Tag-Archive for » composter «

Tuesday, July 14th, 2009 | Author: admin

There is a lot of information out there about composting and a lot of it states that you shouldn’t use products like meats or eggshells in your compost because they would attract all sorts of unwanted animal attention and might turn your compost pile into a snacking ground for the area animals. There have been those complaining about bears being drawn to compost bins and other smaller animals as well. However, eggshells can also be a good source of nutrients for your garden, and can also have other uses, so composting them can prove to be quite beneficial if you follow a few golden rules.

The first thing you should know is that eggshells can host salmonella on their surface, and as such, if you don’t want to spread that around to your garden, it’s best to wash the eggshells before composting them. There are those who also like to put the eggshells in a tray in the oven for 20 minutes or so to make sure to kill all the bacteria, and this might not be a bad idea since the procedure would not destroy the Calcium in the shell, which is what the plants will most require out of the eggshells in the first place.

Egg shellsAnother thing you could do is to grind the shells into very small pieces. This helps in more than one way. For one thing, the smaller the eggshell bits, the quicker the break down process (and in the case of eggshells, this process will take quite a while so you want to do whatever you can to hasten it). For another, scattering the small pieces of eggshell around plants will keep slugs and other pests away from them.

Spreading the ground up eggshells onto the ground or in the areas where you feed birds or chicken can also be useful, as the birds can take back a lot of much needed nutrients from the shells. If you are going to feed them to chicken, it’s advisable to put the shells into the oven for a few minutes, as feeding the chicken raw shells might encourage them to also pick at the freshly laid eggs that are yet to be collected.

While composting eggshells can be beneficial for your plants and birds and is therefore not discouraged, it would be good to avoid composting other egg parts, as it would not only be a surefire way to attract animals to your compost pile but it would also ensure that your compost would give away a smell that you would not be thrilled to have around. All in all, if you take some precautions, there is no reason why you shouldn’t compost your eggshells.

Monday, June 29th, 2009 | Author: admin

Tilted Earth Compost BinMost ecologically aware persons have learned about the benefits of compost and are having fun turning some of the organic residue of their household into nutrient for their plants. However, there are some limitations to what you can compost and many are, with good reason, careful about what they add to their compost pile. However, you might be avoiding some of the things that would work very well as compost, so here are a few of the things you had no idea you could compost.

If you have pets, you might do your compost bin a favor and feed it some of the waste your pets leave behind, such as fur, claw clippings and pet food. Be careful about composting your pets’ fecal matter though, as it’s not advisable to compost feline feces because of their high content in toxins and germs, and dog feces require special measures when composting.

Leather goods can also make for good compost bin material. If you have old leather clothing, shoes, wallets or bags that you are sure can’t be used anymore, you can try composting them. Because of the processing, it’s likely that leather will take some time to break down fully, but it really won’t take as long as you might think looking at it.

vacuum cleaner dustUnbelievable as it may sound, the dust in your vacuum bin can make for a great compost ingredient. If you think about it, the composition of dust mostly particles of dead skin, lint, and various other small pieces of organic materials, aside from a few non organic ones, for good measure. You can either get paper bags for your vacuum cleaner, which you can compost as well, or buy a vacuum cleaner which uses a bin instead of bags and just empty the bin into the compost pile.

Speaking of paper bags, paper can make for a great compost ingredient. You can use all sorts of paper in your composter, except, of course, paper that has been laminated or the kind of gift wrapping that usually comes with a thin plastic layer on top. Aside from that, you can go crazy and compost anything from cardboard boxes to old newspapers and other kinds of paper that end up building up around the house.

You can also compost cotton balls, strange as it may seem. Cotton is organic, and as such, cotton balls should have no problem breaking down in your compost pile. Just make sure to check the packaging on the cotton balls you buy, because if they are made from synthetic fibers, composting them would be useless.

As you can see, there are plenty of things you can compost that you might not have thought were up to the task. All that’s left now is for you to have fun composting.

Friday, June 19th, 2009 | Author: admin

The Spin Daddy Compost Tumbler really stands out in our collection of compost bins and composting accessories, in my opinion, because it recycles a product that would otherwise find it’s way into a landfill, into a product that will help you keep your OWN waste out of the landfills, and instead into your garden, where it can nourish your plants.

Composting has never been easier! The attractive Spin Daddy Compost Tumbler nests securely on an easy to roll base, making composting a

Spin Daddy Compost Tumblr

Spin Daddy Compost Tumblr

breeze!

Transformed from a juice-making drum into an eco-friendly composter, this compost tumbler will help you turn your food scraps into nourishing fertilizer. The Spin Daddy Compost Tumbler offers 7.35 cubic feet - or 55 gallons -  of composting space.

It’s  made of durable, recycled food-grade plastic resin. The strong, leak-tested barrel sits and rotates freely on wheels built into the stable black base. The low-profile design prevents tipping in strong winds, and the wide 16-inch twist-on lid allows you to load and unload material easily. Ventilation holes at both ends circulate air within the batch to accelerate rapid composting. The rotating drum can be removed from its base and rolled to any location for filling or dispensing - no lifting required.

This compost tumbler eliminates the need for strenuous churning. All you have to do is rotate the drum on its stand to quickly and easily mix your compost materials. Turn it about once a week to keep oxygen, nutrients, micro-organisms, and moisture evenly distributed throughout the developing batch. Within just weeks of accruing garden and kitchen waste, this compost bin will transform your scraps into valuable organic material.

Please note: Because it previously had juice in it, the recycled drum may have original markings and scuffs on the surface, which have since been tempered. It also might carry a light, sweet aroma. This compost tumbler arrives fully assembled and is backed by a one-year warranty against manufacturing defects.