Vermicompost Bin in the Coop for Winter?

[snailpenguin]

What are your thoughts on moving a vermicompost bin into the chicken coop for winter? (I'd love to not keep it in my basement over the winter...) The bin is a standard set of nested, large heavy duty storage totes.

I have extra space in my coop (7'x8' coop, 7.5' ceilings) with only 5 chickens at the moment (currently debating increasing our flock to 9 but waffling about quarantine, etc...that's all in another post...). The coop is uninsulated, but sturdily constructed of a 2x4 frame with plywood on both inside and outside. We do the deep litter method. The coop floor is raised above the ground (so sits atop an air pocket).

I'm in southeastern PA, where our low temp for the year tends to be about 15-20*F.

1) Will it be too cold for my worms? (Or will their heat, and the heat the chickens put off, be a mutual benefit?)
2) Will they put off too much moisture? (There's a huge amount of ventilation in my coop (11sq ft among the gables and eaves, plus 13sq ft of windows I can open/shut). I'm currently debating how much (if any) of the gable I'll close off during the winter.)

Interested to know what experienced vermicomposters think.

Thanks!
Jessi

 

[aart]

1. Yes.
2. Yes.

 

[CatsandCrops]

It would be way too cold for your worms in my opinion. Ours stay in a bin in the basement year round. We empty the majority of their compost out in the spring and let the farm build up; taking worms weekly to give as a treat or to fish with.