Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Question:
How do we keep ants away from a compost bin? Can we use a line of baking soda around the bin?

Answer:
The best way to keep ants out of your backyard composting bin is to make sure you add water every 10 - 14 days and new materials and manage the bin to make sure the compost is getting hot. Ants don't like the hot temperatures found in an active composting bin (above 130 degrees Farenheit) and really don't like it when you mix the material and add water (this usually keeps them from colonizing your bin.)

As a general rule, however, ants are usually not problematic and are actually helping the decomposition process, so I wouldn't worry too much about them. As a brief aside, the material you use to keep ants out of your worm bin should be diatomatious earth, not baking soda. These two materials are not the same thing and are not interchangable. Ants aren't bothered by baking soda, where as diatomatious earth will kill them if they try to cross it.