Man, I really must say that I appreciate you so thoroughly stepping through this process with us. I've only just been vermicomposting for about 6 months now, but composting processes outside of just what the worms perform is such an unknown territory for me. Really love this series, and looking forward to more updates! 🙌
Hi Evelyn! I’m glad it’s giving you more information to work with. Knowledge is power after all! I’m uploading the next video in the series this afternoon and for the 7:22 minute length of it, I think you’ll find it very helpful! I know I did 🤣
I'm on day 3 and a few days ago my thermometer was at 113! I'm using a canner pot. Nit too big, not too small and can carry it. Today it's dropping to 95 so will mix and add more slush. So excited to get this ready for some worms! Thanks for showing us the "how to"! How long do I do this?
Excellent! Congratulations 🎊! Theoretically you can do the cycles as many times as you want. That said I only do 2 cycles maximum as I didn’t see any additional pre-compost changes with additional cycles that was worth the work. Besides the pre-compost biota will continue to work after the cycles are completed 👍. 🪱
By the way, we find on our outdoor compost pile that the hottest temperatures are in the centre near the top. You are sticking that probe very close to the bottom. ~ Sandra
Hi Sandra! Hubby and I had talked about just that over dinner! I was putting the temperature probe too deep and hitting the ‘5th wall’ - the bottom of the bin where it would be cooler. It’s against my table top, not the ground. Thanks you so much for pointing that out!
Hi Patti! That’s excellent!! You’re well into the thermophilic range! Yours going to have super duper bedding for your worms 🪱🤗 Thanks so much for updating us on your progress 👍
Hey again 😊. It’s about balance. You need some level of chunkier bits in the bedding to have air pockets, keep things from compacting too much and with food, to keep it from clumping and turning anaerobic/smelly. Some coco coir or peat moss is perfectly fine. I don’t know that a very large amount is a good idea though. I also will say that for me at least, I’d have to buy peat moss or coco coir and I’d rather make the free pre-compost and use that even if it means less cocoons. I go thru ALOT of bedding so costs would add up fast! I’ll also point out that I add in sifted cow manure to make my basic bedding and that’s pretty fine particle stuff, similar to peat moss and coco coir in size. Wait. I’m just realizing I’m not sure what activity you’re actually referring to! 🤷♂️. Do you mean worm activity like I was thinking or do you mean biota activity as in the pre-compost breaking down faster? Please clarify 😊 Regardless, the buying vs free reason would still stand 😎
Would the amount insulation, cardboard vs plastic be the temperature variation? Might be interesting to insulate one bin with old sleeping bag or blankets and not the other with the same bedding to see how much temperature difference. 😎
Hi Jim! With these specific pre-compost totes I think the temperature differences were due to a few factors. First, with the white tote having the plastic bag top instead of the burrito shred top there wasn’t enough air exchange happening. I basically never used a plastic topper again. It was an experiment and I’m glad I found out it doesn’t work nearly as well as the carbon shred topping. Secondly the white tote did have way less volume than the blue tote until this video where I fixed that. As you probably know, traditional compost piles are significantly bigger than these totes. The mass helps keep the environment bacteria friendly - hot and moist. These size totes generally top out at 113 degrees or so. Which is still pretty darn good! And the breakdown and biota growth is very worm friendly 👍🪱. I can’t recall if it’s before or after this Part 4 but I also did have some dry pockets of material and when I hit those with the temperature probe the temperature dropped drastically as would have been expected if I had known about the dry spots! 🤣. Back to your insulation thoughts though - I do think insulation could help speed things along. As I mentioned heat is what the bacteria loves! I honestly doubt that I’ll try insulating one tote vs another as my ambient temps here in southeast Florida just don’t make it necessary so I’m not sure I’d see any significant differences. Worm wranglers in cold climates may though and you bring up a good idea for someone in that situation to try! Thanks for that! If anyone does try insulating totes, please share!! ❤️👍🪱
you know how you collect all food juices for your compost can you use pickle juice? being mostly vinegar im very curious the whole composting thing is very new to me but im trying to make some
@@rodelaboxers I do use all my food juices 💕. I have indeed added leftover pickle juice to my pre- compost, most often when it’s already cooking as opposed to at start up. And I don’t add a lot. I just splash the juice over the top of the pre-compost willy nilly 😝. It hasn’t seemed to be a problem. Do you have composting worms? 🪱
Question for you: Do you have fruit pureed along with vegetables in the liquid Jayne? What I am thinking is the sugars from fruit help with activating the bacteria. Am I understanding that correctly? I have not started hot composting but I absolutely want to get to where I am doing what you are. You absolutely are dialing in what I am after. ~Denae
Hi again ❤. I use both veggies and fruits - whatever I have on hand. The sweeter fruits will certainly be a microbial favorite and move the bin forward a bit quicker. You understand perfectly! Keep us posted when you finally are able to give this process a try!
Watched all your videos although I must say I've skimmed through them on this topic. I'm still a bit confused as to how long this composting process takes before it is ready for the worms
Hi Natalie! The shortest time frame to being worm ready is to make the recipe of shredded cardboard/paper, coffee grounds, and vegetable liquid. Mix it up thoroughly every few days. When the temperature rises and then cools back to below 90 degrees you can use it in your worm bin. You get a better result however if you do 2 heating and cooling stages and throw in some yeast if you have it. The bottom line is that anything you can do to jump start the decomposition process of the bedding AND critically have it be stable (not actively composting above 90 degrees) is a good thing. I say 90 degrees because red wigglers really start to struggle (die by being cooked) above 95 degrees so give yourself a little space on the maximum temperature 🤒. Does this help?
Yes! Adding more carbon will do a few things. 1) It’ll soak up any excess moisture and 2) the very act of mixing it in will add air into the compost, eliminating anaerobic pockets, which is what’s making it smell. You got it! 🪱🪱🪱
Hello! I do have shredders - a cross cut and a micro cut. They are great tools for worm keeping. You might want to check out marketplace or local swaps or thrift stores, etc. I get the actually paper from junk mail and sale flyers. The cardboard is mostly from big box and warehouse stores. Plus Amazon boxes. Larger pieces of cardboard will compost but it will take significantly longer unfortunately. There’s a school I’ve read where they soak the cardboard first and then have kids that are in time out rip it into small pieces. That’s one way to do it! ❤️🪱🪱
For composting, more nitrogen raises the temperature and more carbon lowers the temperature. If you would just add more coffee grounds and water without adding more cardboard, your temperature would go up quite a bit.
Hi K H! Yes that’s true. However if the nitrogen gets too high vs the carbon it can start to stink. And no one wants that inside the house 😊. Adding yeast will accomplish a heat rise without any chance of smelling. There’s lots of ways to run the pre-composting bins and it’s great that we can find the way that best suits our own circumstances! Having a starting point framework is what I’m hoping to give people. Tweaking is totally encouraged. Thanks so much for watching and posting!
You called it. Mass and nitrogen. Shredded cardboard is notoriously hard to keep at temp. The C:N ratio is like 400-500:1 so it burns through nitrogen really fast. I have to add coffee 2-3 times during a 30 day period if I’m trying to do it fast.
I’ll be adding more nitrogen soon too. And I read about adding yeast - like the yeast you bake bread with - to zoom up the microbial count. I’m going to do that on the next cream bin check in I think.
@@RockinWorms you could save a couple gallons of your finished bedding and mix it in to your next batch as a starter. All the microbes will already be present.
@@itsasickness4939 Absolutely! You’re totally right on that and it’s a great add to a new bin - if you have it. I do have several gallons of finished bedding still from my previous bins I did exactly how I’m doing it for the videos. I plan on saying exactly what you just said but a little further along 👍. I’m doing this series as if this is my first time - as many of my viewers are - and using ‘commonly available’ resources to make the pre-composting happen. We all start from scratch in the beginning ❤️
Hi Louis! That’s a legitimate question for sure! The answer is no, if you have a good balance of carbon and nitrogen, with the active biota, and the material is very moist or damp but not pooling liquid wet. It’s the pooled liquid that can and does smell, which usually happens in the bottom corners of the tote. It smells sour. But it’s easily remedied by aerating/turning/mixing the materials up. Which should be done every several days in the beginning of making the pre-compost. I’ll say it again as it’s important. It’s a balancing act. If there’s not enough liquid (aka the material is dry) there will be little to no active composting happening. The biota need moisture to breed and do their job. If there’s too much liquid then that liquid sits uselessly in pools and starts to ferment and because it’s on the bottom under all the material, there’s little to no air in that liquid and it goes anaerobic (aka smells bad). It’s a little bit of an art! You’ll find the right balance for your specific mix of materials after a few totes. Then you’ll push the boundaries of too wet or too dry (that’s me looking in a mirror! 🙄) and then make the tweaks to get it just right nearly every time! Of the 2 choices, too wet or too dry, I choose taking the chance on too wet. I’m more likely to get anaerobic smells at the bottom but it’s tolerable to me for the short time I’m smelling sour. And the composting process is moving forward actively. If it’s really too wet, I add in more carbon to soak up the extra moisture. No big deal. However if the mix is too dry the whole process grinds down to nearly halted. And I NEED that pre-compost! Not having it is a bigger hindrance to me than dealing with a little smell for a few minutes. But that’s my choice. If having any smell at all is a real problem, then do error on the dry side. Just know that the process will take a little longer. Ok? ❤️🪱🪱
Another question: Do you stir the bin every day over the whole period of composting or only the first couple of days when checking in for the moisture?
Hello! I mix the bin up very very thoroughly when I make it. Or at least I try too, as we all saw that I sure missed alot of pockets this time around 🤣. Then I let it sit and heat up - checking temperature every day to make sure it is heating up as non heating signals something needs to be adjusted. When the temperature starts to fall, that’s when I mix it all up again. There’s often small pockets of anaerobic bacteria on the bottom and in the corners that smell a little sour. Just mix it all in. At this point decide if you want to do another heat and cool cycle or let it cool completely and use as is. At whatever point I decide to not do any more heat and cool cycles I give it one more thorough mixing. From there I mix it up and add moisture (usually liquid from canned veggies) every 3-4 weeks, until I use it up. FYI, the final cool down can take weeks, especially if you got some really good heat results. The bacteria will keep right on working, at cooler temps and at a slower pace, but working none the less. The blue bin still has a few pockets of 113 degrees. Most is around 107 or 105. Edges are 86 or so. I just turned it 2 days ago. Oh, here’s a tip! If you have a 2nd bin that’s at least the same size, move the pre-compost by large handfuls, aerating it as you go, into the other bin. This way the top moves to the bottom, moisture will redistribute through the bin by gravity, and it SO MUCH faster and easier than mixing in place in the first bin. Thanks for watching and asking questions!! Questions help us all!
@@RockinWorms Thanks for your reply. Thought I had to mix it up every day over the whole period... My temperature was getting down quiet fast and I didn't know why... Probably due to to much mixing/air. I added your yeast mix and it's heating up again as it should. So now I won't be mixing the bin that much any more ... lol.
@@moestuinmams Mixing in air will cool the mixture down. If there’s active microbes it’ll heat up again but overall it’ll slow down the process. And there’s really no need to do that much work! Please keep us posted on your progress!!
Thanks for your video. I love seeing different ways to start worm bedding. I use a large plastic Folgers coffee can that I toss in my food waste into with coffee grounds and let it compost until the next feeding. Then I add the shredded cardboard and paper to it and then feed. I'm going to start breeding them soon and your precomposting method looks good. I think I'll try it.
I thought de 4 components for composting were: carbon, nitrogen, liquid and air so the microbiology could do its work. Or am I wrong? I would start indoor wormcomposting in autumn so I would have wormcastings in spring to start of my seedlings for my kitchen garden.
Hello! Yes you are right! Air is essential for the type of composting we want - without it we do get decomposition but the anaerobic kind. Stinky with harmful off gassing. I talk about needing air when I talk about compaction - but not in the clear way you are saying. I will correct that! Thanks so much for pointing that out!
Also, fall/early winter is a great time to start an indoor pre-composting bin if you’re in a cold winter area. Good suggestion ❤️. I’m in the warm winter south so I need it for my garden almost year round. The super heat of the summer is when I can build up my stockpile of compost and castings.
What is biotta? I'm sure it's not spelled right, but I'm sure you understand what I'm referring to. I've been composting for 30+ years and never heard that term before. I'm definitely not scientific, but I recognize the composting terms when I hear them. Looking forward to learning something. Thanks
Hi Rickjay! Biota - It’s a term I came across that basically refers to all the microorganisms/microbiology that lives in the composting and worm ecosystem. So bacteria, fungi, mold, etc plus other micro animals - springtails, mites, etc. I don’t recall where I read it but I do think it was a research type paper. There’s so much life going on that to just talk or refer about ‘bacteria’ seems like it’s not accounting for or recognize all the other life forms making the system work. Thanks for asking! I should have defined what I meant by the term long ago! 🪱❤️🪱
@@RockinWorms I’ve been composting quite some time and have never heard of biota. But it makes total sense to have a word that includes all the deferent composting organisms as a group. Thanks for the information it’s fun to learn I am enjoying your channel. There is so much grate information . thanks for sharing your knowledge.
@@jimwyatt6652 I agree with having an all encompassing word like biota. I read it somewhere and thought exactly as you did - it just makes sense 👍. Thanks for watching ❤️. I look forward to more comments from you ❤️👍🪱
Hi Mark! No I don’t. I don’t have a pH meter and I’m a little leary on how accurate they are anyway. Cardboard has a pH of 8.0 - 9.5 (alkaline), used coffee ground are around 6.5 a 6.8 (slightly acidic) and mixed fruit and veggie slurry will vary depending on the type of fruits and veggies used of course but will almost always be acidic. So…. I’m kinda betting on it all balancing out near the neutral zone or at least not being overly acidic or overly alkaline. Then of course I add it into a worm bin after it’s been cooked and cooled. The worm bin itself has a pH and I add calcium, dolomite lime, etc to keep the bin in a neutral range. Hopefully! I keep an eye on worm and bin creature behaviors and populations to clue me in if the bin pH is moving too far in one direction or the other. If you happen to have a pH meter and make the pre-compost very similarly to how I do I’d love to hear what your reading come in at! 😍🪱👍
Man, I really must say that I appreciate you so thoroughly stepping through this process with us. I've only just been vermicomposting for about 6 months now, but composting processes outside of just what the worms perform is such an unknown territory for me. Really love this series, and looking forward to more updates! 🙌
Hi Evelyn! I’m glad it’s giving you more information to work with. Knowledge is power after all! I’m uploading the next video in the series this afternoon and for the 7:22 minute length of it, I think you’ll find it very helpful! I know I did 🤣
I always use the buckets, I also use a tumbling composter in the same way.
@@pyrowaxart4020 Hi! Welcome! If you have a system that works for you then that’s the best way to do it! 🪱🪱
I'm on day 3 and a few days ago my thermometer was at 113! I'm using a canner pot. Nit too big, not too small and can carry it. Today it's dropping to 95 so will mix and add more slush. So excited to get this ready for some worms! Thanks for showing us the "how to"! How long do I do this?
Excellent! Congratulations 🎊!
Theoretically you can do the cycles as many times as you want. That said I only do 2 cycles maximum as I didn’t see any additional pre-compost changes with additional cycles that was worth the work. Besides the pre-compost biota will continue to work after the cycles are completed 👍. 🪱
By the way, we find on our outdoor compost pile that the hottest temperatures are in the centre near the top. You are sticking that probe very close to the bottom.
~ Sandra
Hi Sandra! Hubby and I had talked about just that over dinner! I was putting the temperature probe too deep and hitting the ‘5th wall’ - the bottom of the bin where it would be cooler. It’s against my table top, not the ground. Thanks you so much for pointing that out!
I love, love, love the brilliant "burrito roll up" of the shred layer. That's so manageable.
Hi Denae! I’m glad you like it! I do too ❤. It’s wonderful when we find an easy way to do things - especially something we’re going to be doing a lot!
This has been so helpful. I have mine up to 119. I’m so happy. Thank you so much.😊
Hi Patti! That’s excellent!! You’re well into the thermophilic range! Yours going to have super duper bedding for your worms 🪱🤗
Thanks so much for updating us on your progress 👍
Hmmm, I'm wondering if you had much smaller pieces of carbon material, say like coco coir, the activity would drastically increase. What do you think?
Hey again 😊. It’s about balance. You need some level of chunkier bits in the bedding to have air pockets, keep things from compacting too much and with food, to keep it from clumping and turning anaerobic/smelly.
Some coco coir or peat moss is perfectly fine. I don’t know that a very large amount is a good idea though. I also will say that for me at least, I’d have to buy peat moss or coco coir and I’d rather make the free pre-compost and use that even if it means less cocoons. I go thru ALOT of bedding so costs would add up fast! I’ll also point out that I add in sifted cow manure to make my basic bedding and that’s pretty fine particle stuff, similar to peat moss and coco coir in size.
Wait. I’m just realizing I’m not sure what activity you’re actually referring to! 🤷♂️. Do you mean worm activity like I was thinking or do you mean biota activity as in the pre-compost breaking down faster? Please clarify 😊
Regardless, the buying vs free reason would still stand 😎
Would the amount insulation, cardboard vs plastic be the temperature variation? Might be interesting to insulate one bin with old sleeping bag or blankets and not the other with the same bedding to see how much temperature difference. 😎
Hi Jim! With these specific pre-compost totes I think the temperature differences were due to a few factors. First, with the white tote having the plastic bag top instead of the burrito shred top there wasn’t enough air exchange happening. I basically never used a plastic topper again. It was an experiment and I’m glad I found out it doesn’t work nearly as well as the carbon shred topping.
Secondly the white tote did have way less volume than the blue tote until this video where I fixed that. As you probably know, traditional compost piles are significantly bigger than these totes. The mass helps keep the environment bacteria friendly - hot and moist. These size totes generally top out at 113 degrees or so. Which is still pretty darn good! And the breakdown and biota growth is very worm friendly 👍🪱.
I can’t recall if it’s before or after this Part 4 but I also did have some dry pockets of material and when I hit those with the temperature probe the temperature dropped drastically as would have been expected if I had known about the dry spots! 🤣.
Back to your insulation thoughts though - I do think insulation could help speed things along. As I mentioned heat is what the bacteria loves! I honestly doubt that I’ll try insulating one tote vs another as my ambient temps here in southeast Florida just don’t make it necessary so I’m not sure I’d see any significant differences. Worm wranglers in cold climates may though and you bring up a good idea for someone in that situation to try! Thanks for that! If anyone does try insulating totes, please share!!
❤️👍🪱
Good call, Jayne. The increased mass should do wonders to get it going stronger.
~ Sandra
I certainly hope so 🤞
you know how you collect all food juices for your compost can you use pickle juice? being mostly vinegar im very curious the whole composting thing is very new to me but im trying to make some
@@rodelaboxers I do use all my food juices 💕. I have indeed added leftover pickle juice to my pre- compost, most often when it’s already cooking as opposed to at start up. And I don’t add a lot. I just splash the juice over the top of the pre-compost willy nilly 😝. It hasn’t seemed to be a problem.
Do you have composting worms? 🪱
@@RockinWorms ty:)) yes i have rw:)
@@rodelaboxers 🤩🪱🪱
Question for you: Do you have fruit pureed along with vegetables in the liquid Jayne? What I am thinking is the sugars from fruit help with activating the bacteria. Am I understanding that correctly? I have not started hot composting but I absolutely want to get to where I am doing what you are. You absolutely are dialing in what I am after. ~Denae
Hi again ❤. I use both veggies and fruits - whatever I have on hand. The sweeter fruits will certainly be a microbial favorite and move the bin forward a bit quicker. You understand perfectly! Keep us posted when you finally are able to give this process a try!
Watched all your videos although I must say I've skimmed through them on this topic. I'm still a bit confused as to how long this composting process takes before it is ready for the worms
Hi Natalie! The shortest time frame to being worm ready is to make the recipe of shredded cardboard/paper, coffee grounds, and vegetable liquid. Mix it up thoroughly every few days. When the temperature rises and then cools back to below 90 degrees you can use it in your worm bin.
You get a better result however if you do 2 heating and cooling stages and throw in some yeast if you have it.
The bottom line is that anything you can do to jump start the decomposition process of the bedding AND critically have it be stable (not actively composting above 90 degrees) is a good thing. I say 90 degrees because red wigglers really start to struggle (die by being cooked) above 95 degrees so give yourself a little space on the maximum temperature 🤒.
Does this help?
So if it smells, add more carbon and mix? Right?
Yes! Adding more carbon will do a few things. 1) It’ll soak up any excess moisture and 2) the very act of mixing it in will add air into the compost, eliminating anaerobic pockets, which is what’s making it smell. You got it! 🪱🪱🪱
Where do you get your shredded paper from? I use large bits of cardboard as I have no shredder
Hello! I do have shredders - a cross cut and a micro cut. They are great tools for worm keeping. You might want to check out marketplace or local swaps or thrift stores, etc.
I get the actually paper from junk mail and sale flyers. The cardboard is mostly from big box and warehouse stores. Plus Amazon boxes.
Larger pieces of cardboard will compost but it will take significantly longer unfortunately. There’s a school I’ve read where they soak the cardboard first and then have kids that are in time out rip it into small pieces. That’s one way to do it! ❤️🪱🪱
For composting, more nitrogen raises the temperature and more carbon lowers the temperature. If you would just add more coffee grounds and water without adding more cardboard, your temperature would go up quite a bit.
Hi K H! Yes that’s true. However if the nitrogen gets too high vs the carbon it can start to stink. And no one wants that inside the house 😊. Adding yeast will accomplish a heat rise without any chance of smelling.
There’s lots of ways to run the pre-composting bins and it’s great that we can find the way that best suits our own circumstances! Having a starting point framework is what I’m hoping to give people. Tweaking is totally encouraged.
Thanks so much for watching and posting!
You called it. Mass and nitrogen. Shredded cardboard is notoriously hard to keep at temp. The C:N ratio is like 400-500:1 so it burns through nitrogen really fast. I have to add coffee 2-3 times during a 30 day period if I’m trying to do it fast.
I’ll be adding more nitrogen soon too. And I read about adding yeast - like the yeast you bake bread with - to zoom up the microbial count. I’m going to do that on the next cream bin check in I think.
@@RockinWorms you could save a couple gallons of your finished bedding and mix it in to your next batch as a starter. All the microbes will already be present.
@@itsasickness4939 Absolutely! You’re totally right on that and it’s a great add to a new bin - if you have it. I do have several gallons of finished bedding still from my previous bins I did exactly how I’m doing it for the videos. I plan on saying exactly what you just said but a little further along 👍. I’m doing this series as if this is my first time - as many of my viewers are - and using ‘commonly available’ resources to make the pre-composting happen. We all start from scratch in the beginning ❤️
Won't the liquid you put on the bedding start to smell?
Hi Louis! That’s a legitimate question for sure! The answer is no, if you have a good balance of carbon and nitrogen, with the active biota, and the material is very moist or damp but not pooling liquid wet. It’s the pooled liquid that can and does smell, which usually happens in the bottom corners of the tote. It smells sour. But it’s easily remedied by aerating/turning/mixing the materials up. Which should be done every several days in the beginning of making the pre-compost.
I’ll say it again as it’s important. It’s a balancing act. If there’s not enough liquid (aka the material is dry) there will be little to no active composting happening. The biota need moisture to breed and do their job. If there’s too much liquid then that liquid sits uselessly in pools and starts to ferment and because it’s on the bottom under all the material, there’s little to no air in that liquid and it goes anaerobic (aka smells bad).
It’s a little bit of an art! You’ll find the right balance for your specific mix of materials after a few totes. Then you’ll push the boundaries of too wet or too dry (that’s me looking in a mirror! 🙄) and then make the tweaks to get it just right nearly every time!
Of the 2 choices, too wet or too dry, I choose taking the chance on too wet. I’m more likely to get anaerobic smells at the bottom but it’s tolerable to me for the short time I’m smelling sour. And the composting process is moving forward actively. If it’s really too wet, I add in more carbon to soak up the extra moisture. No big deal. However if the mix is too dry the whole process grinds down to nearly halted. And I NEED that pre-compost! Not having it is a bigger hindrance to me than dealing with a little smell for a few minutes. But that’s my choice. If having any smell at all is a real problem, then do error on the dry side. Just know that the process will take a little longer. Ok? ❤️🪱🪱
Another question: Do you stir the bin every day over the whole period of composting or only the first couple of days when checking in for the moisture?
Hello! I mix the bin up very very thoroughly when I make it. Or at least I try too, as we all saw that I sure missed alot of pockets this time around 🤣.
Then I let it sit and heat up - checking temperature every day to make sure it is heating up as non heating signals something needs to be adjusted. When the temperature starts to fall, that’s when I mix it all up again. There’s often small pockets of anaerobic bacteria on the bottom and in the corners that smell a little sour. Just mix it all in. At this point decide if you want to do another heat and cool cycle or let it cool completely and use as is.
At whatever point I decide to not do any more heat and cool cycles I give it one more thorough mixing. From there I mix it up and add moisture (usually liquid from canned veggies) every 3-4 weeks, until I use it up.
FYI, the final cool down can take weeks, especially if you got some really good heat results. The bacteria will keep right on working, at cooler temps and at a slower pace, but working none the less.
The blue bin still has a few pockets of 113 degrees. Most is around 107 or 105. Edges are 86 or so. I just turned it 2 days ago.
Oh, here’s a tip! If you have a 2nd bin that’s at least the same size, move the pre-compost by large handfuls, aerating it as you go, into the other bin. This way the top moves to the bottom, moisture will redistribute through the bin by gravity, and it SO MUCH faster and easier than mixing in place in the first bin.
Thanks for watching and asking questions!! Questions help us all!
@@RockinWorms Thanks for your reply. Thought I had to mix it up every day over the whole period... My temperature was getting down quiet fast and I didn't know why... Probably due to to much mixing/air. I added your yeast mix and it's heating up again as it should. So now I won't be mixing the bin that much any more ... lol.
@@moestuinmams Mixing in air will cool the mixture down. If there’s active microbes it’ll heat up again but overall it’ll slow down the process. And there’s really no need to do that much work! Please keep us posted on your progress!!
Thanks for your video. I love seeing different ways to start worm bedding. I use a large plastic Folgers coffee can that I toss in my food waste into with coffee grounds and let it compost until the next feeding. Then I add the shredded cardboard and paper to it and then feed. I'm going to start breeding them soon and your precomposting method looks good. I think I'll try it.
I thought de 4 components for composting were: carbon, nitrogen, liquid and air so the microbiology could do its work. Or am I wrong? I would start indoor wormcomposting in autumn so I would have wormcastings in spring to start of my seedlings for my kitchen garden.
Hello! Yes you are right! Air is essential for the type of composting we want - without it we do get decomposition but the anaerobic kind. Stinky with harmful off gassing. I talk about needing air when I talk about compaction - but not in the clear way you are saying. I will correct that! Thanks so much for pointing that out!
Also, fall/early winter is a great time to start an indoor pre-composting bin if you’re in a cold winter area. Good suggestion ❤️. I’m in the warm winter south so I need it for my garden almost year round. The super heat of the summer is when I can build up my stockpile of compost and castings.
@@RockinWorms It can in deed be cold out here in winter. We then have about -15° Celcius (South of Belgium).
What is biotta? I'm sure it's not spelled right, but I'm sure you understand what I'm referring to. I've been composting for 30+ years and never heard that term before. I'm definitely not scientific, but I recognize the composting terms when I hear them. Looking forward to learning something. Thanks
Hi Rickjay! Biota - It’s a term I came across that basically refers to all the microorganisms/microbiology that lives in the composting and worm ecosystem. So bacteria, fungi, mold, etc plus other micro animals - springtails, mites, etc.
I don’t recall where I read it but I do think it was a research type paper. There’s so much life going on that to just talk or refer about ‘bacteria’ seems like it’s not accounting for or recognize all the other life forms making the system work.
Thanks for asking! I should have defined what I meant by the term long ago! 🪱❤️🪱
@@RockinWorms Great Question/Answer - greatly appreciated!
@@RockinWorms I’ve been composting quite some time and have never heard of biota. But it makes total sense to have a word that includes all the deferent composting organisms as a group. Thanks for the information it’s fun to learn I am enjoying your channel. There is so much grate information . thanks for sharing your knowledge.
@@jimwyatt6652 I agree with having an all encompassing word like biota. I read it somewhere and thought exactly as you did - it just makes sense 👍.
Thanks for watching ❤️. I look forward to more comments from you ❤️👍🪱
Do you ever do a pH reading on these?
Hi Mark! No I don’t. I don’t have a pH meter and I’m a little leary on how accurate they are anyway.
Cardboard has a pH of 8.0 - 9.5 (alkaline), used coffee ground are around 6.5 a 6.8 (slightly acidic) and mixed fruit and veggie slurry will vary depending on the type of fruits and veggies used of course but will almost always be acidic. So…. I’m kinda betting on it all balancing out near the neutral zone or at least not being overly acidic or overly alkaline.
Then of course I add it into a worm bin after it’s been cooked and cooled. The worm bin itself has a pH and I add calcium, dolomite lime, etc to keep the bin in a neutral range. Hopefully! I keep an eye on worm and bin creature behaviors and populations to clue me in if the bin pH is moving too far in one direction or the other.
If you happen to have a pH meter and make the pre-compost very similarly to how I do I’d love to hear what your reading come in at! 😍🪱👍
❤😊🪱👍💞🙏🥀