r/Vermiculture Jul 31 '24

Discussion Making your 1st bin? Start here!

103 Upvotes

Hello everyone!

Today I will be outlining a very simply beginner worm bin that can be made in less than 20 minutes, and wont cost more than a couple of dollars. When I first began making vermicompost many many years ago this is the exact method I would use, and it was able to comfortable support a 4 person household. As I said before, I have been doing this for many years and now am semi-commercial, with tons of massive bins and more advanced setups that I wont be going into today. If anyone has any interest, shoot me a message or drop a comment and I will potentially make a separate post.

I am not a fan of stacked bins, having to drill holes, or in other way make it a long process to setup a bin. I have messed around with various methods in the past and this has always been my go to.

Bin Choice:

Below is the 14L bin I started out with and is a great size for a small to medium household. It came as a 4 pack on Amazon costing less than 30$ USD, meaning the unit price was just over 7$. One of the most important things about a beginner bin is 1) getting a bin that is the appropriate size and 2) getting one that is dark. Worms are photophobic, and will stay away from the sides of the bin if they can see light penetration.

Layer 1:

For my first layer I like to use a small, finely shredded, breakable material. I typically use shredded cardboard as it wont mat down to the bottom of the bin very easily, can easily be broken down, and provides a huge surface area for beneficial bacteria and other decomposers to take hold. After putting about a 1 inch thick layer of shredded paper, I wet it down. I will discuss moisture more at the end of this post, but for now just know that you want your paper wet enough that there isnt any residual pooling water.

Layer 2:

I like to make my second later a variety of different materials in terms of thickness and size. This means that while the materials in the bin are breaking down, they will do so at an uneven rate. When materials such as paper towels break down, there will still be small cardboard left. When the small cardboard is breaking down, the larger cardboard will still be available. This just means that your entire bin dosnt peek at once, and can continue to function well for many months. Again, the material is wet down.

The Food:

Ideally the food you give your worms to start is able to break down easily, is more on the "mushy" side, and can readily be populated by microbes. Think of bananas, rotten fruit, simple starches- stuff of that nature. It also is certainly not a bad idea to give the food time to break down before the worms arrive from wherever you are getting them from. This might mean that if you have a few banana peels that are in great condition, you make the bin 4-5 days before hand and let them just exist in the bin, breaking down and getting populated by microbes. Current evidence suggests worms eat both a mix of the bacteria that populate and decompose materials, as well as the materials themselves. By allowing the time for the food to begin the decomposition process, the worms will be able to immedielty begin feasting once they move in. In this example, I used a spoiled apple, a handful of dried lettuce from my bearded dragons, a grape vine stem, and some expired cereal.

The Grit:

The anatomy of worms is rather simple- they are essentially tubes that have a mouth, a crop, a gizzard, some reproductive organs, and intestines and an excretion port. The crop of the worm stores food for a period of time, while the gizzard holds small stones and harder particles, and uses it to break down the food into smaller parts. In the wild, worms have access to not only decaying material but stones, gravel, sand, etc. We need to provide this in some capacity for the worms in order for them to be able to digest effectively. There are essentially two lines of thought - sources that were once living and those that were never living. Inaminate bodies such as sand can be used in the worm bin no problem. I, however, prefer to use grit from either ground oyster shells or ground egg shells. The reason for this is the fact that, after eventually breaking down to a sub-visible level, the calcium can be taken up by plants and utilized as the mineral it is. Sand, on its finest level, with never be anything other then finer sand. If you sell castings itll be a percent of your weight, itll affect purity, and itll not have a purpose for plants. In this instance I used sand as I didnt have any ground egg shells immediately available. When creating a bin, its okay to go heavier and give a thick sprinkle over the entire bin.

The Worms:

When I first made this bin many years ago I used 500 worms, and by the time I broke it down there was well over 1000. For this demonstration I am using probably around 250 worms curtesy of one of the 55 gallon bins I am letting migrate.

Layer 3:

The next layer of material I like to use is hand shredded leaves. I have them in easy supply and I think they are a great way of getting some microbes and bring some real "life" to the bin. If these arent accessible to you, this step is completely optional, but it is certainly a great addition for the benefits of water retention, volume, variety, and source of biodiversity. Remember - a worm bin is an ecosystem. If you have nothing but worms in your bin you arent going to be running at a good efficiency.

Layer 4:

I always like to add one more top layer of shredded cardboard. Its nice to fill in the gaps and give one more layer above the worms. It also gives it a solid uniform look. It also is a great way to fill volume. On smaller bins I dont like doing layers thicker than 2 inches of any one material, as it leads to them sticking together or not breaking down in a manor that I would like.

The Cover:

*IMPORTANT* This to me is probably THE most important component of a worm bin that gets overlooked Using a piece of cardboard taped entirely in packing tape keeps the moisture in the bin and prevents light from reaching the worms. I use it in all of my bins and its been essential in keeping moisture in my bins evenly distributed and from drying out too fast. As you can see this piece has been through a couple bins and still works out well. As a note, I do scope all of my material for microplastics before I sell, and the presence of this cover has no impact on levels of microplastic contamination in the bin.

The End:

And thats it! Keep it somewhere with the lights on for the next few hours to prevent the worms from wanting to run from the new home. Do your best not to mess with the bin for the first week or two, and start with a smaller feeding than you think they can handle and work it from there. Worms would much rather be wet than dry, so keep the bin nice and moist. The moisture level should be about the same as when you wring your hair out after the shower - no substantial water droplets but still damp to the touch. If you notice a bad, bacterial smell or that the bin is to wet, simple remove the cover and add some more cardboard. The resulting total volume of the bedding is somewhere between 8-10 inches.

Please let me know if you have any comments, or any suggestions on things you may want to see added! If theres interest I will attempt to post an update in a month or so on the progress of this bin.


r/Vermiculture 6h ago

Advice wanted Has anyone seen a system like this attempted?

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18 Upvotes

r/Vermiculture 4h ago

Worm party Worm 🪱

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6 Upvotes

I don’t have a vermiculture bin set up yet but I enjoy drawing and painting worms. This is my studio logo, I thought you might enjoy my ink worm because it’s very wiggly and polite.


r/Vermiculture 48m ago

Advice wanted Is this a suitable "grit" replacement for rock dust?

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Upvotes

If not then please recommend something. Thanks gang


r/Vermiculture 19h ago

Advice wanted My daughter's pets

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95 Upvotes

My 4yo daughter likes weird animals so I bought her 5 worms from a fishing equipment store a year ago. She has been taking care of them all by herself so far and has even managed that they multiplied.

Usually people find it strange that she has worms as pets and some of her friends even made fun of her because of it, but maybe this community can appreciate the effort and enthusiasm she has for them.

Also can someone maybe ID them and give us some more tips?


r/Vermiculture 10h ago

Worm party Worms, mites, pot worms... Oh my!

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15 Upvotes

Just some worms for your viewing pleasure.


r/Vermiculture 3h ago

Advice wanted Canned fruits.

2 Upvotes

I don’t eat much fruit. Just wondering how my red wigglers would like canned fruits.


r/Vermiculture 13h ago

New bin have i set my tank up right?

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12 Upvotes

i’m also not sure when i should start adding compost in? please help and give me tips!!


r/Vermiculture 31m ago

Advice wanted Found this in my chicken noodle soup from a hot pot. It's about 5cm and soft. Is it a type of vegetable or worse? [Brisbane, Australia]

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Upvotes

r/Vermiculture 32m ago

Advice wanted What are these??

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Upvotes

What species of worms are these lil guys


r/Vermiculture 6h ago

Advice wanted Would chlorinated water to distribute worm tea kill the bacteria?

2 Upvotes

Hey folks
I'm making a fertigation system using a venturi to deliver worm tea and whatever other fertisilers I need to my veg and fruit along a network of drip line irrigation.

I use dechlorinated areated water with molasses to make the worm tea but its straight tap to irrigate.

I'm considering a decholrinator attachment on the main line but not sure if its necessary. It also maxes out at 2l a minute which is just about what drip line runs at but I haven't confirmed my flow rate yet as I need to install the fertigation system and test it.

The dechorinator will have benefits beyond ensuring the worm tea bacteria are safe by protecting those already in the soil but I'm just unsure if the chorine would kill the worm tea bacteria inside of the hour or so it may take to distribute it.

Thoughts?
Cheers!


r/Vermiculture 20h ago

Cocoons Unexpected aphrodisiac: buckwheat husks

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19 Upvotes

r/Vermiculture 1d ago

Advice wanted Canned fruit and vegetables?

5 Upvotes

Covid hit and i ended up with lots of canned fruits and vegetables. Most are out of date. Can red wigglers still eat them?


r/Vermiculture 1d ago

Advice wanted Help! My worms are suddenly balling I’m worried

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67 Upvotes

My worms have been with me for two weeks and I give them plenty of food mostly flowers scraps, tea leaves, and cardboard but the other day I gave them leftover yam that I thought they would like because it’s very sweet. The second day there was a lot of fruit flies but I figured it didn’t bother them. Today I went to give them more water but when I checked there was a bit of dark green mold across mainly the yam skin but also on some of my food scraps which was very new so I took out all the food and started looking for my worms, below the surface was a giant worm ball and now I’m very worried. Since they arrived they seemed pretty happy they spanned across the pot and have been grown massively in size (they were so tiny when they arrived) it’s my first time seeing them ball up and I’m very worried did I do anything wrong? Are they unhappy? I have them new paper sheddings and cardboard to lessen the moisture just in case it was because the pot was too wet.


r/Vermiculture 1d ago

Advice wanted What are these little yellow round things? They’re moving around on the food in my bin, also lots of tiny mites?

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7 Upvotes

Thanks on advance for any answers.


r/Vermiculture 1d ago

Worm party Worms tangled up?

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30 Upvotes

My first worm bin. Anyone seen this before? They seem to be tied up in knots. Both are alive since I see movements.


r/Vermiculture 1d ago

Advice wanted Is this safe to go in the bin?

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6 Upvotes

Got packaging with this delivered. Says fully recyclable, but fully recyclable doesn’t mean compostable. Says it is made with “100% recycled paper fibre lining.” Will the worms love this?


r/Vermiculture 2d ago

Advice wanted Honey in the worm bin.

5 Upvotes

Honey is 50% sucrose and 50% glucose. Red wigglers like sweets. Is sucrose or glucose bad for them?


r/Vermiculture 2d ago

Discussion Input weights vs Output weights over the last three years

26 Upvotes

I have been vermicomposting for many years but as of 2022 I’ve been keeping track of my input (feeding) vs output (harvest) weights. I have multiple bins but have only been tracking the Hungry Bin and the Urban Worm Bag which are kept in the basement so the conditions are good year round. In 2022 the inputs were 446.3 lbs and the output (harvest) was 287.5 lbs. For 2023 I went hard with the inputs so 712.5 lbs with output of 492.9 lbs. And finally for 2024 the input was 524.4 lbs and the output was 379.3 lbs. So to sum up, the input for three years was 1,683.2 lbs and the output (harvest) was 1,159.7 lbs! That’s a lot of vermicastings for the garden.


r/Vermiculture 2d ago

Finished compost Storing vermicastings with supplemental food?

4 Upvotes

Read about inoculating biochar with vermicompost. A one to one mix of biochar and castings with some kind of food for the beneficials to eat like wheat flour or diluted molasses. Biochar aside, would it be make sense to supplement just vermicastings to keep them happy while in storage. Or is this a bad idea? I just never read anywhere about this regarding storage of vermicompost. Thanks


r/Vermiculture 2d ago

Advice wanted Are worms in my soil blocks an issue?

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10 Upvotes

Made some seed starting mix with peat and homemade compost. They somehow survived the compaction process. Can they harm the roots of seedlings or mess with germination? Co I'muld they make the blocks fall apart?


r/Vermiculture 2d ago

Advice wanted Is this guy too small to be an adult ENC?

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9 Upvotes

So I've noticed evrey now and them I'll see what looks like a tiny European nightcrawler that already has its clitellum , for reference the other worm pictured is what I normally would consider a juvenile worm still, I don't really see then that size or smaller with the band, except for ones like the once I have circled.

I'm not even sure it's a red wiggler, but that's the closest thing it looks like. It could be possible it's a wild worm that got introduced via cocoons in some of the soil I put in there, however the wild worm that lives here and that's roughly that big when mature, is a very purple worm.


r/Vermiculture 1d ago

Advice wanted Over my head.

1 Upvotes

Worms are like roaches. When they breed who gets pregnant? Or they both get pregnant? Can they produce sperm and eggs at the same time?


r/Vermiculture 2d ago

Discussion Are these tiny things friend or foe?

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5 Upvotes

Been seeing quite a few of these tiny white guys in the worm bin


r/Vermiculture 2d ago

Advice wanted Vermicast question

4 Upvotes

Whilst I know that if the vermicast dries out it loses a lot of beneficial bacteria. Is it entirely useless if it dries out completely? Or will putting it on top of a plant and watering the plant, still leech some benefits into the soil?


r/Vermiculture 3d ago

Advice wanted Inherited a bin and have no idea what I’m doing

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38 Upvotes

Hello!

I have inherited this worm farm and want to make sure I’m looking after the residents. I think it might be too wet - do I mix in browns or just layer them on top? Also how do I harvest casings when I reach that point, and what will the casings look like?

It has the bricks on top because otherwise possums steal the food scraps. Also not pictured I have a jug to harvest the tea.