Nitrogen rich items such as leaves may be turned into compost.
With the growing interest in organic fruits and vegetables, more and more people are starting their own gardens. One way to get the most out of a home garden is to improve the soil through compost. A great way to do that is to compost your own kitchen scraps and yard waste through a compost tumbler. But while commercial compost tumblers can cost hundreds of dollars, you can make your own composter for a fraction of that. Does this Spark an idea?
Materials
The most important part of a compost tumbler is a barrel for the tumbling part. A large, plastic rain barrel is the perfect barrel composter. You can purchase a barrel in the style that you need from any local hardware store. Additionally, some cities sell plastic rain barrels from city recycling centers. Check with your city to see if they sell barrels such as this.
Other barrels that are good for compost tumblers include metal oil barrels. These barrels are often sold to consumers as 'burn barrels' for trash. However, before you use such a barrel for your compost, make sure that it has been thoroughly cleaned of oil or other chemicals that may have previously been stored inside. In addition to a barrel, you will need a large piece of plastic that acts at a 'fin' for stirring compost, hinges and a latch for a hatch to access your compost, and a frame onto which to place the barrel. The fin may be made from a sheet of acrylic or PVC, and the frame may be made from PVC pipe if your compost tumbler is lightweight, or of metal conduit or copper pipe if your compost tumbler is heavier. You may purchase all these supplies from a hardware store.
Process
To create the tumbler, cut the fin to the correct size and fit it inside the barrel. You may need to glue the fin in place, or use screws, washers and nuts. The fin insures that the compost will mix when you turn the barrel. Install the hatch by cutting a square piece out of the side of the barrel. Hinge one side of the square piece back into the barrel's hole, and hold the other side in place with a latch. Then create a framework for the tumbler by making two X-shaped saw horses out of conduit or PVC. Use X-shaped pipe fittings and pipe. Place the barrel on its side in the crook of the X-shaped saw horses. To tumble the compost inside the barrel, rotate as it sits on its side.
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