Bringing a bin back from the dead

16 years ago

After a month of neglect, one of my worm bins bit the dust, and went anaerobic. Apparently you can get away with not drilling drainage holes only if you regularly check that there isn't three inches of standing water at the bottom of the bin... I can't say I didn't fairly deserve this!

The bin is currently exiled as far away from my house as I can get it, as the smell is horrid. I poked a bunch of drainage holes, and managed to get rid of most of the leachate. The first bedding material I could find was an old newspaper, so I shredded it and threw it into the bin, while turning over the original contents of the bin to give them a little air.

What can I do to make the bin hospitable to worms again? I have a bin almost ready to harvest, so I'm certainly not lacking worms to re-establish the bin. How long should I wait before adding worms in? I noticed that there was more uneaten food, and much less bedding than I expected. I was thinking of putting in a copious amount of shredded cardboard to get the moisture level better regulated, stirring every day or two, drilling a lot more air holes, and waiting a week or so for everything to sweeten up again. Good plan?

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Comments (9)

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equinoxequinox
16 years ago
Sounds like you are on the right track.
Other options would be tucking whole cardboard along the sides and then removing it after it is wet. Or dumping the bin on to cardboard for a bit. Then putting it back into the bin. The cardboard will dry and can be used again.
sbryce_gw
16 years ago
I think you are on track. Wait until there is no unpleasant smell before you add worms back in.
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pjames
16 years ago
You might find that your bin is full of coccoons.You might take a look. I'd think about just filling it up with cardboard and paper and stirring it all up to control the moisture issue and then ignore it for another month or so.YOU might be surprised at the number of worms.
awoogle
Original Author
16 years ago
These sound like great suggestions. Thanks!
steamyb
16 years ago
You said you had another bin to harvest; do you usually split the worm herd when you harvest? If that is true, then now is the time to add the worms to the "stinky" bin and let them fix it for you. Just add the carbons like you said you were going to do and the worms will do the rest. Obviously you know how to care for worms or you would not have a bin to harvest. You know that this bin got too wet and stayed that way too long. We all learn something when we share.
awoogle
Original Author
16 years ago
Hi Steamyb,

This is actually going to be my first harvest. I started playing with worms in October, and set up my second bin in February. I was thinking that since the dead bin is fairly full now with all the new bedding that's going in, I'd throw in a chunk of the worms from the live bin, leave the bin well enough alone for a while, and use the rest of the worms to start a fresh bin. I'll probably harvest next week, weather permitting, in the hopes of giving the dead bin a little time to recover.
steamyb
16 years ago
So the bin you started in October was split to make the bin in Feb? Is that why you have never harvested a bin?
awoogle
Original Author
16 years ago
Yep. The October bin was getting full, and I wanted to let the compost finish off in time for spring, so I split everything up. It's been pretty slow going, since I keep the bins outside during the winter. It rarely freezes here, but I did discover that fruit I threw in the bin during the winter kept better in the bin than it did in my fridge...
steamyb
16 years ago
Well, it sounds like you have a plan that will work to me. And good luck with those squirmers!