So, just over 1 ounce per day, means you have approx 2 ounces of worms based on them eating 1/2 weight per day.

At approx 1,000 worms per pound, you have 1,000/16*2= 125 worms.

This is probably reasonable as your 40 should double over 3 months, so 80 in January and you are on your way to 160 in May.

You might want to buy/beg/borrow/steal some more to boost it up a bit.

You are going to need about 1,000 (1lb) to eat 3.5lb per week.

At the current rate you will have 160 in May, 320 in August 640 in November and hit 1,000 around next January. :)

2/6/10
My granddaughter Chloe (age 9) just finished her 10 week science project. The project was a comparison between two (2) worm boxes which were 6 quart plastic containers. Each container was prepared with one (1) pound of Black Kow pasteurized manure (available at LoweÂs), shredded cardboard and worm tea as an inoculate of microbes. Container A started with ten (10) adult worms and Container B started with 20 cocoons. Both boxes were kept together in the house (aver. temp 66F). These boxes were not feed but the moisture level was checked regularly. The results were hand counted by my son and my granddaughter created a poster board for the presentation.
The results:
Container A started with 10 Adult Worms: 12 Adults, 47 Adolescents, and 120 Cocoons
Container B started with 20 Cocoons: 11 Adults, 4 Adolescents, and 38 Cocoons
This old info is reference to reproductive rates and http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/verm/msg1022522012937.html?18 is a calculator for worm reproduction rates. Estimates at best but better than a guess. Chloe's old science project was no guess, my son hand counted the results.
I say skip the #2 tote and go for the flow-thru reactor.

@steamyb: so full test has been done in 10 weeks right?

@gmw1: the number of worm and the reproduction rate is always hard to calculate, but we can estimate it... But keep's in mind that the worms will stop reproducing at one point (when max. worms density is reach for food / space available). A good rule of thumb in vermicomposting that is simpler and more practical, i beleive, and almost always true, is that for each square feet (30 cm x 30 cm) of your worm bin, you will have to feed beetween 0.5 to 1.5 pounds of food per week. You will reach that maximum (1.0 to 1.5 pounds) when the worms has reach his max. population level. Many sources claims that worms can eat half their weight a day (and maybe more), but this doesn't mean that you can feed them with that quantity. This is something that doesn't seem to be clear for many people, and in the practice, the truth is that no one is able to feed 0.5 pound of kitchen waste a day even with 2000 worms, their worm bin will be overfeed after 1 or 2 week.

Well, I am quite sure now I have at least 1 (one) pound of worms, of all sizes. Since they are in the first rubbermaid 10 gallon tote I made into a bin, and I think from what I am reading here in this group I can probably get about 3 pounds of worms in here, (each tote is about 14"X18"X12")there is still room for them to grow.

I have the second tote ready to fix up for a flow thru, and think I will leave it at that, if at all possible, harvesting and giving away worms as necessary. This would give me approximately five pounds of worms, which would handle the 2-3 pounds of kitchen waste we produce, and give a nice buzz to the garden in terms of vermicompost.

Having said that, I did put in four of the worms I found wandering about into a bucket where I had planted squash and watermelon seeds for the summer. One of the squashes, possibly a pumpkin, is now about two feet in the air, straight up! ??? But this was the potato bin I had made up with layers of leaf litter and good potting soil. I figure the four worms I put in there may multiply just fine, and mix up the soil pretty well for the squashes.

I was reading with interest about the phenomenal rate of both consumption and production a flow-thru produces, possibly due to the increased air flow. I think this is pretty good information, and I think I will put my flow thru into service earlier in the summer than I had previously considered. I still have about a third of my leaf litter in there from January, when I replenished the bin, and got in and stirred that up, but do believe I will be harvesting compost by July or August anyway. However, by increasing my worm count and composting rate earlier, I will most likely have a good system in place by wintertime, when I have to bring it into the house for protection. AND by bringing it into a higher rate of consumption earlier, I can hope to realize a 2 pound rate of recycling per week.

gmw1

I wonder if gmw1 is confused about what a flow through bin is. You cannot build a flow through bin out of a 10 gallon tote. Check the thread titled "Phenominal" for a description of how a flow through bin works.

If anyone can breed 40 worms into 1000 (1 lb approx) in 6 months, they probably should write to Mr Guiness.

Also, how come your 1 lb or worms can only eat an average of only 1 ounce per day? Too busy breeding?

Or did I mis-read your statement?

I think we are confusing numbers of worms and biomass. 40 worms can become 3000 worms in 6 months, but most of them will be babies, and the total will not weigh one pound.

I am going to guess that gmw1 started with about 1/10 of a pound of worms and now has at best 1/2 lb of worms, probably less, based on how much they are eating.

It was a 10 week science project.

I've nothing to add but I think these remarks deserve to be moved up the list.
Escpecially the 9 y o science test. It has been 4 years since these messages were posted. Any of the contributors still contributing ? Learned anything since ?