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Sara
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- Stevens Point, WI
- United States
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Sara's Discussions
softened water ok to use?
4 Replies
Started this discussion. Last reply by Eve Oct 28.
Sara's Groups
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Eisenia Fetida Farmers
44 members
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Stackable Flow Through...
72 members
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Indoor Vermicomposters
117 members
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Eisenia Hortensis Wormers
19 members
My Worm Diary
Latest Activity
One additional bit of advise.
Water softeners are set to flush the filter system. Salt is flushed into the resin chamber to remove the built up hard water deposits. Usually in the middle of the night. It is very important to not run water when th...
I agree with Rom about the need to add water. But is depends on whether to container is closed or not.
I have a bin system that is now closed for the winter months (although we have almost summery conditions at present) and there is lots of water...
Aside from Robert's comments (I have a water softener at home too and I agree, if it's safe for you it should not be a problem in a worm bin) about it being safe, my outside water line does not go through the water softener. There is not a lot of ...
The softening system doesn't add salt to the water. The salt is used the maintain the softener exchanger (a bit complicated without a chemistry background). The softener exchanges things like lime for water. It is intended to protect boilers and t...
I am moving from a house that had chlorinated city water to a house that has a well and water softener. I knew how to deal with the chlorination but am unsure how to deal with softened water. I believe sodium/salt is used to soften the water so ca...
http://www.biconet.com/biocontrol/nemasSFeltiae.html
Beneficial Nematodes - Steinernema feltiae
Attacks primarily immature flies, including mushroom flies, fungus gnats, and crane flies. This nematode is unique in maintaining infectivity at soil ...
Susan, it’s been a number of years but I lived in HI at one time. As I recall they have very strict import rules and perhaps your bananas are treated with an extra dose of pesticide before they are shipped to HI to be sure no bugs come with the fr...
I had an awful infestation of tiny flies but I don't know if they were of the fruit, fungus or drain variety. All I know is that I tried a few home remedy angles that didn't really control them the way I needed them to be controlled. I needed to g...
Comment Wall (6 comments)
- At 9:12pm on February 12, 2009,
Sara said…
- I just added a 3rd tray a day ago. I set it up a week ago and let it ripen before adding it to the stack and I already have worms squirming up to take advantage of the yummy treats in the new tray. I was concerned that the worms were feeling crowded so I wanted to make sure they had a little more room to expand. It looked like the cocoon production was down and it probably is a little but after digging through my 2 older bins earlier tonight I saw a number of cocoons so now I'm less concerned.
I have soooo many baby worms right now of all sizes. Some are tiny & newly hatched and others have been taking advantage of all the goodies I've added over the last month and appear to be growing by the day. The worms are eating well and appear happy and healthy. I'm pleased with how the trays are developing and I hope to have some pictures to share soon.
- At 7:35pm on January 19, 2009,
Sara said…
- I now have 2 trays on my Worm Factory. My first tray I started in November and the 2nd tray I added in the last few weeks. Last night I dug through my first tray and found many baby worms happily hanging out in the last places I recently fed and there are lots more cocoons waiting to hatch. There were some mature worms but not very many in that tray so I was relieved to see that many of them had decided the newer 2nd try was a good place to hang out.
The first tray looks drastically different from what I started with. All I could think as I dug through it was how amazing this process has been. It’s been approximately 2 months and the change is staggering. The bin isn’t ready to harvest. There is still some bedding material that will take a while to break down but the worms are definitely doing their job. They are mating, eating the food I provide for them and the cocoons they lay are hatching.
I was so worried when I started that they wouldn’t do well that I’m a mixture of thrilled and relieved that to date, all seems to be going well.
- At 11:17pm on December 30, 2008,
Christy Ruffner said…
- Sara, I enjoy making videos on worm bin composting. Only wish I had more time. I plan on doing more. I have additional videos you may find interesting on YouTube. www.youtube.com/cruff93154
- At 7:27pm on December 30, 2008,
Sara said…
- I am using this as my personal worm diary so thought I should start logging some milestones. I started my worm bin over a month ago with one pound of Euros and when I look at the picture I took just a short while after starting my bin versus how it looks today I'm absolutely amazed.
Let me start from the beginning. When I found my first cocoons I was so excited that I marked the occasion by taking pictures. I have yet to figure out how to take pictures of worms since they scurry from the light so I haven't tried in a while but hope to try again soon. It’s a lot harder than it sounds to get lights, charged camera and worms all in the same place.
Tonight I went through my bin to see what I could see and found many cocoons and lots of happy worms. I was amazed that the section of the bin that I previously committed to vast amounts of coffee grounds and filters is now largely eaten. I found no evidence of the filters and a few clumps of grounds so I broke them up and spread them around. I also found a few baby worms which was really cool. Much of the bedding I put in the bin has either been turned into vermicompost or is well on its way to breaking down so the worms can eat it. I've decided to start putting together a new tray so it's ready to put on the working tray in a week or two. This may be premature so those that are more experienced please let me know if I should hold off on doing this for a while.
I feed my worms most of what we don’t eat. I do a lot of cooking and we hardly ever eat out so my boyfriend and I produce lots of fruit & veggie peels, tea bags, coffee grounds, pizza crusts & egg shells. I usually cook veggie peels & egg shells for a few minutes in the micro and grind it all up in the blender before dumping it in the bin. I had too much the last time I blended so I filled some paper egg cartons and put them in the freezer. I’ve fed them some of those and they seem to be as well received as the freshly blended batch so that is good to know for when I need to feed during a busy week. I gathered some leaves this past fall and add a few of those as needed and will use them to start my new tray.
I’m glad to have a place to share and am really glad there are so many experienced vermicomposters on this site willing to share their knowledge. I know the information on this site has helped me make a happy home for my worms and I look forward to checking in on it regularily. Thanks for all the help!
- At 9:00am on December 5, 2008,
Drue said… - am i supposed to be keeping my bin lit at night??? i'm definitely a work in progress here.
- At 12:43pm on December 4, 2008,
Drue said…
- hi sara
i saw that you were online. so i thought i'd say hello. i'm out in findlay, ohio. this is my first winter with worms. I just last week moved them up from the basement to the laundry room. hope all is well with your crawlers
drue
Profile Information
- When did you start composting with worms?
- November 22, 2008
- How were you introduced to vermicomposting?
- The Worm Book
- What do your worms like to eat?
- potato peels, apple cores/peels, celery, lettuce, banana peels
- What kinds of worms do you have?
- European Nightcrawlers & Eisenia fetida
- What worm bins do you use?
- The Worm Factory & rubbermaid bin
- How many pounds of garbage do your worms recycle each week?
- 1
- About Me:
- Worms are doing well & working hard eating my garbage. Go WORMS!!
Sara's Photos
Sara's Blog
Cool Day
Today I showed my worm bins to my Mom. She's a pretty cool lady and as I've said before, my love of worms comes from my parent’s love of worms, gardening, nature, fishing, etc. My snowbird parents were passing through town on their way to their house in the northwoods so they stopped by to see me (and the worms).
I showed mom the bins and she was intrigued and liked seeing all the little baby worms. She thought they were cute. She already quizzed me about them over the phone after she saw Dad's… Continue
I showed mom the bins and she was intrigued and liked seeing all the little baby worms. She thought they were cute. She already quizzed me about them over the phone after she saw Dad's… Continue
Posted on May 13, 2009 at 5:55pm —
Marching into May
April has come and gone and my bins have progressed back to normalcy since the mass suicide. A week ago I had two bins filled with tons of Euro babies and juveniles but hardly any adults. To fulfill my birthday promise to my father I bought 1 pound of Euro adults from Bentley. They arrived last Thursday in good shape. They were added to the bin I started for my parents and are still settling in. They aren't leaving in droves like my Euros did when the suicide occurred but rather are just wanderi… Continue
Posted on May 7, 2009 at 7:12pm —
March update
Well, I was finally able to take some decent pictures of my worms. My father's birthday was a few days ago and I needed to get the pictures taken so I could mail him a CD to inform him that he will be a partial benefiary of my new worming hobby. I told him I will set him up with his own worm bin this summer and this bin (his b-day present) awaits his return to WI (he currently spends his winters in a much warmer & sunnier state). This bin of his own will allow him to harvest all the worms he… Continue
Posted on March 17, 2009 at 8:10pm —
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