greenwater,
Try leaving them uncovered (just bedding on top) in a room or somewhere with the light on. The worms will probably stay in the bedding and the bin to try to avoid the light. Also put a couple of tablespoons of food under some of the bedding. I've heard that they can be a bit unsettled the first few days.......don't sweat it.
Harry

Hi greenwater.

It is normal for new worms to want to bail out. They wake up after the long trip and miss their bin. Light overhead for a few days should help.You can add the peat now. That is usually what they ship in.

It is recommended that new worm beds are prepared two weeks ahead of the worm arrival. This allows for some pre-composting and microbes to get going.
When I commented on your new cedar bin, I had no idea you were a new wormer. Your new bin should be 'seasoned' a little. Do you have access to horse manure or compost to add ? You can add damp, torn cardboard, leaves, kitchen scraps, a handful of soil or most any organic material normally composted. I would season both sides of your new bin for a week or two.
Also, do you have a plan to harvest your vermicompost? A 21'x21'x21' space may prove challenging to remove the goods. Maybe you can find a couple old milk-crates to slip in the spaces. just pull the crate out at harvest time.

You can keep your worms in a bucket, tote or whatever until the new bin is ready. Sorry I didn't ask more questions about your situation before.

Welcome to the forum, good luck, and happy wormin'

This bin is open-bottom and made of recycled redwood or cedar (not certain). Note the milk-crates.

If you have some kind of work light to hang directly over the box will help to keep them where they are and you will need to leave that light on at least overnight .

Thanks mend. Yeah I'm just now starting this. I put them back in the bag they came in becusse I was leaving for a fish trip as I found the worms bailing. Yes I have some aged kitchen scraps I can put in there and my coir should be here soon. I can use the light as well to her them settled in my temp box. I really appreciate all y'all's help. I'll probly have some more questions with this. Thanks again y'all.

Mend, I was hoping the horizontal migration would help lure the worms out of my composted side. Is that not a realistic expectation ?

Greenwater, horizontal migration works. It will take awhile for your worm bed, and worm mass to get established and grow.
With a bin of your size and 1000 worms, you and the bin may not be ready to start a migration/harvest for 3-4 months, maybe longer.
When you are ready, add new food and bedding to the other side. It may take a month or two, but most worms will move across. There will be a few stragglers and unhatched cocoons left behind.

The bin in the pic is based on horizontal migration. The crates allow this, and are also used to pull the heavy castings out of the bin. Easy casting harvest!

Pete

Edit to add LOTS of patience needed! The first month with a new bin is the hardest. It gets easier.

This post was edited by mendopete on Fri, Jan 30, 15 at 2:48

Yeah I was definitely thinking 10000 worms would be a bigger mass than it is. I think I'm going to get more. Do you have a recommendation for how many would be good for that size. We generate plenty of kitchen scraps so feeding shouldn't be an issue.

I would recommend starting with what you already have. You will learn about your worms needs, and they will reward you by quadrupling in size by summer. By the time you harvest a couple times, the bin should reach it's maximum capacity of maybe 10 lbs.

Use patience and observe. Grow your own! Good luck.

Pete