How to Revive a Neglected Compost Tumbler: 5 Simple Steps to Garden Gold
When I bought this Compost Tumbler around three years ago (I think), I remember thinking that THIS was the product that would change me into the eco-homemaker I’ve always wanted to be.
Between health issues, babies, and life in general, this compost bin has been neglected for at least 2 years.
If I am completely honest, when I realized I need to start composting again, I almost got rid of this bin. I wanted something more aesthetically pleasing, and it is an embarrassing reminder of my poor eco-choices.
But swapping this out for the sake of aesthetics and embarrassment isn’t very eco-friendly either. So, instead, I’m going to embrace my feelings of awkwardness and use it as a stepping stone in correcting my behaviour.
Here is how I restarted my compost after letting it go dormant for a couple of years.
Quality of contents
The contents of the compost itself are pretty dry and full of cobwebs, and goodness knows when those eggshells went in.
After a lot of Googling and researching on Reddit , I found this isn’t the end of the world. There isn’t an obvious bad smell, so I think it’s save-able.
How to Revive
First, I pulled out the eggshells, crushed them down smaller and threw them back in. I learned from the above linked subreddit that egg shells can be be broken down fairly small to be broken down by the compost. Thankfully, everything in the bin is so dry and brittle that it was really easy to crumble up.
I added some brown matter, shredded paper, and leftover wine from a cozy evening. It’s essentially a celebratory toast to the tiny microbes waking up in there. And I wasn’t too precious about the exact ratios, but I’ve read ranges from 2:1 to 3:1 brown to green material.
I had to be careful not to add too much moisture, but just in case it does get too wet, you can use more cardboard/shredded paper to absorb some of that moisture.
You can use beer too! The Gardening Know How states:
Beer contains yeast, which is nitrogen rich and ideal for breaking down carbon-based materials in the compost pile. Yeast stimulates the decomposition of organic materials, accelerating the composting process. (Amy Grant)
How often to turn
Again, I recommend that Reddit subreddit! I learned that you should only be turning the compost bin 1-2 times a week. That should give the healthy bacteria time to grow.
And while I’m sure the instructions I got with the bin officially said to spin in one direction, it apparently doesn’t matter. But I found turning with my tumbler to be a pain, and found I had better control when I gave it a quick mix with a trowel. So I think that is what I will be stick with for now.
When will it be ready to use?
According to https://thehomesteadchallenge.com/composting-tumbler-tips/ anywhere between 3-6 months, so I will come back then with results!
How to store excess
I haven’t found exact advice on this, but I am going to try experimenting with storing compost, as it probably won’t be ready for when I set up my raised bed (keep your eyes peeled for that post!). If the tumbler gets too full, I plan on storing in old cat litter boxes which would have been sent to recycling. I’ll be drilling a few ‘breather holes’ into the sides of these bins to keep the microbes happy. Magic needs air to breathe, after all! Hopefully I will be able to test this out in the near future. For now, this bin hold plenty.
At a Glance
An Invitation
Have you set up a compost before? Any advice you could give me would be highly appreciated. Drop a comment below to help us all get greener!
Also, if you want to see me revive this compost, follow me on IG where I made a quick reel if you would like to watch a quick reel.
Wishing you all the cozy magic,
Amrita
