[Janeymiddlewife]

Help:-

for the last 3 weeks when I've checked my wormery, there are 3 or 4 adult tiger worms and about a dozen babies, all trying to escape. :shock:
I've emptied the sump, added lime & shredded newspaper. The bin doesn't smell, it's in the garage out of the cold, I feed them once a week, had it for 11 months, it's very heavy for its size - it's a basic wheelie bin type wormery with a drainage tap, and one separator above the sump.
There appear to be quite a few worms in it, but I've been disappointed there's very little wormcast.

- what more can i do?

Ta,
JMW

[Kate and her Ducks]

Don't really know, I have a very similar problem with my wormery. Find that it takes a really, really long time to get any compost and it sometimes gets quite wet and waterlogged. I keep persisting with it due to it's big capacity but also have one of the "Can-of-worms" ones which has circular stacking trays and in my opinion is loads better. Drains much better, the worms seem happier and not trying to escape and it is easy to empty the wormcast from the bottom tray when done without having to empty the whole thing. Only downside is that the capacity is not as good.

To be honest I am thinking of getting rid of the wheelie bin one and just getting more trays for the Can-of-worms.

[woodburner]

I started up a wormery in a bokashi bin last year, with worms from a compost bin. I started it for the sake of worms for the chooks rather than the compost, as I get quite a bit of composting stuff from the chooks. After a couple of weeks I gave up on 'only adding a little at a time'; they get about an inch of peelings a week and seem to be thriving on it. It is filling up slowly, lots of 'wee'; I figure this is normal as plant material is over 90% water, and the only woody material is cardboard/paper, and I haven't given them much of that.
The only thing that is worrying me at all about them is that they seem bigger and plainer than the ones, that I put in, and I'm wondering if I'm keeeping it too wet for the stripey ones, and these are 'the other sort' (eisinia foetidia?), though I suppose if they are doing well and doing the job as it were, it doesn't really matter. 

[Frecks]

Your post brought back memories.    My worms broke out from their packaging in the local post office before the postie set out on her round.  I got a semi-hysterical SOS - 'please come and get them, they're wriggling all over the counter!'  As it was a very small village, I became known to the entire population as 'the mad  Sassanach woman who buys worms'  The survivors stayed put once I'd got them home though.

[Poolfield2]

 

[richyrich7]

If it's dark in the garage then that will encourage them to escape, they can't abide light.
Worm breeders keep lights on above their breeding pens to stop escapee's 

[woodburner]

If it's dark in the garage then that will encourage them to escape, they can't abide light.
Worm breeders keep lights on above their breeding pens to stop escapee's 

Thanks for that tip. As I'm soon to transfer them to larger less escape proof quarters, it's good to know they can be 'restrained'.