Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I have had one of these bins for several years and I have some tips on using it. First, when you fill it, don't fill it to the top. Fill the bin 3/4 full then wait a day or so and slide the bin sides up a foot or more and fill some more. Keep doing this process until it is 6 ft. high or more. Then finally, after the pile has settled several days, slide the bin off the top and start a new pile. The old pile will hold it's shape and continue to cook down. You can use some of the old pile to inoculate the new pile. A compost pile needs to be at a bare minimum one cubic yard to heat up properly. That means when the compost pile cooks down to 36 inches or less the microbes that live in the pile don't have enough room to finish the job. So keeping the pile larger insures you'll have better success. When starting the pile use a pallet or tree branches to create an air path under the pile to assist oxygen into the pile. When building the pile make sure you wet things down first and mix the browns and the greens as best as you can. If you throw bags of leaves on top it will help to hold the heat and moisture in so it will compost more completely. If you find that your pile dries out too quickly, like mine, you can attach some plastic, I recycle old plastic bags, to the outside to try and hold in the moisture. Try experimenting with ingredients buried in the center of the pile you would not normally compost where the heat is the highest and things compost the fastest. Most of all don't stress about turning the compost just pile things up and once it is big enough things will compost. Turn it when it is convenient for you and have fun.