I have had my Worm farm on the balcony for just over a year, its been nice to take out the Veg leftovers and putting them in the bin and letting the red worms do their thing.
Although I don't actually have enough space to put the newly generated soil, it just seamed like a key part of my mini balcony eco farm system.
But now I cant wait to get rid of it..... and others take WARNING....
I have had an on going health issue for about 3 months, now im a vegetarian and eat pretty healthy don't smoke and keep reasonably fit, I kept getting a really bad cough followed by itch eyes and flu symptoms, it came way to often and started to get concerned so a trip to the Doctors for the usual anti viral med's, but nothing worked, this followed by weekly blood test, of which all were clear.
After some detective work at home I realized I was getting sick on a Monday, so process of elimination i narrowed down to chores I did on a Monday, and taking them weekly scrapes out to the worm bin was an unlikely cause, but guess what, seams like its quiet common to get "Compost Lungs" a bacteria spore that causes my exact symptoms and is quiet common also with Mushroom growers.
So if you have been suffering a constant cough, it may be your compost bin, this can be cured by wearing a dust mask when you attend it but I have decided to take mine out of the equation, and get well again.
Some other people with same symptoms from a worm farm LINK
Check Wikipedia for more details " Compost Lungs"
wow. I had no clue.
ReplyDeleteGreat to know Dean, and hope you get feeling better.
I hope you got better. But anyway keep the good job with your projects!
ReplyDeletejust out of curiosity...do you use %100 organic vegetables and other matter in your bin? (i dont use %100) im wondering if pesticides and waxes from some of your produce is possibly being undigested by the worms and becoming airborne? what do you think? its just a thought....
ReplyDeleteActually, the pesticides and inorganic products of 'standard' kitchen waste would tend to kill the fungus. Completely organic mixes would make the lung eating critters stronger. Let's face it, Nature's indifference to us can be deadly! Not nearly as deadly as some of the toxins we've created for ourselves, but potent, nonetheless....
DeleteThanks for the warning! I was considering creating one but I think I'll pass on this at this time....
ReplyDeleteI have had a worm bin for many years and have never had a problem. The benefits of composting my kitchen scraps and having the rich vermicompost for my garden are wonderful. It takes a lot of organic material out of the waste stream thereby reducing toxins in the landfill, a benefit for the planet.
ReplyDeleteGood job!Unknown.
ReplyDelete