r/Vermiculture • u/Chumps55 • 6d ago
Advice wanted Pre-compost potential fly infestation vector?
Hi! Recently acquired a new worm farm a handful of days ago so still figuring this out.
My current set up I have is a tumbler compost bin and a 3 tier worm farm/cafe. We’re dumping kitchen scraps into the compost bin with the aim to feed the worms from the composting bin weekly or whatever schedule works out best. Compost is roughly 70-80% browns to greens (lots of shredded cardboard/paper tissues).
Was planning on this setup since Ive read worms tend to prefer slightly decomposed bacteria laden scraps over fresh food.
My concern is I’ve noticed some flies and gants hanging around the compost bin. I suppose its to be expected and its nothing insane and its definitely not infestation levels but it got me wondering if Im setting myself up for failure here. By feeding from the composting bin do I introduce the risk of introducing a bunch of fly larvae into my bin and is there ways to mitigate this?
Or do i just do away with the precompost step and go straight to feeding the worms?
1
u/Prestigious_Way_1877 3d ago
I add springtails and I'm about to add isopods. They directly compete for the same food.
You can also skip both of those options and either order a BTI concentrate and use that to moisten your bedding in order to prevent them from pupating. You can also make a "tea" from a product called mosquito bits or mosquito dunks which also contains BTI.