I'm so sorry for you Basil - but I don't want to guess because I don't even have a year under my belt AND I'm in Hawaii where nothing freezes at sea level.

BUT . . . I would start a new "home" in case it was something or some reaction that caused the mass murder.

Nell

Sorry to hear about the bin.

You've got about 4 times my experience Basil but from what I've read, assuming the temperature didn't dip TOO close to -32F, the worms shouldn't have died, they 'hibernate' in cold weather.

So I'd agree with New about starting new home for worms assuming something other than cold/moisture killed them.

I think the back up bin is a good idea. I've done the same just in case something happens to my first bin.

Seacat

Your worms died because your bin was wet. You need to discard the whole rotting contents and improve the drainage and start again. It is not a good idea to add fresh bedding to the sloppy stinking sludge because you will end up with more of the same sss. You need to add more drain holes and add some sort of mesh to the inside of the bin so the excess water can get away. Let the new worms settle into the new bin before adding food.

Good luck,
Marshall

Thanks for all your input. I'm going to make sure the new bin stays drier and properly drained. I guess I started to take it for granted that my worms could handle whatever was in the bin, but sadly that's not the case.

--Basil

I'd never add new worms to a failed bin/bedding.
Time to start anew.

Hmmmm, I'd think that if it was too wet the worms would just crawl up the sides of the bin to get away. Maybe it was the cold in combination with the wetness. Or maybe something got put into the bin that wiped them out. I agree with those who say to not use the failed bedding. Best to start anew and make sure that the bin gets washed out in case it was something introduced to the bin that killed them.

I highly recommend the two-bin system. I purchased my second bin just 3 months after my first and just moved over a bunch of worms from my first bin. They breed and expand to fill the available space. I like to "starve" a bin for a month before doing worm/poo separation to give the worms time to finish off most of the organic matter in the bin. And I can alternate bins so that one is going strong while the other is nearly done.

Mike

So I was curious, and I placed a few of the worms in the old bin with lots of bedding, but with the remaining sludge, to see how they would fare, and the worms that were placed nearest the sludge are dead or close to it, bleeding and lethargic.The ones placed away from the sludge and on clean bedding are making an escape for it. I've now dumped the entire contents of the old bin, and will throughly clean and disinfect the tupperware tote before starting all over again. Fortunately and thanks to all the warnings and advice, I only placed a handful, and still have my backup bin to start over. So in the end it wasn't the moisture or the cold, but something more nefarious.

I'm so sorry to hear about your worms - I can relate to your experience.

A couple of months ago (not long after I started vermicomposting) I had the unfortunate experience of losing all my worms. I figured out without a doubt that the reason was because I had made their environment too wet.

I think that it's a learning experience that a lot of people go through at least one time. Now I know better to never pour water into the bin - I always use a spray bottle so that the bottom doesn't become too saturated.

Boy, when that happened did it ever stink! I have one of those Can O Worms systems and a lot of the worms that got drowned escaped down through to the bottom bin (the bin w the tap). I was able to go through and save some of them and now it's back to where it was before the disaster. (I had also taken the time and sift through the rubble to find as many cocoons that I could, and there were a lot of cocoons).

jt