Top 8 worm farm problems and how to solve them

Common worm farming problems include the worms getting too hot, drying out. being fed too much, the worm farm becoming too wet or choosing the wrong bedding. Solve these problems by keeping your worm farm in a shaded spot, keeping the farm moist with a worm blanket and only feeding your worms 1-2 handfuls of scraps at at time.

Worm farm problems and solutions

Worm Farm Problem	Solution
Temperature is too hot	Place in full shade, cover with shade cloth or place in a well ventilated garage.
Choosing the wrong type of food	Only add vegetable and fruit scraps or whole fruit to your worm farm or bedding material like straw, hay, sugar cane mulch or coconut coir.
Over feeding	Remove some of the food. Move the excess food scraps to the compost bin. Add shredded newspaper, straw or sugar cane mulch to the top of the worm farm.
The weather is too cold	Use a thick layer of straw, or sugar cane mulch. This will keep any heat in your worm farm and protect your worms. Cover your worm farm with a lid.
Choosing the wrong bedding	Mix shredded paper, coconut coir, old potting mix or compost in a bucket or wheelbarrow first. Add this to the bottom of your worm farm at least 3-4 inches deep and then add the worms.
Ants, flies and mice	Add sugar cane mulch or straw mulch on top of the fruit scraps. Choose a worm farm with a tight sealing lid.
Too acidic	Remove citrus food and add other materials like straw, leaves and sugar cane mulch.
Too wet	If your worm farm has become too wet, the easy solution is to add sugar cane mulch, shredded paper or dry leaves to the top. This will absorb the excess water.

Many problems with worm farms can be easily solved and to your worms productive and happy. Feeding your worms too much food is a problem that is easily fixed by removing the food and adding sugar cane mulch. This will also help to solve pest problems such as ants and flies and smells.

This article will cover the top 8 worm farm problems and how to solve them cheaply and easily.

Top 8 worm farm problems and how to solve them

1. Temperature is too hot

One of the biggest problems worm farmers can face is where the worm farm becomes too hot. A hot day where your worm farm sits in the sun can be enough to dry it out and the worms can be lost. Worm farms are often made from recycled black plastic so will heat up very quickly if they are in direct sun which is a big problem for your worms.

The optimum temperature for worms is around 65-75 degrees Fahrenheit (18-24 degrees Celsius).Worms will bury deeper into the worm farm to find damp bedding and keep cool.

The way to solve the problem of your worm farm becoming too hot is to place it in an area of your garden that gets full shade. Finding a corner of your garden, side of your house or under a tree where your worm farm will stay in the shade will stop the sun from shining directly on it and stop it from heating up.

Adding water to your warm farm in the morning before the weather warms can prevent them from overheating. On very warm days make sure you check your worm farm and keep the worm blanket damp with cool water sprayed on with a watering can or garden hose.

2. Choosing the wrong type of food

Feeding your worms the wrong types of food can cause lots of problems in your worm farm. They can attract rats, mice and even dogs. Worms love anything that has grown in the ground like fruit and vegetables but other foods are not a great idea. Here is a list of foods that will cause problems in your worm farm.

Food Type	Problem
Meat, poultry and fish	Can attract pests and cause your worm farm to smell
Dairy products	Will go moldy and cause your worm farm to smell
Breads, cereals and cookies	Attracts pests such as mice and rats
Coffee grounds	Can add chemicals and make the worm farm too acidic

Add vegetable and fruit scraps or whole fruit to your worm farm for your worms to eat. They will eat both the organic matter from the food scraps and worm bedding as well as the fungi and bacteria that come to break the food down.

For faster results and to help your worms to break down the food quicker, cut it up into smaller pieces to increase the surface area. Cover the food scraps with dry fall leaves for extra carbon and to absorb the water from

3. Over feeding

Adding too much food to your worm farm is a big problem and can cause the worm farm to become too wet, acidic, smelly and can attract pests like ants or flies. Adding too many food scraps to your worm farm is a common problem but there is an easy solution.

The easy way to solve the problem of overfeeding is to start by removing some of the food. Move the excess food scraps to the compost bin. Then add some extra shredded newspaper, straw or sugar cane mulch to the top of the worm farm.

Leave a small amount of food in the worm farm and check them for the next few days. See how much food the worms can eat through and you can add more as they need it. Add a small amount of food more often until you get to know how much your worms can eat.

4. The weather is too cold

When the weather gets below 60 degrees Fahrenheit you can have problems in your worm farm. Worms can tolerate temperatures between 60-80 degrees Fahrenheit with the ideal being between 65-75 degrees.

To keep red wigglers happy over winter keep your worm farm insulated with bedding material. Use a thick layer of straw, or sugar cane mulch. This will keep any heat in your worm farm and protect your worms. Keeping the worm farm covered to prevent frost or snow from falling directly onto your worm farm.

Worms are very hardy and will survive cold weather if you keep them covered and fed. Check out this video for more.

5. Choosing the wrong bedding

Adding the wrong type of bedding to your worm farm when you set it up or add an extra layer to your worm tower can cause lots of problems. If worms don’t like the bedding you have chosen they can try to escape your worm farm or can dry out and die. Filling your worm farm with a lot of dry material can be a problem.

The best way to set up your worm farm with the best worm bedding is to mix different bedding types together. Mix shredded paper, coconut coir, old potting mix or compost in a bucket or wheelbarrow first. Add this to the bottom of your worm farm at least 3-4 inches deep and then add the worms.

Cover the top of your worm farm with a layer of sugar cane mulch or straw to give them some extra organic matter to chew through and add extra air to your worm farm. Make sure the worm bedding is moist and covered with a worm blanket. This will create the perfect environment for your worms to live and they will slowly eat through the bedding.

TIP: Mushroom compost is a great option for worm farms. It is a cheap compost option available from hardware stores or garden centers and provides a rich bedding for them to make their home.

6. Pests – Ants, flies and mice

Pest problems are caused by overfeeding your worms and adding the wrong types of foods. Adding carbohydrate based foods like breads and cereals as well as meats and dairy will attract pest insects to your worm farm.

I have noticed that fruit will always attract ants to my worm farm if I add it on its own. If carbohydrate based foods are added like bread, this will also attract ants. If I have added too many food scraps to my worm farm they start to rot and smell and attract flies.

The solution to deterring ants from the fruit in your worm farm is to add sugar cane mulch or straw mulch on top of the fruit scraps. This seems to stop ants from coming into my worm farm and eating the fruit.

If you find that you have mice or rats in your area then a lid for your worm farm is essential. If you have bought your worm farm then it should come with a lid, just make sure you attach it properly.

If you have made your own worm farm out of a Styrofoam box, then look for a piece of plywood to place on the top. This will stop mice from getting in while also shading your worms. Drill a few small holes in the top for airflow.

7. Worm farm is too wet

Adding too much water with your hose, adding very wet food scraps or excess rain can cause your worm farm to become too wet. If you live in an area with mild weather and you are adding the right amount of food scraps then your worm farm will keep balance and not become too wet.

This problem can also be caused if you forget to open the tap at the bottom of your worm farm or the hole becomes blocked. If the worm farm is too wet, it can become starved of oxygen.

If your worm farm has become too wet, the easy solution is to add sugar cane mulch, shredded paper or dry leaves to the top. This will absorb the excess water. Stop adding food scraps for a few days until your worm farm dries out.

The best way to make sure your worm farm is draining well is to keep the tap open and leave a bucket underneath to catch the worm juice. This will make sure that your worm farm is always able to let excess water out the bottom.

8. Too Acidic

Feeding worms foods that contain too much acid can be a problem. Coffee grounds can be acidic depending on the bean and it is difficult to tell without testing them. Adding excessive amounts of citrus fruits can also be a problem.

You can tell that your worm farm has become too acidic if it has a sour smell.  A healthy balanced worm farm should have an earthy smell but if it smells bad, it may have become too acidic. You can test the pH of your worm farm using a testing kit to confirm this is the case.

The easy solution to this problem is to keep coffee grounds out of your worm farm and in your compost instead. After they have broken down, you can then add them to your worm farm. If you have excess citrus add them to your compost bin and mix them through with other materials like straw, leaves and sugar cane mulch.

Small amount of citrus added to your worm farm is certainly fine and your worms will eat through these foods over time. Adding too much of any type of food to your worm farm is a problem so remember to keep it all in balance.

Worm farm problems – Summary

This article has covered the main problems that you may face as a new or experienced worm farmer. Worm farms are continually changing and as the weather conditions change and your worm farm grows you can adjust each element to find balance.