I'll take a shot at this. My guess on the crayon is that it would be fine. The wax is probably just an inert material and the amount that ends up in the compost shouldn't even be noticed.

I would get the bedding moist and ready with a couple hand fulls of soil on it ahead of time to get bacteria a head start before the worms arrive. I used to soak it in a pail, wring it out, and then fluff it up. Over time I found this to be too labor intensive for my lazy butt. My advice is to put the bedding in dry and use a watering can or clean dish soap bottle to wet it down. Start with one or two quarts of water depending on the size of the bin. Fluff it around and let it seep in for a while, then decide if it is still to dry. Spray bottles can be labor intensive also unless you are just adding moisture to the surface.

And once your bin gets going you probably won't have to spray the paper and cardboard again. There will be enough moisture given off by the decomposing food to dampen the bedding. In fact, when your bin gets too wet, adding dry material is the first line of defense.

When I first started I dampened my bedding by putting it in a container without drainage holes and pouring water into it as I mixed it by hand. When it looked about right, I let it sit covered overnight to even out the moisture.

I also added some partially finished compost to get the bin kick started. For the first couple of weeks the worms ignored the food and ate the compost.

I swear, I am so excited and I think I am already addicted and I don't even have worms yet. lol I have been reading and researching and based on what I have read as well as what you all have said and my resources so far, this is what I have done...

3 18gal totes. One with the bottom left solid for the catch bin, the other two have holes drilled in the bottom and the sides below the top edge.

I have wood blocks in the bottom one in order to leave room for any drainage. In the first bin to actually house worms I laid down a couple of sheets of newspaper. Then put several inches of shredded and damp cardboard, newspaper and other household papers. After that I put in one corner a half cup of food waste which consits of tea bags and banana & cucumber peel chopped small. Over that I put a few more inches of damp shredded newspaper a piece of dampened cardboard and then finally, the lid.

Does this sound okay? Is there anything else I should do before my new buddies get here?

and if you can sprinkle a handful or so soil from the garden (not from potted plants you have bought because of chemicals/fertilizer it might contain), that will kick start the system.

Otis

firefightergal07 the one thing that I always keep adding to my bin is egg shells. When I use them I rinse them and leave to dry then pulverize to a fine grain consistency and sprinkle throughout. If I am putting in a larger than normal amount of food in the bin then I also sprinkle on top or mix through out. This insures that the bin is not acidic and my worms thrive in this environment. By the way I don't limit the amount of egg shells I put in @ all, seems the more the merrier the worms are.

The only thing I would add is something to, as otis11 put it, kick start the bin. I used compost. Otis uses garden soil. My only caveat with garden soil is that dirt does not break down, but the worms do need a small amount of dirt to aid digestion, so that is a good option. Another option is anything you can collect from off the ground that the worms might eat, such as fallen leaves, etc. Another option is time. Let the bin sit for a couple of weeks before putting worms in, and the microbes will find the bin without help.