Upcycled bathtub worm farm

[Upcycler01]

 

 

My father inlaw created this awesome worm farm out of completely recycled materials for me. I know the lid will get hot in summer but I have dampened hessian bags on top of my worms and also a reflective material to help reflect the sun away from the worms. The worms are flourishing and he has even created a second one for me to use at my work. 

[MitchellMc]

Wow, that looks fantastic, @Upcycler01! I'm sure your worms are loving their new setup.

Let me mention one of our worm-rearing aficionados, @mich1972, as I'm sure she'll be keen to check it out. I know she's been using a recycled bath as her worm enclosure for some time now, so she might have some handy tips or issues to look out for.

If you added Strol 0.5m² SurePave Plastic Pavers or drainage gravel in the bottom of the bath with weedmat on top, perhaps you could then insert a ball valve below that line which could be used to harvest the worm pee. I think that's how it works, isn't it? I'm not too familiar with where to harvest the wee, but I presume it's the lower level. It's not recycled, but I knocked up this compost bin/worm farm out of a wheelie bin so we could donate it to a local school. Whoever thought of the idea is a genius.

Many thanks for sharing, and I look forward to your next project.

Mitchell

[Upcycler01]

Thanks for the reply Mitch. I’ve had worm farms for quite a few years now and this is just an upgrade on my old system. I do have drainage in place at the base too with seedling trays to raise up the level and we’d hat on top but I don’t run my farms with too much moisture, it’s just the liquid from the food that’s in the farm so generally I don’t have any excess liquid. I do make worm tea from the casting though. 

[mich1972]

@Upcycler01  This makes my heart happy 😃 Seriously it’s the best way !! I absolutely love it. Well done, you will definitely enjoy the benefits of your Black Gold liquid fertiliser 😊
@MitchellMc  I also love that wheelie bin worm farm as well. 

Unfortunately with the extreme heat wave we had here in Perth , our bathtub worm farm suffered ( even though it is under cover and protected ) these are part of ups and downs with Gardening, working with the Weather conditions. 

[Upcycler01]

I use to have 3 worm farms but the bath tub is fantastic. That’s unfortunate about the heat, we are on the south coast and have been hit with rain but I am hoping in summer they will survive the heat. Good luck if you embark on a new worm farm. 

[Old-gal24]

  @mich1972 @MitchellMc  @Upcycler01 

Another thing on my list of things to get done.  A worm farm, have the compost completed with tumblers.   Spotted your post @MitchellMc  as well as @mich1972  & @Upcycler01   all great posts that I would love to learn more about.  I am very impressed by the one you have made out of the wheely bin Mitchell.  As I have a spare wheely bin or an old bathtub that I could use for this purpose.  BUT I've never had a worm farm before and have consider purchasing one.  BUT feel with out climate it may get too hot.  I have only helped out with the one we have at my local church garden group.  But only really, watering, feeding and utilising the worm tea/pee.  Not actually setting one up.

The thing I like about your creation Mitchell is that I have the wheely bin or small bath that I could use to cut costs down.  It's the finer details you have included to make it a useful/productive unit that I am more interested in. The fittings and how you achieved the end product. 

Is there anything you would change if building this unit again?  e.g the point where you access the compost from the bottom, it is a bit small? Looking to build something that maybe a bit more user friendly for someone of my years, getting down on the ground to access the tea as well as the compost and worm castings.  Oh unless I put it up higher, say on a couple of bessa bricks..  Thinking out loud here.. 

You have all given me some food for thought..

Many thanks for sharing your posts for laymen/women such as myself to learn from.

Old-gal *(again)

[EricL]

HI @Old-gal24 

Have you thought about a worm farm that is easy to manage such as the Tumbleweed Worm Cafe? This worm farm has ventilated lids, Working Trays and a Collector Tray for increased airflow. Ant-proof legs, drip-free tap and hinged-lid for easy feeding. Worm Mound in collector tray to assist worms to travel into the working tray. Unless of course you are generating a large amount of organic waste then a larger worm farm would be ideal. 

If you have any other questions we can help with, please let us know.

Eric

[Old-gal24]

@EricL 

Yes as I mentioned in my earlier post, I have thought about purchasing a https://www.bunnings.com.au/tumbleweed-worm-cafe_p3160013

but haven't due to the extreme heat we get here out West NSW.  BUT I bit the bullet and purchased one a few days back.  My local Church gardening group have a large one made out of an old bath.  All good, but we don't make enough scraps to be able to fill anything that big.

Worms will be my next step after doing a little more research.

Thanks Eric

Old-gal