Worm bin upgrade

Groat21 · May 28, 2019

hey guys, I’m looking to upgrade my worm bin from a 5 gallon bucket to 20ish gallon tote.

I currently am using a 2 bucket system, with holes drilled in the bottom of the top bucket for drainage, and I cut everything but he rim off the lid, and cover with a t shirt for air flow. Here is the current setup.

I am wondering if I can do something similar with my new bin, so I don’t have open holes for flies and whatnot to get in and out. It will be indoors.

These are the new bins I will be using(I have 2).

Any suggestions/tip/tricks would be great! I’ve only had my worm bin for about a month, but they seem to be doing well. I’ve recently started adding malted barley to the bins and will be picking up aged manure as well.

loco41 · May 29, 2019

Groat21 said:
hey guys, I’m looking to upgrade my worm bin from a 5 gallon bucket to 20ish gallon tote.

I currently am using a 2 bucket system, with holes drilled in the bottom of the top bucket for drainage, and I cut everything but he rim off the lid, and cover with a t shirt for air flow. Here is the current setup.
View attachment 4341106
I am wondering if I can do something similar with my new bin, so I don’t have open holes for flies and whatnot to get in and out. It will be indoors.

These are the new bins I will be using(I have 2). View attachment 4341104

Any suggestions/tip/tricks would be great! I’ve only had my worm bin for about a month, but they seem to be doing well. I’ve recently started adding malted barley to the bins and will be picking up aged manure as well.

I keep my worm bin in my room just out of laziness now. when I first started it, it was the only spot I had for it. I've never had a problem with bugs around, occasionally there will be a few fruit flies but i usually just cover the scraps and they disappear almost immediately.

I use roughly the same size totes you've got with tons of little holes on the lid up top. I think either way you go, you'll be fine as long as you have some oxygen able to enter. the big thing I'd watch out for is keeping the proper moisture level throughout the bin and not so much worrying about flies. also, monitoring the amount of food you add at a time as well, I usually throw in smaller amounts more frequently instead of large amounts all at once. I also like to sprinkle in some oats/grains in between larger feedings to try and keep the bin from becoming too wet from the fruit and veggie scraps.

I'm no expert, but I found that the less I tinkered with it, the better things went. if they seem to be doing well with what you have got going, I'd just replicate it on the larger scale now. if you want I can take some pictures later and show you it as well. just my two cents though sir and goodluck with the upgrade.

Groat21 · May 29, 2019

loco41 said:
I keep my worm bin in my room just out of laziness now. when I first started it, it was the only spot I had for it. I've never had a problem with bugs around, occasionally there will be a few fruit flies but i usually just cover the scraps and they disappear almost immediately.

I use roughly the same size totes you've got with tons of little holes on the lid up top. I think either way you go, you'll be fine as long as you have some oxygen able to enter. the big thing I'd watch out for is keeping the proper moisture level throughout the bin and not so much worrying about flies. also, monitoring the amount of food you add at a time as well, I usually throw in smaller amounts more frequently instead of large amounts all at once. I also like to sprinkle in some oats/grains in between larger feedings to try and keep the bin from becoming too wet from the fruit and veggie scraps.

I'm no expert, but I found that the less I tinkered with it, the better things went. if they seem to be doing well with what you have got going, I'd just replicate it on the larger scale now. if you want I can take some pictures later and show you it as well. just my two cents though sir and goodluck with the upgrade.

Thanks, I think maybe I’ll just drill holes and cover them with screen or such, or cut out a patch of the lid and cover that with screen.

I put a bit too much scraps/MBP in my bin now, so I’m going to wait a week or two to let the conditions correct themselves before making the switch.

What about ways to keep it aerobic? I’ve seen some people use old toilet paper rolls to keep some airflow underneath.

Groat21 · May 29, 2019

loco41 said:
I keep my worm bin in my room just out of laziness now. when I first started it, it was the only spot I had for it. I've never had a problem with bugs around, occasionally there will be a few fruit flies but i usually just cover the scraps and they disappear almost immediately.

I use roughly the same size totes you've got with tons of little holes on the lid up top. I think either way you go, you'll be fine as long as you have some oxygen able to enter. the big thing I'd watch out for is keeping the proper moisture level throughout the bin and not so much worrying about flies. also, monitoring the amount of food you add at a time as well, I usually throw in smaller amounts more frequently instead of large amounts all at once. I also like to sprinkle in some oats/grains in between larger feedings to try and keep the bin from becoming too wet from the fruit and veggie scraps.

I'm no expert, but I found that the less I tinkered with it, the better things went. if they seem to be doing well with what you have got going, I'd just replicate it on the larger scale now. if you want I can take some pictures later and show you it as well. just my two cents though sir and goodluck with the upgrade.

And for shredded paper/bedding, how do I know what is good to use?

I know shiny paper is bad, but what about flyers like this?

Don’t get the newspaper here anymore, so I’m wondering about other alternatives? I’m using cardboard and some old newspaper right now, but I’m just about out.

loco41 · May 29, 2019

Groat21 said:
Thanks, I think maybe I’ll just drill holes and cover them with screen or such, or cut out a patch of the lid and cover that with screen.

I put a bit too much scraps/MBP in my bin now, so I’m going to wait a week or two to let the conditions correct themselves before making the switch.

What about ways to keep it aerobic? I’ve seen some people use old toilet paper rolls to keep some airflow underneath.

hell yea, I'm sure it'll transition just fine. to be honest though, I haven't quite mastered keeping my bin as "even" as others probably do as far as moisture and air flow. I have turned everything gently by hand two times since my lower portions seemed to be holding a little more moisture than I liked and limited the feedings of "wet" things for a couple weeks. I'll wait until all the scraps are completely processed and the worms aren't so concentrated in specific areas before I do that. I never have any odd or foul smells so I figure it is alright. also, I notice a lot of eggs in the wetter lower portions so figure it might help with the hatching/breeding process, purely speculation though. the bin I have going now has been active for the longest time I have tried so far, no clue exactly when I started it but a minimum of nine months.

as far as the paper, I wouldn't know how to direct you on that. the first bedding I used consisted of coco coir and cardboad/egg cartons all ripped up into small pieces. i didnt really like the idea of cardboard though, I figured just peat or coir is more natural and not manufactured like cardboard is. now I just use peat moss with a little oyster, rock dust and rice hulls mixed in. I'm out of hulls at the moment, so the next bedding I start I'm going to try incorporating some homeade biochar in larger chunks to try and get it supercharged in the mix.

Groat21 · May 29, 2019

loco41 said:
hell yea, I'm sure it'll transition just fine. to be honest though, I haven't quite mastered keeping my bin as "even" as others probably do as far as moisture and air flow. I have turned everything gently by hand two times since my lower portions seemed to be holding a little more moisture than I liked and limited the feedings of "wet" things for a couple weeks. I'll wait until all the scraps are completely processed and the worms aren't so concentrated in specific areas before I do that. I never have any odd or foul smells so I figure it is alright. also, I notice a lot of eggs in the wetter lower portions so figure it might help with the hatching/breeding process, purely speculation though. the bin I have going now has been active for the longest time I have tried so far, no clue exactly when I started it but a minimum of nine months.

as far as the paper, I wouldn't know how to direct you on that. the first bedding I used consisted of coco coir and cardboad/egg cartons all ripped up into small pieces. i didnt really like the idea of cardboard though, I figured just peat or coir is more natural and not manufactured like cardboard is. now I just use peat moss with a little oyster, rock dust and rice hulls mixed in. I'm out of hulls at the moment, so the next bedding I start I'm going to try incorporating some homeade biochar in larger chunks to try and get it supercharged in the mix.

I've been meaning to add some rock dusts, I will do that when I switch bins, and rice hulls seem like they would provide good aeration, but I don't love the idea of biochar for my worm bin, as the castings will be going into a no-till bed, and I wouldn't want to just keep adding biochar (already added 5% biochar to my mix). I have some coco laying around, as well as some peat, but most people actually say cardboard/newspaper is better, and obviously cheaper/more sustainable.

loco41 · May 29, 2019

oh, I also put a couple shovels full of compost from outside the past couple of beddings I've whipped up.

Groat21 · May 29, 2019

I can also get spent grain(from making beer) for free from the place a get my malted barley. Should I hop on this? And use it in compost pile or worm bin?

loco41 · May 29, 2019

Groat21 said:
I've been meaning to add some rock dusts, I will do that when I switch bins, and rice hulls seem like they would provide good aeration, but I don't love the idea of biochar for my worm bin, as the castings will be going into a no-till bed, and I wouldn't want to just keep adding biochar (already added 5% biochar to my mix). I have some coco laying around, as well as some peat, but most people actually say cardboard/newspaper is better, and obviously cheaper/more sustainable.

nice, valid points for sure. I'll have to keep that in mind moving forward with the char. I may also have to start incorporating some cardboard again and see how it goes. definitely a more endless supply of carbon that way.

for sure on the spent grain though. my sister brews beer for a craft brewery and I got 55 gallon drums of spent grains on multiple occasions. it definitely got things going in my outdoor bins and produced tons of mycelium growth wherever i piled it up. it smells real bad for a while though, I was turning my piles everyday or two to help with that, took about a week or so to calm down. every time I turned it, I would cap it with a layer of dry peat or leaves to help with containing the smell. I threw some in the bin "fresh" when I got it at first, but started letting it calm down a bit and would grab it out of an outdoor bin before adding it after the first couple rounds. either way it breaks down fast and the worms loved it though. I wish I still had access to that stuff, but haven't got around to talking to the local breweries around town where I am now. I miss Colorado for sure..

loco41 · May 29, 2019

also on the rock dust addition, if you aren't adding ground up eggshells or anything with "grit", the dusts will help aid in the worms digestion I read. I believe it would mimic the sand qualities that make up our natural soils outside.

Wetdog · May 30, 2019

Groat21 said:
Thanks, I think maybe I’ll just drill holes and cover them with screen or such, or cut out a patch of the lid and cover that with screen.

I put a bit too much scraps/MBP in my bin now, so I’m going to wait a week or two to let the conditions correct themselves before making the switch.

What about ways to keep it aerobic? I’ve seen some people use old toilet paper rolls to keep some airflow underneath.

AFA keeping it aerobic, #1 is to make sure there are drainage holes in the top bin (the one with the worms), bricks or similar between the 2 bins so that the top bin is not sitting in the drainage water and some sort of aeration in the bedding itself.

Wet

Groat21 · Jun 5, 2019

Wetdog said:
AFA keeping it aerobic, #1 is to make sure there are drainage holes in the top bin (the one with the worms), bricks or similar between the 2 bins so that the top bin is not sitting in the drainage water and some sort of aeration in the bedding itself.

Wet

I was just about to set up my bins with 1/3 aeration an 2/3 aged manure.

From what I read, and from clackamas coot specifically, is to use pumice/lava rock as the aeration.

I have one question with this though, do you screen the aeration our after the castings are made? I will mostly be topdressing with them and don’t want to keep dumping lava rock on top.

Also, how about rice hulls as an alternative? Provide silica, and would eventually break down in my no-till bed.

Worm bin upgrade

Groat21

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