Compost bin help please

[Ian White]

Hi all

I think this is in the right place,but can i have you advice about conpost bins
i've got myself two bins,i have them on the allotment and it has started a bit of bit of a chat

One of the old boys said that he never puts the lid or door on his and it works just as well,and others say you have to have lids and the doors on them to work.

Anyone got any views on this,all the best,Ian

[Capsid]

There are several factors to consider. Keeping the lid and door on should retain any warmth generated by the pile and sped things up a bit. Also a lid will keep the rain off and stop it getting too wet. But if a bin is in a sunny spot then this will also warm up and accelerate the composting (but dry it out with the lid off). Turning the compost regularly will also help. And getting the right balance of wood and green stuff is important.

So the guys on your allotment can't really claim one way is better than the other unless they are comparing bins that are identical in every aspect except that one has a lid and door and the other doesn't.

Ultimately, it will all rot down eventually and end up with the same stuff. It's all a matter of time.

[Two_Sheds]

Lids and doors on, of course

... and I happen to know that Old Boys like to tease Newbies

[rustylady]

Ditto what Twosheds said. I have (had) old carpet covering the heap in the garden (home-made wooden square container - I just wish my new companion would leave it alone and stop digging the compost out. It's not ready yet.

[Shadylane]

I have a lid (ish) and a front - it's made of pallets, our neighbours don't, just a big pile. Others use daleks. There's no right or wrong just do what works best for you. It is supposed to rot quicker if kept warm though. Lottie veterans will always disagree with each other, whether they're teasing you or not

[Kristen]

Lid off and it will get too wet from the rain, sooner or later.

Lid on and you may find that it is getting too dry, and have to water, but better than way round - too wet and it will go anaerobic, instead of aerobic, and you'll get a slimy mess.

Pee on it daily, during the warmer months. That will be enough extra moisture, and will accelerate the composting process.

[Norm]

Ask 10 different gardeners how to make the best compost and you'll get 10 different answers. I have 3 compost bays all made of pallets; one ready to use, one breaking down and one filling up. Semi-open sides, no front, no lid. Works for me. The only reason for a container is literally, to contain the stuff. The rest is hype from a manufacturer who wants to sell their particular bin. If you want to know how it's done properly, go look at a farm. One big heap in a designated area and left to rot in it's own time, no lid, no sides, no rotting agent, just nature doing what it does best.

[Two_Sheds]

If you want to know how it's done properly, go look at a farm. One big heap ... left to rot in it's own time, no lid, no sides, no rotting agent, just nature doing what it does best.

I'd take issue with the word "properly". Yes, it works: a big heap heats up really quickly because it does have an accelerator agent (horse muck etc), and a really big heap generates higher temps than we can get in a smaller scale, at home heap

At home we need to add sides and lids etc to generate the heat to rot that stuff down quickly: I can't do it quick enough, I have 6 daleks and they're all full already (with turf, pet bedding and shredded newspaper as well as kitchen scraps)

[Alison]

My ones at home have nice hinged lids and look nice and neat but the ones up the lottie are just made from old pallets with no lids etc - very cheap and cheerful. I do however put an old tarp over them during the colder months to keep the warm in / wet out a bit. Seems to work well and to be honest I'm not really sure it matters that much and it's far more important that you get the mix right. I'd not worry too much if I were you.

[chris]

I'm just about to go on the scrounge for some pallets to make up some bins, most on my plot are open big heaps, with 3 sides. Going to make mine have an opening top, and "loose" front, so I can just take it off and scoop all that goodness out when needed

[bearded bloke]

If you want to know how it's done properly, go look at a farm. One big heap in a designated area and left to rot in it's own time, no lid, no sides, no rotting agent, just nature doing what it does best.

The single big heap is actually brought about largely by EEC regulations that restrict the time of year that manure can be applied to farmland & is actually an unintentional byproduct,the rule was (as I understand it) actually introduced because of the modern practice on dairy farms to use a "lagoon" to contain effluent that occurs in the dairy & cattle collecting yard.The "slurry" is then sucked into tankers & discharged onto the fields still in a largely fluid state,thus reasoning behind the regulation being to restrict the amount of effluent wash-off into watercourses if it were to be applied during "the rainier months".
The single big heap will have started as being the bedding from calf/cattle pens which would have begun the rotting process from day one & it will improve with each successive daily fresh layer of straw trapping the heat generated from the (now compacted) previous applications of dung & urine.
I the "good old days" this would have been piled at the end of the collecting yard to absorb the afore mentioned slurry & spread on the fields as & when they were available,but that was in the days when farms had lots of men & few machines "working the land",rather than the modern practice of few men & lots of machines

[dope540]

I use a upturned pond tub, measures about 4 x 3 x 3ft. Cut a flap on one side to get the compost out, a flap on the top to chuck stuff in and a few holes drilled in to let rainwater in.

mega cheap!

[Norm]

Like I said in the first place, 10 gardeners, 10 different methods and they all work at different speeds, but the end product remains the same. At the end of the day, we're all expressing opinions and personal preferences. I won't "take Issue" with anyone's opinion, because that's all it is, an opinion. What ever method you use to achieve a nicely rotted compost heap, if it works for you, use it. If it doesn't, try something else!

[Two_Sheds]

if it works for you, use it. If it doesn't, try something else!

hear hear

Those ten different opinions are good, because then you realise there's more than one way to do things. Like you say, if it doesn't work try something else (and don't give up)

[Claire72]

To a certain extent i would expect a lid and door to keep some of the vermin out too, if that is an issue. However, as everyone else has said, do what works for you, there are many ways to skin a cat as they say