The main differences are:

• More Power – modified the sander to make the counter weight more effective.
• Dual Screens – Being in vermicomposting or worm farming one needs to use two basic screen sizes, I have incorporated both 1/8” and ¼” screens which will now sort the material by size into three different collection bins. The ¼” screen is also removable.
• Increased The Screen Rail Size – from a 1” x 6” boards to a 1” x 8” boards to accommodate both screens as well as material to be dumped on the sifter.
• Additional Vibration – I removed the PVC support used to support the screen on the top end and replaced with two springs.
• New Sander Mount – I removed the two metal fence supports and replaced with two “L” brackets mounted directly to the screen box to enable additional vibration power.

I have a short video below showing some of the changes as well as the worm harvester in action. The plans will be made available from Organic Worm Farm in the near future as well as announcing the availability of the worm castings harvester / soil sifter plans in the Worm Composting Newsletter once they are completed.

Hence I went to the drawing board to come up with a solution for my own needs. It is actually a simple device that fits and spins manually in an 18 gallon size Rubbermaid bin. The main unit is built from a five gallon plastic kerosene can.

Keep in mind this worm harvester is for the small worm farmer. It works effectively for one to a number of bins, however once you begin to raise worms on a larger scale, you will want to replace this unit.

I used a stainless steel rod however one could use a short ½” copper pipe. I do recommend sliding end caps on the ends of the pipe so as not to cut oneself when working with the worm harvester. I slid the rod or copper pipe through ¾” PVC fittings on both sides of the bin as well as the five gallon can.

The neat part about this worm harvester is that I use a number of bungee cords to hold the screen in place, enabling myself to start with a 1/8″ screen, then a ¼” screen and finally a ½” screen. This enabled me to separate the worm castings, cocoons and small vermicompost particles effectively.

To work the worm harvester, simply place a small amount of worm compost into the bin, close up the screen opening with two bungee cords and spin the harvester one way then the other way. Once completed, open the screen, remove the left over material and place in a holding bucket or bin. Repeat until you have harvested everything from your bin and proceed to the next screen size and so on…

The other nice feature is when I was done using the harvester; I simply pulled the rod out and wrapped all three screens around the five gallon can, placed back into the bin and placed my lid on top.  Everything but the rod can be stored within the worm harvesting bin

Bruce