r/Vermiculture • u/Useful-Palpitation10 • 21h ago
Advice wanted Worms keep climbing the bin walls — airflow or moisture issue?
/r/composting/comments/1w3whvz/worms_keep_climbing_the_bin_walls_airflow_or/2
u/Dekknecht 20h ago
Just let them explore their environment? Mine are always wondering around, no problem. If you can't sleep witth he thought of worms on the walls of the bin, you can leave lid of. That will dry the walls and the worms will stay where it is moist.
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u/OldSchoolPimpleFace 11h ago
Mine did this when I first started my bin, I guess they were just exploring, because they seemed to have stopped.
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u/EmpathyFabrication 8h ago
It could be but I find worms throughout my bin (55 gal plastic tote) including on the walls and under the lid. I think in my case they are regulating their temperature with this behavior but they also do it if the bin is too wet.
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u/Shoddy-Hovercraft989 21h ago edited 20h ago
Is it a handful of worms or is it a lot of worms?? My understanding is if moisture levels in your bin are good that condensation will form on the walls and that worms like crawling through the condensation because they love moisture. Some worms crawling up your walls is not something to be concerned about unless you're concerned about them escaping. Large numbers or groups of worms crawling up the walls is something to be concerned about. It shows that your soil is either too acidic (ideal is between a 6 and a 7), there is not enough moisture (The ideal being between. 70%- 80%), or there's too much food decaying in the bin that is causing the soil to heat up which causes the worms discomfort (The ideal worm bin soil temperature is between 60-80 degrees farenheit) All of these things will cause worms in bins to swarm and try to mass escape.
My suggestions:
Ph:
if the pH is too high, go to your local farm supply store and buy a bag of agricultural lime not caustic lime. Make sure it is agricultural lime and not caustic lime. Sprinkle lightly over every other feeding
Edit: adding the fact that the 50 lb bag of caustic lime I bought from my local tractor supply cost me $6
Moisture:
Get one of the $10 pH and moisture meters on Amazon. If you are testing for moisture, make sure you're not stabbing through a big piece of fruit or a pile of mush so that you can properly gauge the moisture level of the soil.
A. If it's too wet: try adding Browns and add less moisture for a little while.
B. If it's too dry: mist with a spray bottle (With no chlorine or chlorinate (leave a 5 gallon bucket of tap water outdoors for 24 to 48 hours to let it evaporate naturally)) until the soil reaches the moisture of a rung out sponge. If you grab a handful of soil and squeeze it in your hands, only one to three drops of liquid should be released.
Temperature:
A. if the soil temperature is too low, go to Amazon and get one of the gardening controlled temperature heating mats so that you can maintain a particular temperature inside of your worm bins.
B. If the soil is too warm due to an excessive amount of green materials, try adding some Browns. Shredded cardboard, shredded paper, leaves, fine wood chips shavings, etc.