If you’re like most new Vermicomposters, you have tried lots of different tricks to keep your worm bin healthy and happy, but in getting the bin established I’ve herd many stories of people having a few bumps along the way. One of the biggest challenges we face is the California Heat. The worms are at risk when the container gets too hot. Some say that is over 80 to 85 degrees is max. Either way, take it from me, hot worms stink. It’s a challenge to keep an outdoor worm bin cool in California. I have people write me and tell me they tried ice bottles, but they had to be dug out every day and replaced. YUCK. One of the reasons the heat builds up is the bin is the actually composting itself. When the food breaks down it “heats up” and at times it can get down right hot. Make sure you have a thermometer to keep track of your Bin’s Temperature.
We have a figured out a little system that seems to work pretty well. Each day as we collect the scraps, food leftovers (no cheese or meat) and coffee grinds we put them in a container in the freezer. We keep 2 or 3 “rotating” containers in the freezer at all times. Then at feeding time, I take a the frozen scraps and feed them in the bin. It seems to be a win-win situation. The frozen scraps actually break down more
easily allowing the worms to consume the scraps faster and this help’s keep the worm bin cooler, also reducing the annoying fly problems.
I still feed them in a circular pattern around the bin, and the bin is doing well enough that we are adding scraps 4-5 days per week.
It works best when I remember to leave one rinsed container on the counter then everyone will contribute scraps, at the end each day I can put the full container in the freezer, and put a fresh container out.Then the oldest batch goes in the worm bin.
If you have tips for keeping your bins cooler, please feel free to comment below.
I have a really hot outside temperature on my patio in Santa Ana CA. I keep my worm bin in the shade and I have plenty of dirt in with the shredded paper. The worms are always cool several inches beneath the surface. I also have a double layer of 75% shade cloth covering the patio to keep my plants happy. That drops temperature about 25 degrees while still allowing enough light to grow plants.
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I rigged up a garbage disposal to grind my scraps. The water I use to grind them adds cooling moisture to the compost bin. They compost almost instantly. The worms thrive. You can see how to do this and how it works–so easy!! http://www.dactyls-and-drakes.com/practical/inventions-and-tools/the-amazing-original-homemade-compost-buster