Boulder Vermicomposting

My worm 'bin'

September 5th, 2008

A worm bin for a residence is typically a small bin (typically wood or plastic–there are a lot of plans out there to be had). After all, 1 pound of worms eat 1/2 pound of garbage a day, so you don’t need a lot of room. Also, having a small bin makes it easier to have the worms inside; this is necessary if you ever get cold weather.

I tried living with a 2 foot by 2 foot wood bin, but found that an open bottom compost bin is a better fit for my lifestyle. Here are pictures of my worm ‘bin’:

Pluses:

• No need to bring worms inside when it gets cold. They can migrate to the ground and find warmth. This past winter, temperatures were as low as 1 degree (F) (found via the wunderground weather history site) and my worms survived.
• Lots of worms–I’m able to give out quarts of worms/vermicompost mixture to friends.
• Easy to maintain–I’ve never needed to replace the bedding, I just add more on top and take compost from the bottom.
• Large volume will hide smelly wastes (meats, dairy, etc) deep in the pile, and also can accept tremendous amounts of food waste.

Minuses:

• Harder to get to, especially in the winter. It’s only 10 feet from my door, but it is still outside.
• Animals have easier access–I haven’t had trouble, but I might in a rural area with raccoons, etc.
• Have to find and store more bedding material–this last year I’ve worked through 90 gallons of leaves, 60 gallons of yard waste, and 30 gallons of mulch.
• Need to have access to ground–this wouldn’t work so well on a balcony.
• Not maximizing production of quality worms–my worms aren’t easy to harvest.

I use a post hole digger that I picked up at a garage sale to dig a hole in the bedding when I have anything to put in it.

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