What puts you off?

[jacob]

Make quite a bit of compost (two wooden slat bins + a dalek, though the toad seems to have gone).

Problems?

1) Actually extracting the stuff is a hell of a task.

2) Made worse by the fact that they're usually pretty much full

3) I suppose if I was really grumbly I'd say that I keep failing to keep them damp enough, and by necessity they're in the shade, so maybe the process is a bit slow.

4) Not a complaint, but it takes a while for heaps to get going (maybe a year until it's properly developed?)

[Comfreyfan]

Never had much luck with compost until I got rid of the dalek and OH made me some wooden bins with removable fronts - excellent results and I'm actually very proud of my compost! I compost everything possible and if there are any big bits left when I come to use it, I just throw it back in for the next lot. Keep the layers fairly thin and get a good mix of green and brown, wet and dry - seems to work beautifully!

[Suky]

I tried bokashi bins, but apart from the raised beds (currently full of stuff) I have no soil I could dig them into after fermentation had happened. I filled a large pot with a third garden soil, then bokashi waste, then another third garden soil. This was three months ago and it still hasn't broken down! The smell if you dig in that pot is rancid! :O

I have no room for a compost heap though unfortunately, else I'd try that (and add the bokashi waste most probably).

That is because it is in a pot, you need worms to get at it now to break it down or at least mix it with other compostable material. Do you have space for a dalek for composting?

[coreopsis]

I'm composting but not sure if the results are so great.Have 2 daleks and both of them get filled faster than the matter rots down.

[SueA]

I use two 'dalek' type compost bins & have pretty good results from them. I think they work for me because there are only two of us producing 'kitchen watse', I only have a small garden & don't have a lawn so they don't end up with too much 'green' waste which causes problems for lots of people. I put garden waste, veg. peelings, old plants, bits of shredded paper, old used compost from bags & pots & finely chopped up prunings & by the time I've filled one bin up the other is ready to use as it takes me months to fill one. The resulting compost is great & I use it to earth up potatoes & mix it in with bought compost in containers etc.

[chris]

You're right, not enough browns. The easiest way to introduce some is to wrap all your veg peelings in a sheet of newspaper, like a chip wrapper

thanks TS - that's a great idea

edit: although, I've read that you should only compost a "little" bit of newspaper... - I think it all boils down to knowledge at the end of the day, and perhaps fear? Can't remember where I read/heard it but something about coloured newspaper wilting plants in paper pots etc - so may not be vegtable based inks or what not. Not sure - if it was just me I'd happily bung whatever I could in, but my thinking now is with a small family I want to be sure everything is ok that I'm going to feed them

[maytreefrannie]

I have :
A dalek - VERY SLOW- over 2 years and have got about a bucket of compost at most
(despite being turned and sometimes watered).

A 'converted' wheelie bin - VERY SLOW - A year on the go and nothing yet.

2 Bokashi Bins - VERY SLOW - Definitely don't break down in 6 to 8 weeks as
advertised. These bins are from different suppliers but they
operate at the same slowness.

[Two_Sheds]

I've read that you should only compost a "little" bit of newspaper... - ... something about coloured newspaper wilting plants in paper pots ... I want to be sure everything is ok that I'm going to feed them

No problem with composting newspaper, just add it in small layers, not great big wodges at once.

No problem with the inks either: they are vegetable inks these days.

NB: if I "hear" of something, I check it online, with reputable sources.

[Silent Reader]

I currently have just one Dalek, and plans to build a compost bin out of pallets. Results are a bit hit and miss for me. If I'm to compare my compost with that out of a garden centre, it looks nothing like it.

Should the site of the bin be on open ground, or is it ok to situate it on concrete ? My dalek is currently on an old bit of a patio and to turn it over i just give it a good hard rock and lift it off to revel the pile to be turned over, and as it's on concrete it's easier to shovel up and turn over. (Could this be a mistake?)

Also I've heard that beer slops and urine also work as good activators, is this true ?

You're right, not enough browns. The easiest way to introduce some is to wrap all your veg peelings in a sheet of newspaper, like a chip wrapper

That's a fantastic suggestion and so simple. Thanks for that.

[Two_Sheds]

If I'm to compare my compost with that out of a garden centre, it looks nothing like it.

It's not the same animal. What you buy is potting compost, what you make is more of a soil improver (humus). If you want to make potting compost, make leafmould

Should the site of the bin be on open ground, or is it ok to situate it on concrete ?

Open ground ideally, so that worms and detritivores can have access

Also I've heard that beer slops and urine also work as good activators, is this true ?

absolutely. Urine is high in nitrogen, so is also a free, natural fertiliser for leafy things

[hamster]

I like composting, and add lots of green and brown, I find it helps to empty the paper shredder in when its full and the hamster bedding with sawdust. I also shred through the shredder the toilet rolls and kitchen rolls. I also got oh to collect me loads of nettles and I put them in, also got loads of worms in, when I'm digging in the garden and I see one, i pick it up and put it in the compo which is a dalek. I've only got one composter, I also take my mum's kitchen waste as well. Haven't turned it yet this year, but there are normally loads of worms at the bottom. Did try the bokashi one ages ago but didnt go aswell as this one. At moment my stuff must be rotting down quite quickly.

[Silent Reader]

It's not the same animal. What you buy is potting compost, what you make is more of a soil improver (humus). If you want to make potting compost, make leafmould

Actually..... I forgot, I've also got one of those green "wheele bins" that I use for collecting leaves, The council haven't touched it since they've given it to me

I'd better go and have a look in it

[Two_Sheds]

...also got loads of worms in, when I'm digging in the garden and I see one, i pick it up and put it in the compo which is a dalek.

Ah.
You might save your time: earthworms Lumbricus terrestris are different beasts to composting worms.
The composters (red/brandling Dendrobaena veneta or tiger worms Eisenia foetida) will find their own way in. Earthworms live in the soil, not in compost bins.

[gojiberry]

I have one main compost bin which gets emptied once a year. Don't have the time to turn and everything gets put in there including a few perennial weeds. I have a huge amount of marestail come off the plot but that is put on a separate heap. When emptying the big I tend to go through it to remove anything not completely composted and they go into next years bin. The bin this year is 6' X 4' by 4' high and is about 3/4 full at the moment, by march it will be full to the top.

Ian

[Rabidbun]

That is because it is in a pot, you need worms to get at it now to break it down or at least mix it with other compostable material. Do you have space for a dalek for composting?

Ah, and the pot must be a bit low on worms since the blackbird invasion, would explain a lot, thanks! For some reason I just assumed it broke down with bacteria.

And unfortunately no - no room at all for a Dalek.