How to Start Your Worm Composting Bin
- scottkent45
- Jul 18
- 4 min read
Updated: Jul 24
You’ve decided to start a worm farm! A unique, but rewarding journey awaits you. As you tell your friends and family that you have worms you must be prepared to despise the shame of the world if you are to inherit the joys of
home worm composting.
Well - maybe it’s not that dramatic.. but if you go through all the information compiled on this post, you will be a worm whisperer in no time!
We will go over
Worm Species
Worm Bins
The Needs of an Earthworm
a) Temperature
b) Oxygen
c) Water
d) Organic Matter
Which Worm Species Should I Use?
For 90% of beginners the best choice is Red Wigglers, their scientific name being Eisenia Fetida. But, if you're curious to compare with other composting worms, check out this post:
Which Worm Bin Should I Use?
The best worm bin totally depends on your needs and goals! If you're going to buy a worm bin, my top favorite is the Urban Worm Bag! But, if you don't have a bin yet, check out this post:
What Temperature do I need to Keep My Worm Bin At?
The best temperature for worm composting is around 77 degrees Fahrenheit. This is the most efficient temperature for food consumption rate as well as reproduction rates. However, they will do well anywhere between 60-80 degrees. As temperatures get hotter or colder from that range, their performance will slow down and they may eventually die.
If you are using Red Wigglers or European Nightcrawlers, they can begin to die at temperatures over 85 degrees, or around 32 degrees.
Tropical composting worms, such as African Nightcrawlers, can begin to die over 85 degrees, or under 50 degrees or so.
Worm Bin Oxygen Requirements
Similar to humans, of the needs for air, water, and food, air is the most important for worms.
To be technical, worms will do best with at least 6ppm of oxygen throughout the bin.
Maintaining conditions where oxygen is present throughout a system - aerobic conditions - is the #1 guiding principle you should keep in mind when introducing organic matter or water to your bin.
If there is no oxygen (anaerobic conditions )the bin will become acidic, create foul odors, attract pests, and the worms will escape or die trying.
If there is oxygen present, the bin will remain at an appropriate pH level, there will be no foul odors, no pests, and the worms will be too happy to even consider making an escape.
Read more about keeping the worm bin aerobic here:
Managing Moisture in the Worm Bin
Having the appropriate moisture level in your bin is critical to success. The best moisture levels in a worm bin are between 55-80% moisture. Too much water and it will inhibit oxygen, which can be fatal to your bin. If there is too little, decomposition cannot occur. The downsides of under-watering your bin are much less significant than the downsides of overwatering you bin.
Never add too much water that it jeopardizes aerobic conditions in your bin.
Read all about managing moisture here:
Organic Matter
Worms eat decomposing organic matter. They can/will eat just about anything organic with a few exceptions like meat, dairy, citrus, and spicy foods.
There are 2 classifications of organic matter in a worm composting context; Bedding and Food.
Bedding
Materials that will encourage aerobic conditions in any quantity, and are not prone to heating up from high nitrogen are labelled as "Bedding". These are things like shredded cardboard, newspaper, fall leaves (not fresh green leaves), straw, hay, coco coir, etc.
Bedding provides a stable aerobic environment for the worms. They still eat bedding, but its purpose is more so for maintaining a stable aerobic environment rather than providing nutrition. Your bin should be 100% bedding when you first start.
A quality bedding mixture will be high in carbon (more than 40:1 parts carbon to nitrogen), absorb and retain moisture, and provide airflow.
A good bedding at a good moisture level is synonymous with aerobic conditions, so it is crucial to make sure you have good bedding.
Read this post to learn more about worm bedding:
Food
Organic Matter that is higher in nutrition (like nitrogen) or water, like fruit and vegetable waste, coffee grounds, etc., is considered Food.
Unlike bedding, most foods if added in excess will contribute to anaerobic conditions. Because they are high in moisture, they can create water-logged areas of your bin where oxygen cannot reach.
They can also begin to heat up if you add too much at a time because of the high nitrogen content.
Be aware of what kind of food you are adding and how it might impact the aerobic conditions of your bin.
How much water will it release? Will the excess moisture waterlog my bin, or is it ok for now?
How high in nitrogen is this? Is it high enough/Am I adding enough of it that it might start to hot compost in my bin?
Will this food compact together (like grass clippings) and prevent the presence of oxygen?
Anything else you could think of that might prevent airflow.
This is why you need to use plenty of bedding - to provide a stable aerobic environment for your worms. As you add food you may need to utilize bedding to maintain those aerobic conditions.
To help understand how to feed your worms, check out this guide:
Learning your worms
As you gain experience, you will be familiar with what worms look like/act like when they are happy or unhappy. Once you have figured this out, there are many questions that you can have answered by “asking” your worms rather than random people online. So pay attention to your worms, learn to speak their language and you’ll be a worm pro before you know it!
If you've read this far, thank you for sticking it through! You will have an awesome start to your worm bin and feel free to call, text, or email me with additional questions!
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