a temperature alert on my cricket farm?
Set your low temperature alert at 80F -- not at a lower temperature that would represent an already-advanced problem. At 80F, your crickets are stressed but you have 1-2 hours of response time before notable mortality begins. At 70F, you're already hours into a dangerous excursion. Set your high temperature alert at 93F. For pinhead nursery zones, set both thresholds 2-3 degrees tighter than your main production zones because pinheads have less tolerance for excursions. Review your thresholds each season -- your summer high-temperature risk is different from your winter low-temperature risk, and you may want seasonal adjustments.
Can CricketOps alert me when a bin's harvest window opens?
Yes. Configure harvest window alerts in Settings > Alerts > Lifecycle. CricketOps calculates each bin's age from its logged hatch date and fires an alert when it reaches your configured harvest window target for its species. You can set a pre-harvest reminder 3 days before the window opens (to schedule your harvest day and prepare equipment), an alert when the window opens, and a closing alert if you haven't logged the harvest 2 days before the window closes. These alerts mean you never miss optimal harvest timing from a bin that got lost in a busy week.
How does CricketOps help track the metrics described in this article?
CricketOps provides bin-level logging for the variables that drive production outcomes -- feed inputs, environmental conditions, mortality events, and harvest results. Rather than maintaining these records in separate spreadsheets, you can view performance trends across bins and over time to identify which operational variables correlate with better outcomes in your specific facility.
Where can I find industry benchmarks to compare my operation's performance?
The North American Coalition for Insect Agriculture (NACIA) publishes periodic industry reports with production benchmarks. University extension programs in agricultural states, including the University of Georgia and University of Florida IFAS, occasionally publish insect farming production data. Industry conferences hosted by the Entomological Society of America and the Insects to Feed the World symposium series are additional sources of peer benchmarking data.
What is the biggest operational mistake cricket farmers make in their first year?
Expanding bin count before achieving consistent FCR and mortality targets in existing bins is the most common and costly first-year mistake. At 5-10 bins, problems are manageable. At 30-50 bins, the same proportional problems represent much larger financial losses. Most experienced cricket farmers recommend holding expansion until you have three consecutive production cycles hitting your FCR and mortality targets.
Sources
- Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) -- Edible Insects: Future Prospects for Food and Feed Security
- North American Coalition for Insect Agriculture (NACIA)
- Entomological Society of America
- University of Georgia Cooperative Extension
- Journal of Insects as Food and Feed (Wageningen Academic Publishers)
Get Started with CricketOps
The practices covered in this article are easier to apply consistently when they are supported by organized production data. CricketOps gives cricket farmers the tools to track what matters -- by bin, by batch, and over time. Start your next production cycle in CricketOps and see how organized data changes the way you manage your operation.