Compost roller bin plans

No plans, but a comment...

From what I've read, the best composting happens when the pile is in contact with the ground so earth worms can get involved. They eat the stuff and crap out the compost.

So, an airborn design might not be the best.

Just a thought.

Solar cell or wind power!

I would say that there are one set of thick rubber cover rod and the other side of the load is held up with the same. One of which is a driven shaft.

Think of a 4' diameter tubular circle with spokes that drive the roller.

The unit is a closed U that the bottom of the U holds the barrel and is 3' or so (big turning wheel (think oil field valve handle) ) doesn't drag the ground. The size is to give leverage when the barrel is full of 'stuff'. The top of the U curves outward to both sides and down and under to form the stand.

Each side must be tied together depth through the page if looking at the U center.

Bound to be one on the web of Mother... web... da -

That might light you up a bit !

OBTW - coffee grounds - draws fishing worms like nothing else!

Martin

It just dawned on me that this could be the project to justify the purchase of a plasma cutter. Clearly my wife wouldn't want jagged rough flame cut edges for the door openings now would she? Don't want to cut up her hands. Yeah, that's the ticket, a plasma cutter...

Tell me I'm right!

Wayne

Well this is true, it could be gotten around by putting a small amount of earth in the composter and adding some earth worms (just buy a dozen or two from a fishing tackle place and you should be fine). Ken

Hey Wayne,

We bought a turnable composter that retails for $75, made of fairly heavy "plastic" that is sort of round barrel shape versus a drum shape (explain later) and just lays horizontally in a double groove sort of. One end has a cover that dogs in/on. It is not a 45, but maybe 25 or

30 US gallons or so. The way it is molded, it has "handles" with the days of the week on them, so I guess it has seven. The handles allow easy manual rotation each day, although we aren't that regular. Mostly the days just show which direction and how far to turn it each time. These composters work very well, and certainly shorten the composting time, but are effectively a "single load-single unload" type. That is, when you decide to load it and compost, you really should not add anymore compost materials after the process begins, and you wait until the process is complete. Loading it with a bit of material every day for a week or two is fine, but once you really want it to compost, you can't add anymore like you do in a stack composter. It isn't a process where you can continually add a bit of raw material and take-out a bit of good compost at the same time. It has to be allowed to "sit". So the old compost stacks have an advantage, in that there is a start period and a process, but after that the compost can be removed from the bottom or side and the process continues above, where that is not the case with the roller type.

I mentioned earlier that the barrel is sort of "round". It is truly barrel shaped in general, but it is molded. So it has two areas that "hoop" the barrel with a raised part about 1/4", and that is where the barrel rides in the grooves of the base molding. It's not NASA quality workmanship. Between the hoops, are the seven molded indents, and they form the handles for rotating with ease. Each of the indents has 3" molded hole that is raised inside the barrel. This allows bugs/worms/bacteria and water and stuff to enter, but not fall out too easy. I don't know whether there is a real reason for the seven positions, or it's just pragmatic. Like, would 10 be better, or

4, or rotate 1/2 way once a month, or a continuous slow rotation? I have no idea.

I would think it you have the room, you could try a test one in any plastic drum/barrel, and just roll it along the grass/ground to a new position every day. If you like the results.... lemme know and I'll try a photo of ours. My digital camera sucks, ESPECIALLY on dark objects, or I'd take a picture now. If you've read the above and still want to make one, I'll try to get a manufacturers name so you could see it on a web page or something for ideas.

Take care.

Brian Laws>My wife wants me to build her a compost roller bin. The kind with a barrel

On 05 Oct 2004 02:21:15 GMT, snipped-for-privacy@aol.com.gov (Rileyesi) calmly ranted:

Also, if she needs a tumbler to turn it frequently, she may be turning it TOO often. Having 2 smaller, easier-to-turn piles is better than having a single, large (and heavy) pile.

BUT, if SWMBO wants, SWMBO gets, huh?

How about a 55-gal drum mounted to a frame with bearings at each end. An old flywheel with ring gear will make the large gear and you can weld up a crank to a bracket holding a shaft with an old starter gear on the end for turning it. 1.5" tube or L steel should handle the weight. Who needs plans when you have imagination?

Cut a door or two in the side for loading it or bottom-dumping/ top-scooping the finished product.

has a good review and can give you some ideas of how mfgrs mount their goods.

Definitely would work for me!

Errol Groff

Instructor, Machine Tool Department H.H. Ellis Regional Technical School Danielson, CT 06239

860 774 8511 x1811