Introduction: Indoor Vermicompost
I needed a compost for my dorm room, and since it snowed it has been difficult to empty my current bin outside. Thus, I decided it was time for worms, as they "eat" food scraps and eliminate the necessity to empty the bin. This is my homemade double-decker compost bin! The stacking is designed so that the castings will sift to the bottom naturally for easy harvesting.
Materials Needed:
(2) 5-Gallon Buckets
(1) Lid
Heavy Duty Utility Blade
Hand Drill
1/4 inch (or similar) Drill Bit
~2 ft^2 of 1/8 in Wire Mesh
Staple Gun
Wire Clippers
The first step is to stack the buckets and drill holes through the sides of both buckets (make sure they stay lined up!). These will be air holes for the worms. I tried to drill the holes as close to the top rim of the bottom bucket as I could so that there would be lots of space for the worms and they wouldn't be at risk of falling out of the air holes.
Next, cut a circular hole in the bottom of the top bucket with the utility blade. Make sure the diameter of the cut hole is smaller than the diameter of the bucket, so there is still some structural support.
Cut a circle out of the wire mesh slightly larger than the hole you just cut and staple the mesh circle on the bottom of the top bucket.
Cut a hole in the lid. This is the hole that will be used to deposit food scraps, so make it as big or small as you like. My hole was approximately 5" x 5". Cut out a piece of wire mesh slightly larger than the hole you just cut and staple it to the lid on one edge. This is mimic a hinge mechanism.
Materials Needed:
(2) 5-Gallon Buckets
(1) Lid
Heavy Duty Utility Blade
Hand Drill
1/4 inch (or similar) Drill Bit
~2 ft^2 of 1/8 in Wire Mesh
Staple Gun
Wire Clippers
The first step is to stack the buckets and drill holes through the sides of both buckets (make sure they stay lined up!). These will be air holes for the worms. I tried to drill the holes as close to the top rim of the bottom bucket as I could so that there would be lots of space for the worms and they wouldn't be at risk of falling out of the air holes.
Next, cut a circular hole in the bottom of the top bucket with the utility blade. Make sure the diameter of the cut hole is smaller than the diameter of the bucket, so there is still some structural support.
Cut a circle out of the wire mesh slightly larger than the hole you just cut and staple the mesh circle on the bottom of the top bucket.
Cut a hole in the lid. This is the hole that will be used to deposit food scraps, so make it as big or small as you like. My hole was approximately 5" x 5". Cut out a piece of wire mesh slightly larger than the hole you just cut and staple it to the lid on one edge. This is mimic a hinge mechanism.
