Compost lifecycle - a bit confused

[snowbunny]

OK, another newbie question. I've been looking into composting and found myself a bit buried with all the information that's out there.

I have lots and lots of space so, rather than going for (what I consider to be) ugly plastic compost bins, I was thinking of building this kind of setup: Three Times The Action: Build Your Own Triple Compost Bin

Now, this site professes:

With a triple compost bin, fresh waste is kept in one section. As the compost begins to form, the product can be moved to the second section, where it can heat up and decompose without the addition of any new materials. With the unimpeded composting process, the finished product can easily be moved to the third bin for holding until you need it, without worrying about new bits being part of your compost.

I understand that, in theory, but I'm not sure how it works in practice. Let's say, I have compostable material being added form my kitchen and garden on a daily basis. My first bin is filling up all the time, with the earlier-added stuff starting to break down, but new stuff being added on the top. So, when do I decide it's time for this bin to be moved to the second section? After all, the bottom stuff might be a few months old, but the top stuff was put in there just yesterday.
Similarly, when I put the second lot of "box A" onto "box B", we have two different ages there, too, so it won't ever reach "finish product" status, surely?

Maybe I'm overthinking this. Do you do it on a schedule?

[snowbunny]

Oh, and my second question would be, since the compost is breaking down at each stage, does it make sense to have your first bin larger in size than the second and third?

I just read on another thread about "liquid gold". I didn't think I'd ever be encouraging my husband to pee in the garden

[bario1]

You're right, your compost is never going to be one thing or the other at any given time - even when my 'finished' compost goes onto my beds, there are often whole carrots, brassica stems, avocado skins etc in it that have hardly decomposed at all. I guess you could just shift the contents of one bin into the next when there is no room to add more stuff to it. Ideally you'll also be turning the contents of each bin as often as possible to mix the fresher stuff with the older stuff and re-aerate it.
Proper composting is very interesting and satisfying, but personally I always find there are more pressing jobs on the plot than faffing around turning compost! Mine usually ends up a compacted stinky 'fudge' at the bottom of the bin (dalek type), something reasonable in the middle, and half fresh stuff towards the top - it all gets turned out, mixed up and thrown on the beds anyway, where the fresher stuff can rot down in situ. It doesn't look pretty, but then you're not expecting shop bought multi-purpose compost are you?

[MarkPelican]

Basically, the longer you leave it the better it is. I have a three bin system. Each bin is about 5ft square and 3ft deep. One is being used, one is sitting and one is being filled. When the one being filled is full, hopefully the one being emptied is empty and I turn the one being filled into the empty space and leave it to sit. At the same time I turn the sitting one into the (recently vacated) space and start using that.

Two points. When I put kitchen waste into the bin, I take a forkful from the sitting bin to cover it over to try and discourage vermin.
When I turn the "sitting" bin to start using it, I take out any large uncomposted stuff and put it back into the filling bin to give it more chance to compost.

This is cold composting as I'm not making any effort to get the pile to heat up. If you can leave it for two years then its better than leaving it for just one.

[SusieG]

Snowbunny, just don't get stressed about it ~ it'll all take care of itself in the end. !!!

As bario1 says, there's more pressing things to be getting on with, without faffing with compost~it'll get there eventually ...

I've found, (only have 2 bins..) that 12 months has been enough time to turnaround the compost materials into compost - then just use as a mulch/addition to beds/pots etc. Great for weed suppressing and to retain water in the soil.

Mark's 3 bin method is sound, too. So if you've got the room - go for it!!

[snowbunny]

Excellent, thanks for the advice. Space isn't an issue, and since it's in Spain, we should get the heat to help it break down faster. I guess my main concern would be ensuring it stays moist in the heat. Can it get too hot? I'm thinking if I covered it in a tarpaulin, it would help retain moisture, but it might make it too warm?

[SusieG]

It can get too hot, but it'll be ok. You've probably heard of spontaneous combustion - but that's a very rare occurrence :
Add water, if needed to help the decomposition along ... Also make the heaps a bit smaller if overheating gets to be a problem. Make sure you give it all an occasional turn which lets air in to everything - and all should be fine in your compost world!!

[snowbunny]

Thanks for the help, guys. Very useful for a newbie

[Stan79]

I have three bins and at the moment, all three are full to the brim! Last year i was able to do as you have outlined and fill one - turn it out into the second one so the freshest stuff ends up on the bottom. Leave the nicely composted lower layer and start filling up the second one. Once this is full, move the top layer into bin 3, shift the good stuff from 2 into one and rotate the process again... this year i've been clearing too much stuff from the garden (despite living here for 4 years we're always clearing some part of the garden or another and have a bonfire the size of 3 medium sized cars needing to burn too) so am stuck with three bins full that aren't really decomposing as fast as last year!

It is all quite interesting when you read up on the subject though!

[MarkPelican]

Stan: Have you shredded the harder stuff into your compost? Its amazing how much less space it needs and it composts quicker & better.

[SusieG]

Stan: Have you shredded the harder stuff into your compost? Its amazing how much less space it needs and it composts quicker & better.

Yes, MarkPelican, I've found this a great help when dealing with smaller diameter tree branches, long brambles etc in fact anything I can cram into the shredder, actually!! (It does make a bit of a racket though, so I try not to annoy near neighbours and do it in 'bite size' chunks ...)

It does compost better then - I have found it to be quite dry though, so an occasional drench when turning/adding to the pile, helps.

[ESBkevin]

The idea of multiple bins allows you to 'store' all your grass cuttings in one until you obtain lots of 'brown' material like hedge trimmings or shredded paper. You then mix green and brown into your active bin. The third bin allows you to 'turn' the active bin to get air to the microbes and possibly adding water if required (or more of one type of material as applicable) thus speeding the action.
I tend to get away with two bins at home and turn the pile on itself. It's less than perfect but I get about 15-20 barrowloads of compost each year at different times.