Can compost worms withstand the heat?

The answer is simple: compost worms cannot withstand the heat. Outside temperatures above 30 degrees Celsius can be disastrous. Especially in a dark worm box that is in full sun, the temperature can easily rise to above 40 degrees. From 35 degrees, they will really try to flee from your worm bin en masse to survive. And in the worst case, die.

At normal summer temperatures, up to 28 degrees, it is enough to keep the container out of the sun. If it gets extremely hot or very hot for longer periods (more than 30 degrees), take some extra precautions.

Keep your worm bin cool with these tips

• Put your worm bin in the shade or inside.
• Choose a worm box with plant ring and keep the soil moist. The plants provide shade and the moist soil cools the worm box.
• Don’t have a plant ring? Then remove the lid from your worm bin so that it does not scald in the worm bin.
• Don’t have a shady spot? Improvise a shade cloth of some clothesline and an old sheet. Or put it over your worm bin and moisten it occasionally. The evaporation cools the container.
• Use such a reflective screen for car windscreens to cover your worm bin.
• Give your worms less or no food and remove any excess damp waste: you want to keep the container on the dry side so that it does not scald.
• If it gets really extreme: put a cooling element (wrapped in an old cloth) in your worm bin.

The Balkonton Classic and the Façade Box offer the worms sufficient protection

Make sure that the soil where the plants are in remains nice and moist. The Balkonton worm tower with plant cover also stays reasonably cool, especially if you have an off white model and keep the plant ring continuously moist.

For all other worm boxes: Protect your worms from the heat with the tips above. Where the temperature in a black worm bin rises clearly faster than in a lighter colored worm box.