How to Make Your Own Vermicompost Bin
Monday, August 31, 2009 at 8:08AM 
We've written about composting a fair bit since launching OrganicNation in the spring, but I'm embarrassed to report that until this weekend, Dorothee and I didn't have a home compost operation of our own. That all changed when we attended a vermicompost (composting with worms) seminar at our local Green Grocer on Saturday.
Jill Tondu (above, at left) led the course, and for the price of $33, she hooked us up with a standard Rubbermaid storage bin, gardening gloves, a spray bottle, a small turkey baster, old newspapers and cardboard, and about a pound of red worms.
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The process is pretty simple: First, you drill a few dozen holes near the top of the bin with a 1/16-inch drill bit. Then, to create a "bed" for the worms, you tear up a bunch of cardboard and newspaper (preferably black-and-white paper, because colored ink can poison the worms). The bedding holds moisture and air for the worms, and it's placed on top of the food waste.
Then, after making the bedding and moistening it, you're ready to bring in the worms. For us, Jill ordered a bunch of big, red worms from Mac's Bait Shop on Chicago's South Side. We were advised not to add too much food waste in the beginning -- about a half pound per day for a pound of worms. That way, the worms will be able to keep up with it, and we won't have to worry about rotting and stinky trash. Jill also told us to throw in a bit of crunched-up egg shells or sand, because the worms have gizzards, and they use the grit to help grind up food waste.
Aside from that, we don't have too much to report, because this is our first experience with composting worms, but we'll post updates when it comes time to harvest the compost. In the meantime, tell us your composting stories -- with or without worms -- and leave any pointers you might have for compost newbies in the comments section.
-Mark
Reader Comments (13)
So cool! It was such a great class to teach. I'm excited to hear about your bin as it progresses. We really had a great batch of worms - and not to add any pressure, but I'm expecting great things from these fat, juicy guys. :)
Today I was adding up the numbers. On Saturday, we started 26 worm bins. If each bin consumes 1/2 pound of scraps a day, as a group, we will save 1,170 pounds of food scraps from entering landfills in only 90 days. In a year, we will have turned 4,745 pounds (or 2.37 tons) of food scraps into nutrient rich compost. Those numbers don't even include the paper.
The small things really do add up!
I loved your piece on Aquaranch. It's a fascinating process and I loved learning and seeing more about it - and the cat was cute too.
Thanks!
Jill
I was in the 2:30 class on Saturday and came home with two bins full of worms. When we left the house at 5:30 Saturday night I accidentally turned off the lights over the bins. Well, when we came home at 11:30, we had hundreds of worms all over the tops and outsides of the bins and our kitchen floor. So, I got to know my worms really well on Day 1 and have not turned off the lights since! Just this morning, my husband was teasing me about treating my worms like pets when I told him we needed to have eggs for breakfast just so we could feed them the shells. Jill, I'm afraid you may have created a monster out of me with your infectious worm enthusiasm!
Ha! We left the house with the lights off on Saturday night and at 1am came home to hundreds of them all over the kitchen! Some had even traveled over the rug and towards the front door. Needless to say my boyfriend doesn't love the worms just yet and now I am leaving the light on and putting the bin in the bathtub at night... seems to sort of defeat the purpose of being "green" leaving the light on all night... but hopefully it will only be for a few days and then they will like their new home...
It's nice to hear the worm enthusiast club is adding new members! I seem to be eating quite a few eggs these days as well.....
Seems a few of you have gotten to meet your worms on a more individual basis. Never fear! They will settle into their new homes. Just remember to keep a light on them 24/7 until they are no longer making a break for it (shouldn't be longer than 5-7 days.) Maybe some tape over the light switch as a reminder would help.
Keep me posted!
The same thing happened to me. After the class on Saturday, I fed my worms a few good handfuls of lettuce(which was probably too much). I went out of town and came back Sunday evening to find what looked like a hundred worms all over the place. A lot of them were dead, and the living ones looked like they were very dry. I threw them all back in the bin and added more water. I live with my sister, who's not into worms. She freaked out when she saw all of them on the floor, and she said that she did not want to keep a box of worms in her place. I had to leave them outside that night. The worms were already stressed from becoming so dry, and the temperature on Sunday night fell into the 40s, which must have been even harder on them. I took them to work with me, and they haven't tried to come out again. However, the lettuce I threw in there on Saturday is still all there. The bin is starting to get stinky too. Does anyone else have worms that aren't eating?
Thanks for the tips, Jill! (And thanks for leading that great class.)
We've had similar experiences: A handful of Steve McQueen impersonators had been making for the holes when we turned the lights off. Sadly, a few of them made it, and we had a couple fatalities. Now we've got bright lights beaming on them at all times. Hopefully this will work!
-Mark
So, we've had the light on the entire time on our worms with no problems with escapists. Today is Day 7 of the bin so my husband Gary decided to flip the light off....30 minutes....no worms....1 1/2 hours...no worms. I got home tonight from the store and as I was about to hop in the shower when he tells me that he's had the lights off for 2 hours and he thinks we can keep them off while we go out. Something told me to check them and lo and behold, about 10 wiggly guys were making their way up and out! I literally had to talk one off the ledge (Gary was not amused by my convo with the worm). Jill was right that these are particularly active worms (great for the future of our food scraps). We're going to plan on 10-14 days total of intensive 24 hour/day light "therapy" to help beat them into submission : )
I was in the 2:30 class. I had lots of escapees the first week and am happy to hear that I was not the only one!
I have another problem now. I have mold growing inside my worm bin. Should I be concerned about this? For now, I have moved my bin to my back porch and stopped feeding the worms. What should I do to avoid mold in the future?
Day 11 and my worms are still in training! Without constant light, they still try to escape. Active little buggers! Glad to know it may just be these worms b/c all else in my bin seems fine. Would love to hear updates from others as you succeed with weaning them off of light therapy. I'm not sure how many more days I can keep my husband from killing me and our bins of persistent worms.
Hi All! -
What active worms we have! They are composting monsters!
I also still have a couple Thelma and Louise's trying to make a break for it. My friends laughed at me when I said I was going to mark the escapees to see if it's the same two - I'll let you know how my tracking system goes. I am researching additional tips and trick we can use to convince our hungry little friends to stay put. I'll post them here.
Mold is very healthy for your worm bin. It helps break down the food and worms love it. If the bin is starting to smell, you may be over feeding. Cut back on the food and refrain from feeding the worms for a couple days (or more) to give them a chance to catch up.
Keep me posted! Jill
Hello Fellow Composters!
I am happy to report, we have a solution to keep our clever little worms in their bin.
Mac, from Mac's Bait Shop, who said these were the most persistent worms he has encountered, devised a very simple solution to keep the worm in their home.
Place a solid layer of cardboard, cut to about an inch from the sides,over the top of the bedding. Do NOT wet it. On top of the solid cardboard and all the way to the sides of the bin, add an inch or two of DRY peat moss. Pay close attention to the corners. The worms do not like the dry peat moss and will stay below where it is nice and moist.
Note: Peat moss will act like a sponge. If your bin is too wet, the peat moss will absorb the water creating an enticing environment for the worms. To avoid the peat moss becoming wet, be sure to suck out any extra water at the bottom of your bin before adding the sheet of card board and the peat moss.
I have tested this method and have not had a single worm work it's way up the sides - even in complete darkness. Tonight, I am going to test them overnight. Please be sure to test your worms before you leave them in darkness.
To make things convenient for you, you can pick up a complementary bag of peat moss and a piece of cardboard cut to the approximate size you need at the Green Grocer.
As always, if you have any questions, tips or suggestions, feel free to contact me.
Thanks!
Jill
So, Jill and I figured out that our worms might be too crowded because mine are still trying to get out. They are maniacs! We're going to split the pack and make a second bin. Will report back about success.
On a very positive note, they are chowing down on the food we've given them AND they are having babies. I think I might have even seen a "teenager" worm. I could recognize it by its angst and general annoyance with everything. Ha!
Really interesting articles. I enjoyed reading it. Thanks for sharing a nice info.