And so the debate begins: which is better, the compost bin or the compost tumbler? Granted, both will get you superb results - rich black soil known throughout the composting world as black gold - and both essentially help decompose organic matter. But again, which is better? Well, I suppose it depends on who you talk to. Those who use compost bins find it satisfying to turn their compost by pitchfork as it gives them a reason to enjoy an outdoor activity that benefits both them and their garden. Others who utilize compost tumblers realize they have very little time to go out and acutally turn their compost, and would rather just rotate the barrel of the tumbler with a crank for quick aeration with little manual labor. For every pro, there is a con; manually turning your compost 
in your compost bin can get quite dirty, and sweaty depending on the season. That’s not to say that compost tumblers don’t have their share of cons: tumblers are a bit more expensive and depending on the type your purchase, can be just as messy especially if you have to roll it around the yard when the compost is not yet ready. The debate’s open, folks - which do you prefer and why?
So how much do you guys get paid for “blogging” on a bad company’s products?
So how much do you get paid for making irrelevant comments without supporting any facts of the issue at hand? GREENCulture is an online retailer– NOT the manufacturer of any products they offer. Maybe you should be aware of that before you start making frivolous and erroneous remarks.
In reference to the blog here:
I prefer tumblers– they compost your items faster than a typical easy compost bin. Some people do prefer the bins though, because they like to think they have more control. Also, you can’t leave out vermiculture composting– that’s the fastest way of all! Honestly, it’s just personal preference. I could go on for some time.
I wasn’t at all offended by the question posed here, because as a new shopper and new composter, I had that SAME QUESTION!
It’s all well and good to criticize, but without knowing anyone involved with the Green Site I got this off of, I would say it’s quite useful to open your “save the earth” dialog with newbies like me, and tit’s great to have a place to shop for precisely what is needed!!!
Can I assume this blog is defunct?
Well, no the blog isnt over because no one has mentioned just how “easy” the tumbler is to move around the yard and to turn and how about the “tea” part of the function. I have done the tea thing on a stationary worm bin and it was very difficult to get the pan in to gather the tea without spilling and making a huge mess. How does the tumbler fare? If I am going to fork out $300+ I would like to know.
I’ve had compost piles and compost bins, both ended with sub par results. Mostly because of my lack of time to properly attend to them. I bought the UCT-9 about 6 months ago from organic-composter.com and I have never made compost this fast or easy.
I would agree with Mat in that the design of the Urban Compost Tumbler allows for very quick and easy composting. I have had one for a couple years now and love it.
? yes, the tumblers will make compost in 2 weeks;but, if you are adding food scraps everyday… won’t you have to seperate the last 2 weeks of food scraps from the already composted material… ???, thank you to anyone who can let me know about this process, particularily with regard to the California/Oregon company selling the UCT7 & UCT9 (barrel type tumbler with no crank handle necessary & made of recycled food grade plastic)……….. thank you for anyone who has used this specific compost tumbler, Shelley
Matt lies, he has never had a compost tumbler. He is some loser college kid who has no original ideas and so creates sites that steal content from others and then tries to promote them by spamming blog comments.
I was given a tumbler type composter yesterday and am trying to find out just how to use it since it has no manual with it. Any help is appreciated.
i am currently looking for a composter- it never occurred to me someone would lie about a composter…does anyone else have the uct-9, do they like it, and what to do about the ongoing scraps from the kitchen that shelley asked about? keep them on a separate pile to add when the compost is finished and start a new batch??
I have a problem with my new compost tumbler and hoping to get some advice. We bought the UCT mainly because of a steady and large amount of kitchen scraps, along with some yard waste. I didn’t know that you cannot add to the tumbler continuously (but should fill it up all at once and then let it be) I’m looking for advise about how to make thetumbler system work for our situation. What do we do with our constant flow of kitchen compost??
In regards to Shelley, Sue, Barbara, and Gayan’s comments: Batch-style composters generally produce compost at a much faster rate due to their smaller size. This will still require stockpiling materials but you get faster results a batch at a time. That way you can continually add to the compost bin. Make sure you’re not adding materials unsuitable for composting in the bin, check the moisture level, and keep the composter turned daily and aerated. Shredding the scrap materials into smaller pieces before placing them into the composter can also help. Here are a couple sites that might provide further help:
http://www.composters.com/eco-facts.php
http://www.compostmanual.com/
I make compost at home with a normal rubbish bin. I have made some holes all over it with a drill. I’m vegetarian, so I don’t add animal products, except for egg shells. I undestand fat residues from animal food should not be mixed with veg and fruit residues, but I am not sure why, or how should the former be processed. I start with a thin layer of dirt at the bottom of the bin. I then add food residues for about 30 cm high. When flies are too abundant or annoying, I add a bit more of soil. This solves the fly problem and makes the compost going. I add some worms from the garden and leave the compost bin open, for aeration and to keep it cool (here in Mexico we can have pretty hot days). The whole bin is full by 3 or four months, I keep on adding food and soil until it’s full. I never toss it or turn it around, the worms do that wonderfully. Finally, when the bin is full, I pour the whole thing and toss it around with a shovel, something I enjoy cause by that time it’s all mainly black soil. I place it again in the bin and leave it for no more than a week. The compost is then ready for pots and garden. I do have some odor problems due to the fluid comming out of the bin, though, which I have to wash to the drain repeatedly. The key to me is worms, aeration, and a bit of water now and then. Cheers!
Ximena, I think your composting method is close to perfect. It sounds alot like a food scrap digester except that a food scrap digester is generally all or somewhat open on the bottom so it makes contact with the dirt. This way you don’t have to actually put dirt in it (unless you want to add some later to keep the flies down) but the worms and good microorganisms that break down the food scraps will come right up through the soil into the container. And you don’t have any drain problems. I would recommend a good fitting lid. This might even eliminate your fly problem. This system doesn’t need air; it is anaerobic composting. Nature does it all the time. A food digester like this can pretty much handle anything a person would eat. I have used old Rubbermade type bins and 5 gallon buckets. Your ‘homemade soil’ sounds great. Happy Composting! For leaves and grass clippings, if a person has them, you can make an inexpensive no fuss composter by taking a length of chicken wire 3 or 4 feet high and making a circular bin out of it, open on the top and bottom. Just pile in your leaves and grass and let nature do the rest. It is slow but there is no turning. Check out this video about it that I wish I had made!
http://www.revver.com/video/624290/garden-girl-tv-simple-easy-compost-bin/ And happy composting!
Regarding problems with continuous additions to tumblers, here’s my solution: I go ahead and add materials as I have them to my tumbling composter. The materials break down pretty quickly, but as others have pointed out, it’s impossible to get truly finished compost this way. To deal with this problem, I occasionally transfer a shovel load or two (making sure to leave anything that’s still recognizable in the tumbler) over to my multi-tray worm composter. The worms are more than happy to finish the job. Once the pipeline is full, a steady stream of finished compost results. An additional benefit is that using this process I can add materials to the pipeline that I usually wouldn’t add to a worm composter (e.g., sticks and twigs).
On the tumbler v. bin debate, I don’t have a lot of time for turning a pile, so I find the tumbler much more convenient. Eventually, I’d like to take it a step futher and rig a device to use wind power to automatically turn a tumbler for me.
So, I think I have a seriously bad problem with my tumbler. I thought I added browns and greens but I am now spinning a pile of raw sewage and it smells terrible. There are poop flies all over it. What do I do? I’m ready to throw it in the landfill!!
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I really prefer compost bins over compost tumblers. It’s just a personal preference. Here’s a great resource if you’re interested in getting started: http://www.compostbins.com/composting-tips.cfm
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