In need of composter advice from those who may know here.....

[gimmethesimplelife]

Just thought I would throw this one out there - my next big purchase will be a composter and I am wondering if anyone here has any experience, what type should I buy and what should I be looking for? I am thinking of the kind that resembles an oil drum (sort of) that has some kind of mechanism that spins it around.....What do you'all think? Rob

[awakenedsoul]

I just have a pile way in the back of my property, behind my shed. My neighbor gives me all the manure I want, and I compost all my leaves, kitchen scraps, and tree trimmings. I don't think you need a bin, but maybe you're required to have one where you live. I don't turn mine. I just make a huge pile, keep it moist, and I use a large stick to poke holes in it so it gets enough air. Composting is awesome...enjoy!

[dado potato]

If you have enough land, you don't need to buy anything, just make a mound and turn it once in a while with a pitchfork.

For aesthetic reasons in my backyard I have 2 black recycled plastic square bins. They have lockable lids (not that my compost would attract bear or coon! LOL.) Generally fresh stuff goes into bin #1, and after it has had a little time to reflect, I turn it out into the identical bin #2 right beside it. There are doors on the sides that slide up & down, which make it easy to pull finished compost out of #2. I got 'em at Amazon, and I think I paid around $80 each... which I think is paying quite a lot to give the detritivores a home. But for beauty, with spruce trees behind them, it was worth the price (to me.)

[catherine]

I bought one like the one you've described: it's an Envirocycle:

http://ecofriend.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/envirocycle_composter_image_title_ioqsx.jpg

I've been very happy with it. It works just like it says, and it's hardy. I was thinking of getting another one, but I think we're just going to do our second pile with the chicken wire method, simply because the Envirocycle is great, but not cheap.

[SteveinMN]

I've done the "pile in the back" method (when we owned a much larger property) and that worked fine. Here in the city, though, I can't do that, so we have one of those stack composters (picture (http://www.gardengourmet.com/)). It works well, too, though it's less tolerant of a skewed percentage of wets vs. drys. I think I'd like a spinning composter, but when we looked, those cost far more money than this one did and we were just starting out with composting with the bin offered at a discount by the county.

[Simplicity]

I enclosed mine in pallets. Just screwed four wooden pallets together to form four walls and in keeps it mostly contained and keeps the dogs out of it. I keep mine close to the chicken coop and the garden to make life easy. and don't forget to keep a path shoveled out to it in the winter.

[Rosemary]

Are you still in Arizona? We had one of the black bin type composters when we lived there and things took *forever* to compost because it is so very very dry. You probably will have more success with a rotating one that might maintain more moisture and be easier to turn. Also, the rotating ones are more rodent-proof.

[Birdie]

I am a volunteer Master gardener and the program I am in has a compost group. A couple of years ago they did a test of 12 different composters, from the rolling drum type shown above to a simple flexible plastic roll with big holes in it about 10 others. The best compost was when the composter was on the ground to get the microorganism from the soil. Also the quickest compost was created in the flexible bins like the one in this picture without the wire around it. http://www.flickr.com/photos/satjiwan/2347246013/

If you have a pest problem, a hard plastic bin with a lid works better than the flexible one. I get rats in mine, so I have a hard plastic one.

The best mix is about 50% green to 50% carbon. Leaves are great carbon but newspaper (not the glossy pages) works fine since it has soy ink these days. Keep the mixture as damp as a wrung out sponge. If you choose to not turn it regularly it will still become compost eventually. Turning it regularly will speed up the process. Once your mixture is complete, do not add to it. Start a second compost pile for your additions and just turn the first bin.

I keep 3 bins. One I am turning, one I am adding to and one for storage of woody stuff (branches) that will be added eventually.

There is a lot of documentation on composting online if you need more info.

[Mrs-M]

Wish I could pass along a little advice to you, Rob, however, our compost bin was built from scratch, out of wooden planks/boards.

[CathyA]

A long time ago, I got one of those big Kemp composters, up on a stand, with a handle and you turn the drum. Once I got it, it said I needed to put in lots of sawdust with the vegetable matter. Well, I didn't have access to sawdust, so it didn't work very well. Now I have chicken poop and bedding, which would probably work, but I'm too tired to do anything with it except spread it on my garden and in my compost piles. I think just a plain pile on the ground is fine, if you don't have problems with wildlife or rats. We cover it with grass clippings and leaves too. Good luck with whatever you choose.

[catherine]

I am a volunteer Master gardener and the program I am in has a compost group. A couple of years ago they did a test of 12 different composters, from the rolling drum type shown above to a simple flexible plastic roll with big holes in it about 10 others. The best compost was when the composter was on the ground to get the microorganism from the soil. Also the quickest compost was created in the flexible bins like the one in this picture without the wire around it. http://www.flickr.com/photos/satjiwan/2347246013/


Cool info! Thanks.

[Gardenarian]

I have one of those Envirocycles and it does not work well for me. It takes longer for stuff to break down and it really doesn't hold very much. It is difficult to empty, too. 5 thumbs down!

I have a stacking worm compost bin that works very well, and also a compost heap that is really low maintenance.

[ToomuchStuff]

Haven't been on in a few days, work busy with the holiday stuff and all. YouTube has some different build it yourself barrel versions, you may want to check out. (easy to dump, mix, and covered to keep pests out, to how to build an uncovered one)