On Mon, 31 Jul 2017 12:48:03 +0100, Tim Watts
wrote:

Hi,

It might seem like a silly question, but is there *any* likelihood of
one of these:

http://www.hotbincomposting.com/

catching fire of its own volition?

I have found black ash pockets in a pallet compost heap which must
have self combusted (as hayricks can) but had gone out of its own
accord. Mine do get hot, I remember the children trying to bake
potatoes and eggs in the bins (no luck).IME its the capacity of the CH
together with the mix of contents, that builds heat and speeds
decomposition. I add a 6" layer of fresh lawn clippings to mine every
time we mow (or the neighbours deliver theirs)

That's a very high price to pay for a rather small (IMO) insulated
container; and you'll still need to buy their "bulking agent" at huge
expense. I wouldn't waste my money one one where there are free
alternatives such as pallets, and (where I live) free daleks provided by
council.

Janet

On 01/08/17 13:38, Janet wrote:

On Mon, 31 Jul 2017 12:48:03 +0100, Tim Watts
wrote:

Hi,

It might seem like a silly question, but is there *any* likelihood of
one of these:

http://www.hotbincomposting.com/

catching fire of its own volition?

I have found black ash pockets in a pallet compost heap which must
have self combusted (as hayricks can) but had gone out of its own
accord. Mine do get hot, I remember the children trying to bake
potatoes and eggs in the bins (no luck).IME its the capacity of the CH
together with the mix of contents, that builds heat and speeds
decomposition. I add a 6" layer of fresh lawn clippings to mine every
time we mow (or the neighbours deliver theirs)

That's a very high price to pay for a rather small (IMO) insulated
container; and you'll still need to buy their "bulking agent" at huge
expense. I wouldn't waste my money one one where there are free
alternatives such as pallets, and (where I live) free daleks provided by
council.

Hi Janet,

Interesting you can found evidence of combustion...

Re daleks - I have 2 but they are slooowww... And never get that warm,
especially in winter.

The insulation is the key, so it's either make one or buy one - hassle
factor is significant here as I have a *lot* going on right now.

Bulking agent - I'd use my own shredded paper and chipped branches so
won't be needing that

On 01/08/2017 14:13, Tim Watts wrote:
Re daleks - I have 2 but they are slooowww... And never get that warm,
especially in winter.

According to that web site they are 32 times faster than a dalek, and
produce compost in 30-60 days.

So a dalek takes 32-64 months to compost? I'm sure I've had stuff out in
less than 2 1/2 years.

Andy

On 01/08/17 20:58, Vir Campestris wrote:
On 01/08/2017 14:13, Tim Watts wrote:
Re daleks - I have 2 but they are slooowww... And never get that warm,
especially in winter.

According to that web site they are 32 times faster than a dalek, and
produce compost in 30-60 days.

So a dalek takes 32-64 months to compost? I'm sure I've had stuff out in
less than 2 1/2 years.

Andy

I reckon mine are taking over a year and nearer 2.

On Tue, 1 Aug 2017 21:15:09 +0100, Tim Watts
wrote:

I reckon mine are taking over a year and nearer 2.

If you're old enough, remember the Indore 2-week composting method?
It works, IF:
You have the right C:N ratio
Enough mass to heat up the interior
Enough areation, i.e. turn frequently
Ingredients well-shredded.

I'm old and lazy, I do the "Pile it up and let it rot" method.
Time to dig into the older of 2 biggish bins and see how it looks.


---
This email has been checked for viruses by AVG.
http://www.avg.com

On 01/08/2017 21:24, Chris Hogg wrote:
On Tue, 1 Aug 2017 21:15:09 +0100, Tim Watts
wrote:

On 01/08/17 20:58, Vir Campestris wrote:
On 01/08/2017 14:13, Tim Watts wrote:
Re daleks - I have 2 but they are slooowww... And never get that warm,
especially in winter.

According to that web site they are 32 times faster than a dalek, and
produce compost in 30-60 days.

So a dalek takes 32-64 months to compost? I'm sure I've had stuff out in
less than 2 1/2 years.

Andy

I reckon mine are taking over a year and nearer 2.

Which makes them no faster than my cold pallet-sided heap, except
they're a lot smaller. I hate to think how many daleks it would take
to contain my yearly compost generation.



If your compost is charing in the centre then it's much to dry, it wont
compost compost if it's dry and it wont burn either.

On 01/08/2017 20:58, Vir Campestris wrote:
On 01/08/2017 14:13, Tim Watts wrote:
Re daleks - I have 2 but they are slooowww... And never get that warm,
especially in winter.

According to that web site they are 32 times faster than a dalek, and
produce compost in 30-60 days.


The youtube videos do suggest fast composting is with a fairly full load
carefully constructed from predetermined quantities of certain
materials. Lesser amounts take longer. This time of year the same full
load in a standard dalek would also compost fairly fast so the x32
figure may only be true with _full_ load during winter months. In the
winter getting rid of large amounts of compost material is possibly not
required.


--
mailto: news {at} admac {dot] myzen {dot} co {dot} uk

In article ,
lid says...


According to that web site they are 32 times faster than a dalek, and
produce compost in 30-60 days.

So a dalek takes 32-64 months to compost? I'm sure I've had stuff out in
less than 2 1/2 years.

Andy


I can not understand why there is always a need for speed in
everything these days. Surely a 2 or 3 year cycle for compose
is all that is require. Why would you want compost every month?

--
Roger T

700 ft up in Mid-Wales

On 03/08/17 10:20, Roger Tonkin wrote:
In article ,
lid says...


According to that web site they are 32 times faster than a dalek, and
produce compost in 30-60 days.

So a dalek takes 32-64 months to compost? I'm sure I've had stuff out in
less than 2 1/2 years.

Andy


I can not understand why there is always a need for speed in
everything these days. Surely a 2 or 3 year cycle for compose
is all that is require. Why would you want compost every month?


Volume of grass clippings and other materials - simple at that.

It's not the speed so much as the max throughput.

In article ,
says...

On 03/08/17 10:20, Roger Tonkin wrote:
In article ,
lid says...


According to that web site they are 32 times faster than a dalek, and
produce compost in 30-60 days.

So a dalek takes 32-64 months to compost? I'm sure I've had stuff out in
less than 2 1/2 years.

Andy


I can not understand why there is always a need for speed in
everything these days. Surely a 2 or 3 year cycle for compose
is all that is require. Why would you want compost every month?


Volume of grass clippings and other materials - simple at that.

It's not the speed so much as the max throughput.


Yes, so you compost it quickly, then what are you going to do
with it?

--
Roger T

700 ft up in Mid-Wales

On 03/08/17 19:32, Roger Tonkin wrote:
Yes, so you compost it quickly, then what are you going to do
with it?

Put it on the ground Under the hedges, trees, that sort of thing.

And it should be 1/4 of the original volume or so.

On Tue, 1 Aug 2017 14:13:31 +0100, Tim Watts
wrote:


Re daleks - I have 2 but they are slooowww... And never get that warm,
especially in winter.

The insulation is the key, so it's either make one or buy one - hassle
factor is significant here as I have a *lot* going on right now.

Insulate the Daleks with something like loft insulation strapped
around them. A couple of rolls will be much less cost than buying a
Hot Bin.

G,Harman

On 02/08/2017 01:38, wrote:
On Tue, 1 Aug 2017 14:13:31 +0100, Tim Watts
wrote:


Re daleks - I have 2 but they are slooowww... And never get that warm,
especially in winter.

The insulation is the key, so it's either make one or buy one - hassle
factor is significant here as I have a *lot* going on right now.

Insulate the Daleks with something like loft insulation strapped
around them. A couple of rolls will be much less cost than buying a
Hot Bin.

G,Harman


Hot water tank blanket? Although the insulation is somewhat useless if
it gets soaked with water and remains wet.


--
mailto: news {at} admac {dot] myzen {dot} co {dot} uk

On Wed, 2 Aug 2017 12:56:11 +0100, alan_m
wrote:

The insulation is the key, so it's either make one or buy one - hassle
factor is significant here as I have a *lot* going on right now.

Insulate the Daleks with something like loft insulation strapped
around them. A couple of rolls will be much less cost than buying a
Hot Bin.

G,Harman


Hot water tank blanket? Although the insulation is somewhat useless if
it gets soaked with water and remains wet.

I did wonder about that as an option, but the Dalek shaped composters
are a large and uneven circumference bigger than most domestic hot
water tanks, especially around the base. ISTR the blankets are not
that thick either.
The point about the insulation getting wet is a good one,
Until I found that burying the compost bin in the middle of the grass
heap worked well enough I was going to wrap it with an old roll of
insulation we had and then use some large sheets of bubblewrap that we
used as green house insulation one year but are now surplus , that
would have given a degree of water resistance, some bin liners and
sticky tape would do the same.
Or the OP could just buy a wide screen telly and use the packaging to
make a Hotbin

G.Harman

On Tue, 1 Aug 2017 13:38:00 +0100, Janet wrote:


On Mon, 31 Jul 2017 12:48:03 +0100, Tim Watts
wrote:

Hi,

It might seem like a silly question, but is there *any* likelihood of
one of these:

http://www.hotbincomposting.com/

catching fire of its own volition?


That's a very high price to pay for a rather small (IMO) insulated
container; and you'll still need to buy their "bulking agent" at huge
expense. I wouldn't waste my money one one where there are free
alternatives such as pallets, and (where I live) free daleks provided by
council.

My brother has got one of those hotbins and found it wasn't really
worth the money, maybe if you have lot of kitchen waste rather than
old garden material it could be ok for some.

As it isn't much more than an expanded Polystyrene or very similar
material box it would be easy to make one from one of the proprietary
insulation board materials used in the building industry, some found
in a skip or seconds being sold cheap would suffice.
You might even find a local tall building being stripped of some.

I use a Dalek type but it is buried in a heap of grass clippings
that insulate it and heat it up and the contents at the same time.


G.Harman

G.Harman