# Compost Tumbler



## SolarAndWood (Apr 10, 2010)

Has anyone seen or used this?


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## Burn-1 (Apr 10, 2010)

We used to have one and they work very well, making good compost relatively fast but you don't get that much yield. If you're only composting kitchen scraps then it should be fine. If you want to make lots of compost then I would recommend something else.


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## SolarAndWood (Apr 10, 2010)

Cool thanks.  The main goal is to keep the dog out of our winter compost material.  Not having to deal with snow and wind to dump the compost is a nice bonus.


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## DBoon (Apr 10, 2010)

A rotating composter will probably cost you 2x more than a non-rotating one, so the price premium may not be worth it to you unless you need compost faster. 

Check with your local cooperative extension office.  A few years ago we got a black plastic composter from them and it was only $35 (probably cost) as opposed to $70 or so from a retail store.  They had a special offer in the spring.


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## SolarAndWood (Apr 11, 2010)

I found one used so not much of a premium.  We are pretty lazy composters.  Material gets thrown in a heap adjacent to the garden during the growing season and directly on the garden in the off season.  Then, tilled in spring and fall.  I was thinking with the tumbler we might get better results and it could be right outside the door in the winter.


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## begreen (Apr 11, 2010)

I would think twice about a composter right next to the house. We did that for a while until we found that it was a rat magnet. They would raid it at night. When I moved it away from the house I found a tunnel in the bottom. The tunnel went under the house's stem wall. Checked in the crawlspace and found a huge pile of compost on top of the crawlspace plastic! Now it is a respectable 75' away from the house and we have a full foundation. No more rodents in the house!


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## SolarAndWood (Apr 11, 2010)

Our fair weather composter is in the garden about 75' from the house.  We have been dumping in drywall buckets just outside the door in the winter already.  No rat problems, just the K9.


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## begreen (Apr 12, 2010)

Got a veggie eating K9 eh? For us that would be raccoons.


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## ramonbow (Apr 16, 2010)

We have the same problem with our little dog.  She loves to eat or roll in the stuff, but forgets she has alight stomach and then barfs it up in the house.  This makes the other half mad at the dog and then at me because the compost pile is my pet project.  

I have a 55gal plastic barrel that i plan to turn into a compost tumbler this weekend.  The plan is to have it rotate horizontally instead of vertically.  Your diagram gave me an idea.  I was going to have it rest in something similar to an oversized sawbuck.  Now i am considering drilling a hole through the center of the lid and bottom and inserting a chunk of PVC with holes drilled in it.  I plan to cut a hole big enough to dump a five gallon pail into and add a couple of handles for easy turning.  

Anyone else made one like this?


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## daveswoodhauler (Apr 16, 2010)

I go old school for this one.
I just use a cheapo cylinder shaped waste barrel....drill some holes in it and keep the lid on with a bungie cord...every week or so I just give it a roll a few times...not the prettiest thing, but I wasn't about to drop $100 on a plastic barrel that looked pretty


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