Nails in compost bin

[Mari]

Six months ago I moved house. In my new house there was a plastic compost bin and inside there were many nails(or screws?) mixed in the compost. I think there was also ash. I ignored this bin and started a new one. Today after six months I see that the nails have disappeared and there seems to be good compost. What has happened? Have they decomposed? Is the compost OK? Would it be acidic? Mystery.

[Bigmallly]

Hello Mari & welcome to the jungle. Mystery indeed.....the compost should be fine to use, the nails will be from a fire hence the ash, the ash will be fine & the nails may add some elements to the soil. As to where they have gone, I have no idea.........try getting hold of an old TV magnet and rummage around or just simply sieve it.

[Bren In Pots]

Firstly hello and welcome to the vine Mari

I've not heard of nails decomposing that fast before but I should think compost would be fine for blueberries that love acid soil.

[teakdesk]

If you suspect that the ash could have been from wood that had been treated with preservatives (an old fence or shed perhaps) you might like to read the Web on the problems of arsenic in wood ash.

In a nutshell, I use burnt wood ash if the wood is not treated (such a bare wood from inside or logs straight from trees) but not if any of the ash comes from anything that has been varnished (such as furniture) or had a preservative applied (either pressure treated by the shop or painted on; such as creosote). Any ash from kitchens or bedrooms, ie formica or melamine covered, are not for me either.

[Martin H]

I'm sure teakdesk is correct and you can't be too careful.

However in my last house I used to have at least one big bonfire on the vegetable patch every autumn and (in my ignorance) I would chuck on anything that I thought would burn, including melamine-faced kitchen units, old varnished shelves etc. as well as woody prunings. Come the spring I would rake the ash across the veg plot, picking out the hinges and screws and any unburned bits. There may have been some residual nasties in there, but still the vegetables tasted fine and nobody died.

[arpoet]

I wouldn't worry about the nails. I read once (maybe on here) that a few nails in the water butt stops the water greening. I have a handful in my butts.