Subpod Underground Compost Bin & Worm Farm

Subpod is an in-ground worm farm, the first ever of its kind! Above ground compost systems are often difficult to maintain and attract pests. Worm farms that are above ground also fail when they get too hot or cold – but not Subpod. Subpod sits 90% below the soil level in your garden, so the compost worms that live inside can come and go freely (nourishing the soil directly). The soil insulates your compost and protects your worms from harsh weather, so you can keep composting no matter the season!

• It allows you to compost directly in your garden allowing the worms and microbes to distribute nutrients into the soil.
• Because you’re composting in the soil, your system is insulated → which means you can compost in a variety of climates
• Subpod sits 90% below ground, which deters pests and predators
• The worms are able to move freely between the Subpod module and the surrounding garden which creates a worm friendly environment
• The Subpod has a unique modular design, which allows multiple systems to be installed in one bed and cater to larger volumes of waste.

We designed Subpod to deal with all the common issues associated with traditional compost systems:

• It’s aerobic, using odourless microbes to speed up the composting process
• The ventilation panels keep it smell-free with fresh air
• It doubles as a garden seat, subtly hidden amongst your plants

You can compost a much bigger variety of materials in Subpod than in other worm farm systems! See the full list below:

FOOD WASTE ✅
Most food waste can be composted in Subpod without worry. Fruit and vegetable scraps, eggshells (crush them first), coffee grounds, used tea leaves, spoiled plant-based milks, grains, pastas, breads, nuts (and their shells), seeds, pits, husks and so on. Small amounts of meat, seafood, dairy foods, citrus, onion and garlic may also be added. Subpod can also process spicy herbs, peppers and oils but it’s best to introduce these slowly in small amounts at first, and only once your worms are fully established (after around three months).

PAPER & CARD ✅
Most scrap paper and cardboard can be added to Subpod, as long as it’s not laminated or super glossy. Again, the smaller the pieces, the better. Junk mail, office paper, bills, envelopes (no plastic windows), post-it notes. Paper plates, tissues, egg cartons, paper cupcake liners, baking paper, even card and paper packaging is fine.

NATURAL FIBRES ✅
Cotton wool balls and pads, tampons, toilet paper cores and even natural latex condoms and gloves can go into Subpod. Old clothing, face washers, napkins, tablecloths and very old towels can be used as long as they are made from natural fibres like cotton, tencel, linen, hemp or wool (no polyester, nylon, acrylic or blends) – just shred them into small pieces first. Washer and dryer lint is okay too, as long as it comes only from clothing made from natural fibres.

WOOD AND BAMBOO ✅
Sawdust (no paint) is great. Toothpicks, disposable wood, bamboo and bioplastic cutlery and crockery can be composted, along with dead matches, bamboo skewers, garden prunings (cut 'em up small), and charcoal from the fireplace – as long as you wash off the ash which is too alkaline for Subpod.

HUMAN AND ANIMAL WASTE ✅
Human hair and nail trimmings, used facial tissue, used cotton bandages and sanitary items can all be composted in Subpod, as long as they are made from 100% natural fibres. Pet hair of all kinds is fine, along with soiled newspaper and hay cage liners and faeces from vegetarian pets and livestock (rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters, cows and horses). Dog and cat faeces are NOT suitable for Subpod if you’re eating the plants growing around it. But fine if you want to have a separate one for this purpose.

NOT COMPOSTABLE 🛑
You cannot compost non-organics such as plastic, tin cans, cigarettes, building waste, toxic waste, glass, or any other similar materials in Subpod.

Once your worm population builds up (up to 3 months) you can feed your Subpod 30L (7.9 gal.) or 15kgs (33 lb) of food waste per week. This can be optimised for higher performance, and we go into detail about this in the below video.

For reference, the average family generates 7kg (15lbs) of food waste a week, for reference.

• We have designed the Subpod to be used for a family of up to four people, processing around 15kg (33lbs) of organic waste per week.
• It will take from six weeks to three months to get your Subpod working at this capacity, depending on the season and how much you feed it. The worms need to settle in and build up their numbers.
• Subpod is modular, so If you have more than 30L/15kg of waste per week, you can choose to connect two or more Subpods and create a bench seat, or install in separate garden beds.

The external dimensions are: 29.5 in (750 mm) Length x 17.7 in (450 mm) Width x 16.9 in (430 mm) Height, including the lid. The internal dimensions are: 28 in (710 mm) Length x 16.1 in (410 mm) Width x 11.5 in (290 mm) Height below the soil level.

A total internal volume of 30 gallons, (115 litres), which gives a total composting volume of 22 gallons (84 litres) due to the soil level and air flow area at the top.

Yes - 12" underground! Being underground is what makes Subpod different from other compost systems. The soil provides insulation and a way for worms and microbes to explore your garden and feed your plants. Above ground compost systems struggle to keep worms and microbes comfortable, and even alive, in summer and winter – but underground they're safe and happy (which is the secret to good compost).

Yes! Subpod is a vermi-composting system, which means it relies on compost worms to break down your food waste. Without compost worms, Subpod can't do its job.

We recommend buying worms for your Subpod locally if possible, but you can also find them online. If you need more information on how to buy worms, read this blog!

Unfortunately, no. But we do have a few tips though!

- Try to purchase worms locally. Worms always seem to be happier if they don’t have to be shipped for miles across the country.

- Get a diversity of worms. There are 3 main types: Red Wigglers, Night Crawlers and Tigers. Each is better suited to different environments and temperatures, so it’s helpful to get all 3.

- Jump on to our growhub community and see if there’s a local Subpodder that will give you some worms. Make a friend and score some worms at the same time!

We recommend starting out with a minimum of 1,000. If you would like to speed up the process, start with a 2,000.

• No it shouldn’t. Subpod’s built-in ventilation panels have small holes that keep out bugs, pests and rodents, whilst allowing air to flow in. Just make sure the ‘worm holes’ in the sides of the Subpod are covered with soil so nothing can sneak in.
• Some pests are attracted to the smell of rotting food. By keeping a healthy Subpod, your food won't rot, it will instead be composted by your worms and microbes.
• Keep your food scraps in a sealed container/caddy to make sure bugs don’t lay eggs in your waste before you transfer it to the Subpod.

Here's a short video to help you

Yes! Subpod can be installed directly into the ground. Subpods work the same planted directly in the ground as they do in a raised bed, however we find that raised beds are just that much easier to access and use Subpod.

If you want to plant at ground level, watch the below video for some handy tips to see how to plant your Subpod.

Yes! But you may need to do a little tweaking. Subpod relies on the worms and microbes to compost and they can go dormant if they get too cold.

Subpod is naturally insulated by the surrounding soil so during winter the temperatures inside will be higher than any above ground compost system. But things will slow down if the temperature drops below 55 F (12C).

We’ve found 3 proven methods that keep your worms warm and happy over winter.

We have free online courses that will walk you through everything you need to know about Subpod.

View our free Subpod online courses.

• When you add your food scraps and carbon material to the Subpod, you'll need to mix them through using an aerator. This takes a few minutes each time you feed the worms.
• If the soil surrounding Subpod settles and starts to reveal the Subpod wormholes (beneath the airflow panels), more soil (and mulch) needs to be added to cover the holes.
• Otherwise, just keep feeding your worms and keep the blanket moist when you are adding more food.

If you live in an area with hot summers, you will want to provide some shade for the Subpod worms (and the plants) by picking a place that gets shade in the hottest part of the day, or by setting up a simple frame for shade cloth to be placed over the bed.

If you plan to grow food bearing plants around your Subpod they will need at least 6 hours of sunlight, so some sort of seasonal shade cloth structure could be a good solution. We have even seen people plant an umbrella base behind their Subpod in the garden bed to allow a beach or cafe umbrella to be popped up in the heat of the day!

It’s great to be concerned about the use of plastic, and we have put a lot of energy into this. When designing the Subpod we have considered many factors, and one of the main things that are important to us is a circular life economy.

We have found that the best material we can use now to manufacture our Subpod is polypropylene which is naturally BPA free. This is one of the safest plastics available from a health perspective with no endocrine disruptor chemicals and with undetectable leaching. Because we have designed the Subpod for durability and long life use, as a priority we are initially making Subpods from virgin polypropylene and will field test blends of up to 50% recycled polypropylene to verify these blends have sufficient strength and longevity to permit the use of a percentage of recycled polypropylene in Subpod manufacturing.

Polypropylene is water and food safe and has been used in the food industry for many years, able to withstand high temperatures of about 110 degrees Celsius/230 Fahrenheit. Using polypropylene, Subpod are expected to have a minimum usable lifespan of 10 years in the soil without any leaching or degradation which is important since the Subpod will contain and be surrounded by a microbe-dense soil in a wide range of conditions, including damp and high humidity areas.

Doubling as bench seating requires that the materials chosen support body weight. Polypropylene based Subpod can bear up to 200 kilograms/440.93 pounds.

Finally, the Subpod can be recycled when it reaches the end of its life in your garden, completing its life cycle. There are exciting plastic substitutes being developed which we are looking into, but most of these are designed to be composted after use and we need the Subpod to hold up strong for many years while it is efficiently composting all of your kitchen waste ;-)

It’s number for recycling is 5.