Since we are getting chickens, I want to raise soldier fly larvae and worms to give the chickens an extra protein source – and hopefully not have to give as much feed from the store). So, I asked Kent to build me a worm bin – and he did!
Derm Dad built me a flow-through worm bin!
October 23, 2013 at 4:53 pm
Can you tell us more about what the tied-off area at the bottom is for? Also, Where did you get the big barrel/canister? Have you thought about using a sideways canister? I have heard the worms like the “shallow” feeding trough, of about 8-12 inches deep.
I am planning to make my worm bins out of rubbermade tubs with holes drilled in the bottom. I want to see if I can get food scraps from my church or kids’ school to build a giant amount of worm bins. I am going to feel sad feeding them to chickens, though!
I know about worm bins, but not soldier fly larva. Are you planning to raise both in here?
I am also going the chickens route soon, I hope. We are working on building our house, so I am in the “planning” stage for everything right now. Lots of fun. This site is a great inspiration.
Emily
October 23, 2013 at 7:00 pm
I am definitely not an expert. I didn’t want to pick out the worms in order to get the vermicompost at the end of the year, which is why I picked the flow through barrel – which is supposed to have finished vermicompost at the bottom and you keep feeding new food scraps at the top and the worms go to the top to feed. But, since we are planning on moving in a few months, I am reluctant to start filling the barrel with food scraps because it will get super heavy super fast. So now I’m thinking the rubbermaid plan might be the best option, especially because it would be able to fit underneath the sink. How much more convenient could that be?? We got the barrel off of craigslist, but it wasn’t free.
October 23, 2013 at 7:08 pm
The tied-off area at the bottom gets layered with a few pieces of newspaper and then you put some coconut coir as a bedding layer. Then you start putting your food scraps and cover with either ripped up cardboard or more coconut coir. Eventually, the weed whacker line holds finished compost material (vermicompost and worm castings, I think) that you release into the bottom (into a bucket or tray) with a little handheld gardening rake/fork. I’ll try to update with the link to the instructions I used.