Hi folks,

I want to build a fairly substantial compost bin. I have about an acre
of garden and want to get myself organised in this department. Anyone
know of any good plans to work from please?

Jim

In reply to Jim ) who wrote this in
, I, Marvo, say :

Hi folks,

I want to build a fairly substantial compost bin. I have about an acre
of garden and want to get myself organised in this department. Anyone
know of any good plans to work from please?

How substantial?

I believe that now most local councils will sell you a proprietary one on
the cheap, because it cuts down on the waste they have to collect.

Otherwise you need a fair lot of wood (if you're into "industrial"
dimensions). Also wood tends to rot. And plastic is expensive and quite hard
to work with. And the pathetic attempt I made once using chicken wire didn't
work well cos it wasn't dark, although it made a good job of grass cuttings.

I bought one from the council which looks quite good, and is green so not
too obtrusive, and copes with all I can throw at it. Only problem with it is
that when it gets overfull it's difficult to open the bottom, which rotates
rather than lifts, I tend to lift the whole thing up and fork it out.

What are you going to put in it, mostly grass, tree cuttings, plant waste,
veg? There are loads of options depending on that.

In article ,
Jim writes:
|
| I want to build a fairly substantial compost bin. I have about an acre
| of garden and want to get myself organised in this department. Anyone
| know of any good plans to work from please?

You don't want a bin. You (a) need things that are much larger than
that, and (b) need several of them. Even with 1/6 of an acre, I have
several 4'x4' ones on the go, and produce up to a ton a year.

I bought 10m metres of pig netting, cut it into half, wired the ends
of each together, and hold it in place with metal stakes hammered
into the ground. I have started lining that with polythene, as I
had trouble with the heap drying out, but I like in Cambridge.
Some people use old pallets - anything will do.

A good size is 4' deep and 3-4' high, depending on how easy you
find it to throw material in. Above that, and it may become poorly
oxygenated in the centre. You pile it up as high as it goes, and
it sogs down. Some people use heaps 8-12' long - others use more
than one heap.

Keep things that are very slow to compost (e.g. woody prunings) in
a separate heap, or buy a decent shredder (a Bosch 2200 quiet model
is the one most people recommend), and don't have too much soggy
stuff (including grass clippings) at once.

I wrote some more for the FAQ, but could probably mail a copy if
you can't find it.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

Nick Maclaren wrote:
In article ,
Jim writes:
|
| I want to build a fairly substantial compost bin. I have about an acre
| of garden and want to get myself organised in this department. Anyone
| know of any good plans to work from please?

You don't want a bin. You (a) need things that are much larger than
that, and (b) need several of them. Even with 1/6 of an acre, I have
several 4'x4' ones on the go, and produce up to a ton a year.

I bought 10m metres of pig netting, cut it into half, wired the ends
of each together, and hold it in place with metal stakes hammered
into the ground. I have started lining that with polythene, as I
had trouble with the heap drying out, but I like in Cambridge.
Some people use old pallets - anything will do.

A good size is 4' deep and 3-4' high, depending on how easy you
find it to throw material in. Above that, and it may become poorly
oxygenated in the centre. You pile it up as high as it goes, and
it sogs down. Some people use heaps 8-12' long - others use more
than one heap.

Keep things that are very slow to compost (e.g. woody prunings) in
a separate heap, or buy a decent shredder (a Bosch 2200 quiet model
is the one most people recommend), and don't have too much soggy
stuff (including grass clippings) at once.

I wrote some more for the FAQ, but could probably mail a copy if
you can't find it.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

Hi Nick,

Thanks for the information.....if you could email me with the extra that
would be excellent.

Jim

Uncle Marvo wrote:
In reply to Jim ) who wrote this in
, I, Marvo, say :

Hi folks,

I want to build a fairly substantial compost bin. I have about an acre
of garden and want to get myself organised in this department. Anyone
know of any good plans to work from please?

How substantial?

I believe that now most local councils will sell you a proprietary one on
the cheap, because it cuts down on the waste they have to collect.

Otherwise you need a fair lot of wood (if you're into "industrial"
dimensions). Also wood tends to rot. And plastic is expensive and quite hard
to work with. And the pathetic attempt I made once using chicken wire didn't
work well cos it wasn't dark, although it made a good job of grass cuttings.

I bought one from the council which looks quite good, and is green so not
too obtrusive, and copes with all I can throw at it. Only problem with it is
that when it gets overfull it's difficult to open the bottom, which rotates
rather than lifts, I tend to lift the whole thing up and fork it out.

What are you going to put in it, mostly grass, tree cuttings, plant waste,
veg? There are loads of options depending on that.


Hi Marvo,

It's going to have to be wooden, I think. I did actually consider some
brickwork but wonder if that's just going too far!

The small ones from the council work well enough but with three I'm so
short of volume.

Jim

On Sep 3, 12:23 pm, (Nick Maclaren) wrote:
In article ,Jim writes:

|
| I want to build a fairly substantial compost bin. I have about an acre
| of garden and want to get myself organised in this department. Anyone
| know of any good plans to work from please?

You don't want a bin. You (a) need things that are much larger than
that, and (b) need several of them. Even with 1/6 of an acre, I have
several 4'x4' ones on the go, and produce up to a ton a year.

I bought 10m metres of pig netting, cut it into half, wired the ends
of each together, and hold it in place with metal stakes hammered
into the ground. I have started lining that with polythene, as I
had trouble with the heap drying out, but I like in Cambridge.
Some people use old pallets - anything will do.

A good size is 4' deep and 3-4' high, depending on how easy you
find it to throw material in. Above that, and it may become poorly
oxygenated in the centre. You pile it up as high as it goes, and
it sogs down. Some people use heaps 8-12' long - others use more
than one heap.

Keep things that are very slow to compost (e.g. woody prunings) in
a separate heap, or buy a decent shredder (a Bosch 2200 quiet model
is the one most people recommend), and don't have too much soggy
stuff (including grass clippings) at once.

I wrote some more for the FAQ, but could probably mail a copy if
you can't find it.

Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

all very good advice above; currently, I have 2 heaps side by side;
you fill one while the second one cooks;
these are about a cubic metre each (or maybe 80% of one each); if I
had plenty of room I would have 2 mo one for leaf mould and one for
nasty weeds/quaranteening; I would also try to have a pile for twigs
but these usually end up simply growing bigger and bigger. As it
stands we throw out nasty weeds which is a bit lame but not sure what
else to do with them yet. We also only put uncooked vegetables on the
compost heaps as, despite Nick's assurances, we are not brave enough
to put all kitchen waste out yet (Nick is probably right but we are
scared); I may try one of those green cone thingies for that.

Des

On Sep 3, 12:23 pm, (Nick Maclaren) wrote:
In article ,Jim writes:

| I want to build a fairly substantial compost bin. I have about an acre
| of garden and want to get myself organised in this department. Anyone
| know of any good plans to work from please?

You don't want a bin. You (a) need things that are much larger than
that, and (b) need several of them. Even with 1/6 of an acre, I have
several 4'x4' ones on the go, and produce up to a ton a year.

I find three at 6'x6' allows me to easily cope with 1/3 acre. Only one
is in serious use for composting in any year. One is being filled and
one is maturing usually with some accidental spuds or courgettes
growing in it. Towards the end of the season the now empty heap starts
getting used for prunings.

I bought 10m metres of pig netting, cut it into half, wired the ends
of each together, and hold it in place with metal stakes hammered
into the ground. I have started lining that with polythene, as I
had trouble with the heap drying out, but I like in Cambridge.
Some people use old pallets - anything will do.

Old pallets are dirt cheap. In fact one of our our local farmers
merchants was giving them away recently to get rid. My compost heap is
made of bits of former garden shed that blew down in the storms of
2004/5. Previously it used pallettes but they do rot away. When I
lived in Belgium the house had concrete compost heaps of similar size
- that did not work too well - trapping too much water and excluding
air.

A good size is 4' deep and 3-4' high, depending on how easy you
find it to throw material in. Above that, and it may become poorly
oxygenated in the centre. You pile it up as high as it goes, and
it sogs down. Some people use heaps 8-12' long - others use more
than one heap.

I find that provided you add material in sufficient quantities and not
too wet (or dry) it matters little what it is (except for beech
prunings which seem to inhibit fungal growth). Though to jump start a
small new heap it is worth using a bit of Garotta (or similar).

Keep things that are very slow to compost (e.g. woody prunings) in
a separate heap, or buy a decent shredder (a Bosch 2200 quiet model
is the one most people recommend), and don't have too much soggy
stuff (including grass clippings) at once.

I find that if the slow woody bits are mixed into fast rotting grass
clippings they don't stand much of a chance. My heap usually gets to
about 70C 3-4 days after a grass cut provided I get the water content
right. Strange stale smell of short chain fatty acids so you want it
well away from the house. It has only once actually started
smouldering internally. It is always pretty full midsummer just after
cutting the lawn, and there is enough room by the next week.

BTW The swallows and house martins are all taking flying lessons off
my office roof at the moment.

Regards,
Martin Brown

"Jim" wrote in message
...
Hi folks,

I want to build a fairly substantial compost bin. I have about an acre
of garden and want to get myself organised in this department. Anyone
know of any good plans to work from please?

Jim

I am sure others will give you a better idea of how to do it in wood, all I
would say is best to have several not too huge ones, (I would say 4' squares
3' high and about 4 in number) full ones can be left
to rot down completely then while you have moved on to the next, some old
carpet squares to cover them helps keep heat in and weed seeds out.
Removable fronts make getting stuff out a bit easier, and tanalised wood
will last longer than plain but both would probably benefit from occasional
top ups of preserver when empty, but in truth you can use anything, Pig
netting lined with old carpet works well.

--
Charlie, Gardening in Cornwall
http://www.roselandhouse.co.uk
Holders of National collections of Clematis viticella
and Lapageria rosea cultivars

On Sep 3, 12:02 pm, Jim wrote:
Hi folks,

I want to build a fairly substantial compost bin. I have about an acre
of garden and want to get myself organised in this department. Anyone
know of any good plans to work from please?

Jim

You've got all the info you need, so I'll just add my penny worth and
tell you that you can pee in it to accelerate the break down process -
hence, don't make it too tall, or provide a wee step.

Cat(h)

Cat(h) wrote:
On Sep 3, 12:02 pm, Jim wrote:
Hi folks,

I want to build a fairly substantial compost bin. I have about an acre
of garden and want to get myself organised in this department. Anyone
know of any good plans to work from please?

Jim

You've got all the info you need, so I'll just add my penny worth and
tell you that you can pee in it to accelerate the break down process -
hence, don't make it too tall, or provide a wee step.

Cat(h)


I like that! Well done!

On 3/9/07 13:30, in article
, "Cat(h)"
wrote:

On Sep 3, 12:02 pm, Jim wrote:
Hi folks,

I want to build a fairly substantial compost bin. I have about an acre
of garden and want to get myself organised in this department. Anyone
know of any good plans to work from please?

Jim

You've got all the info you need, so I'll just add my penny worth and
tell you that you can pee in it to accelerate the break down process -
hence, don't make it too tall, or provide a wee step.

Cat(h)

'A wee step'...... splendid! ;-)

--
Sacha
http://www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon
(remove weeds from address)
'We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our
children.'

"Jim" wrote in message
...
Hi folks,

I want to build a fairly substantial compost bin. I have about an acre
of garden and want to get myself organised in this department. Anyone
know of any good plans to work from please?

Jim

wooden pallets. 3 pallets per compost bin, back & 2 sides. Nail them
together with any support bracing you need. Job done. Pallets are free from
many places.

rob

In article ,
Martin writes:
|
| and other types
| http://jenkinspublishing.com/photo_a...lbum/index.htm

Yup. That's the sort of thing.

| I thought this was how it was done on the organic website, but it seems to have
| been replaced with something more elaborate.
|
| http://www.gardenorganic.org.uk/factsheets/gg24.php

A stupid design, except for solely kitchen waste.

| Several designs here
| http://whatcom.wsu.edu/ag/compost/horsecompost5.htm

Fine for horse manure (on straw) - not good for general garden waste.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

"Martin" wrote in message
news
On Tue, 4 Sep 2007 19:50:18 +1200, "George.com" wrote:


"Jim" wrote in message
...
Hi folks,

I want to build a fairly substantial compost bin. I have about an acre
of garden and want to get myself organised in this department. Anyone
know of any good plans to work from please?

Jim

wooden pallets. 3 pallets per compost bin, back & 2 sides. Nail them
together with any support bracing you need. Job done. Pallets are free
from
many places.
Like this

http://jenkinspublishing.com/photo_a...20Bins_jpg.htm

and other types
http://jenkinspublishing.com/photo_a...lbum/index.htm

yes, piece of the proverbial to make, pallets often come free and easy of
knock down and move. I made a double bin in the shape of an E using remnants
of a mates wooden fence and some chicken wire.

rob

On 4/9/07 12:07, in article gum-uwief,
"Zhang DaWei" wrote:

On Monday 03 Sep 2007 14:08, Sacha
) wrote:

'A wee step'...... splendid! ;-)

We're back to discussing Robbie Burns again, I see.

;-))

--
Sacha
http://www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon
(remove weeds from address)
'We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our
children.'