Should I... Get a Hotbin Garden Composter?

[@dane2487]

The rodent matter can not be understated. Also its not just creating compost but allowing one to be more self reliant in removing waste cleanly that works well in a residential area. It is also good at killing weeds that may contaminate a lower heat bin

[@LearnPermaculture]

You're absolutely right Dan. And given the high water content and hence the weight of kitchen waste there's a fairly high energy cost in the council collecting it. Keeping it at home saves energy too. :)

[@veronicathecow]

Excellent, I have often wondered about if these were effective. Anyone wanting to do this, don't use shredded laser printer or copier paper as this has plastic in there. From Wikipedia "Toner is a powder mixture used in laser printers and photocopiers to form the printed text and images on paper, in general through a toner cartridge. Mostly granulated plastic, early mixtures added only carbon powder and iron oxide, however, mixtures have since been developed containing polypropylene, fumed silica, and various minerals for triboelectrification.[1] Toner using plant-derived plastic also exists as an alternative to petroleum plastic.[2] Toner particles are melted by the heat of the fuser, and are thus bonded to the paper."

[@LearnPermaculture]

That's a great tip Veronica - keeping plastics out of the soil is a no-brainer.

[@mistyboat]

The Bin itself is made from expanded polypropylene, no doubt it will leach into your compost.

[@hotairmail]

I don't put paper or cardboard in because they frequently contain plastics. I use the compost on my allotment and I don't want my food being contaminated. I do however put in all the ashes from a wood burning stove we have.

[@ChloePlumstead]

this is such a helpful video, thank you! I'm now about to start my composting journey with a Hotbin. :)

[@LearnPermaculture]

Thanks Chloe, I hope you find yours as useful as we do ours. :)

[@sandjune2753]

Apart from the Rodent issue its the SMELL. I only have a small garden and my last compost stank, then I had swarms of flies. So this by the sounds of it does not have this issue and can drain out the liquid that can smell. So for me , I think I will buy this for my garden.

[@LearnPermaculture]

The usual reason for smelly compost is that it's anaerobic - caused by it being too wet. Two things that help with this are keeping it part covered (in a wet climate) and making sure we add enough carbon-rich material - to balance our nitrogen-rich kichen waste. Old paper bags, torn up cardboard, shredded paper, perhaps some fine bark or wood chippings are all good sources of carbon. Hay and straw too, though they can contain unwanted seeds.

[@threadz-sr6305]

Great video sir, Just bought a hotbox mini, can’t wait to setup and start my composting journey

[@LearnPermaculture]

Thanks you Mark, I hope you find yours as useful as we do ours. :)

[@bobmcglothlin1562]

Do they provide the worms or do you buy them?

[@LearnPermaculture]

@@bobmcglothlin1562 Hi Bob, they don't provide worms as it's not sold as a wormery. They turn up regardless, no doubt their eggs are on something that gets added, perhaps the bark chippings....

[@stevesamoffgridsmallholdin5378]

Good video. I have the same problem with mice & rats digging into an open compost bin picking out the food scraps, tunnelled holes all through it. I have for now put all food waste in a hard plastic bin with a lid the rats have chewed a large hole in the bottom and now taking everything out so they will easily chew their way in this polystyrene bin.

[@LearnPermaculture]

It's a bit toughter than polystyrene but yes it's still vulnerable to a determined rodent. So important to keep it close by where you'll notice any such attempt. Hotbin recommend always tidying up veg scraps and any compost after emptying it. Also keeping the area clear of vegetation and such that rodents could hide in. Having ours next to the shed is not ideal as they could run underneath both - ours is sat up on a patio slab so no one can burrow in from underneath. If it's well sealed and they can't smell what's in there they won't be interested.

[@nickthegardener.1120]

At home I have a wheelie bin with about 2000 worms in which munch through most of our kitchen and grass clippings, cardboard etc. any bulkier stuff goes into compost at my allotment bins. I harvested 75 litres of vermicompost from the wheelie bin. I like the hotbin as it’s quite small. I’d get if I didn’t have worms everywhere.🤣👍🏻 I also get leachate from my worm bin.

[@LearnPermaculture]

Thanks Nick, yes we have worms in the Hotbin but we didn't put them there - seems it's a case of 'build it and they will come'. So did you add a tap to a standard wheelie bin or is it another commercial system?

[@nickthegardener.1120]

@@LearnPermaculture I just drilled a few holes into the bottom and put a container under. I get a bit of leachate each week . I saw the worms, surprising they can get in! Worms are awesome!👍🏻🪱

[@LearnPermaculture]

@@nickthegardener.1120 A nice simple solution. :)

[@nickthegardener.1120]

@@LearnPermaculture i found a tap after I drilled some holes!😂👍🏻

[@LearnPermaculture]

@@nickthegardener.1120 Classic! :D

[@joybrown8644]

Is it a bug magnet? What kinds do you see interested in it? Also, is there something other than the wood chips to use in the recipe to get a more finished product? I’d like to use the compost to mix into my vegetable garden’s soil.

[@LearnPermaculture]

Hi Joy, There's plenty of worms in there though we didn't add any. It just seems to be full of all the right bugs for decomposing what we put in it. The wood or bark chippings are an important ingredient to ensure it doesn't compact too much and block off the important upflow of fresh air from the bottom vent. You could put what comes out through a course garden sieve though to remove the chunkiest bits.

[@mstainthor1947]

Some form of creating airspace is necessary - normally some form of woodchip You can get semicomposted woodchip from the Hotbin company - which is perfect for the hotbin (strange that) so that by end of a cycle its pretty much broken down Depends on what you have access to, its possible to cadge woodchip of tree surgeons and if you have space/time allow it to break down a bit more But you can still use ordinary woodchip - I find the smaller the better as it will breakdown quicker> Re bugs - if you are worried about hordes of flies - no. Partially because there is a charcoal filter which suppresses smells. Although if its hot the smells are not the type that tend to attract them (I have the commercial hot bin and two homemade ones that don't have any filters, no problems with bugs or vermin) You do on occasion attract the odd hoverfly who are looking to lay eggs, but they aren't any bother

[@joybrown8644]

@@mstainthor1947 thank you very much.

[@FireflyOnTheMoon]

With a Hotbin you can indeed shove anything in and leave it. You don't need to stir and you don't need the bark chips either. Ther are lots of second hand HotBins knocking around to buy. Also a basic rubbish bin with holes in the base works well, though cooler

[@LearnPermaculture]

Yes, you can. The bark chips help to maintain air spaces so convecting air can flow in the bottom and out the top keeping it more aerobic (less smell) but it'll still work without it. Stuff wants to decompose, the Hotbin design helps it to happen quicker and without a bad smell. :)

[@stephaniehenderson6631]

This was a really helpful and informative video, thank you so much 😃. These bins are now around £300 and peat free compost from eco friendly brand Dalefoot is around £11 for 30L bag of their Lakeland Gold for heavy soils like mine. So the bin would need to make at least 25 bags worth to break even. I think this would be totally doable in the life of the bin wouldn't it? I am trying to convince my husband on this matter😁😁. Plus you get the liquid feed and free worms which people do actually sell online!

[@LearnPermaculture]

Thanks Stephanie. :) The bin should last a very long time. The compost that comes out isn't as 'finished' as what you would get from Dalesfoot - it still contains bark chippings which the 'recipe' requires for maintaining enough space for air to travel up through the stack. You can of course sieve this out. We tend to use the Hotbin compost as a mulch around trees and shrubs. As you say you also get the liquid feed and the worms.... And when making such decisions it's also worth thinking about the fuel/carbon cost of transportation - on one had the cost of making the Hotbin and shipping it to you compared to that of 25+ bags of compost and possibly even that of exporting the food waste from your site (if collected by the council).

[@stephaniehenderson6631]

@@LearnPermaculture I ordered the 200l Hotbin with a plinth today! It is a birthday present from my Mum who will also be able to enjoy food grown with the resulting compost as well as contribute paper and food 'waste'. I don't have a huge garden (70ft by 30ft) but I do have 5 trees for wood contributions as well.

[@LearnPermaculture]

@@stephaniehenderson6631 Sounds perfect! :)

[@FireflyOnTheMoon]

A rubbish bin with a lid, with drainage holes is very good

[@lenadee101]

Great video Thank you. Just got mine. Have a question about the leche, could you use it to in inoculation of wood char?

[@LearnPermaculture]

Thank you! I haven't tested the leachate for microbes but it looks dark and nutritious. You could try but I imagine a compost tea would be a better inoculant to make biochar.

[@lenadee101]

@@LearnPermaculture Thank you for your reply, I'll stick to the tried n tested then so, until maybe your good self maybe does the testing.😁

[@LearnPermaculture]

@@lenadee101 Thanks, is that a hint? :D I do have a microscope....

[@lenadee101]

@@LearnPermaculture oh Yes! Pretty Please with cherries on top😁😁😁

[@glassbackdiy3949]

Interesting, thanks Aranya, look like one of the better designs out there, most seem to get too hot with no cool area. We use a 'darlek' for food waste, I made a 4 layer chicken wire basket for the bottom to stop ratty, it's effectively a worm bin more than a compost bin but the compost is still very bacterial dominant (under the microscope) no matter how much woody stuff I add, it's a messy job emptying it tho, lift of the darlek, re-site and scrape off the top layers back in, still it's only once a year, think I'll have a look at the DIY model tho!

[@LearnPermaculture]

Yes, the cone shape helps with lifting them off but they do need some rodent proofing from underneath and they have no insulation so they make compost more slowly. Hot systems are often more work but take up less space as they process the material more quickly. The Hotbin is a good compromise as they're pretty easy to manage and there's no turning needed to add more air. Any composting system is better than none though...

[@marklundegren]

In average weather, what is the through-time, from scraps into the top to compost ready at the bottom? Thanks!

[@LearnPermaculture]

We empty ours probably three times a year, but it depends on how much you're putting in. We're just two though we each a lot of veg and we do host others from time to time. I'd say the throughput time is likely faster than 4 months but we're not in a hurry to get the compost. We do get an ongoing flow of liquid feed though when the weather there's enough heat inside.

[@stone4173]

You can dig the compost into your flower bed or veg garden as the chippings will rot down and is good for the soil.

[@LearnPermaculture]

Wood chips are indeed a good addition to soil though I'd be cautious about digging them in as buried they can rob nitrogen from the soil as they break down.

[@stone4173]

Well you don't need to dig them in but lay the compost on top and it does help especially if on heavy compacted soil.

[@LearnPermaculture]

@@stone4173 Yes indeed, worms will do the work of incorporating it.

[@stone4173]

Good video by the way, and I love turning garden waste into compost, something very rewarding about it.

[@LearnPermaculture]

@@stone4173 Thank you. And yes, it's a bit of an addiction isn't it? :)

[@winnipegnick]

So I have a couple of questions, do you add water at any point? I am also wondering why the compost at the bottom was so wet? Is that normal?

[@LearnPermaculture]

No, the only water added is in the kitchen waste being composted. And to a degree in the bark/wood chippings. Yes, it's still quite moist when we take it out - because it's well insulated and contained there's nowhere else for it to go.

[@goldenstitcheruk6259]

Are compost worms good for the garden or just for compost ?

[@LearnPermaculture]

There are always things that need decomposing in the garden. They probably breed more in a compost heap though. When the newly born ones burst out of the Hotbin in the spring we add them to our other compost heaps.

[@bruceschomisch4599]

Is there a Screen above the bottom Hatch ?

[@LearnPermaculture]

No there isn't. The contents just fall down behind the front removable panel. When you dig out the compost you have to be careful not to remove it right to the back, otherwise it might all come down. In practice it works just fine, but having some way of holding up the material on top while you remove the more finished material below it would make it even better. The base however does have some holes in it for the liquid to drain into and then out of the drainage plug. We get a lot of liquid...

[@imeldamorice3989]

thank you, detailled description which will help me avoid issues down the road. can I use newspaper as the paper element please?

[@LearnPermaculture]

I should think so, though you'd probably want to shred it, or at least tear it into strips first.I think most newspaper ink is supposed to be non-toxic these days. The Hotbin people say shredded office paper works best, but it's there primarily to soak up the excess moisture in your kitchen waste, so should still work okay. Best to experiment with different quantities and see how well it works. With shredded paper they recommend half a caddy's worth for every full caddy of kitchen waste.

[@dwayned.5238]

Did you add the worms yourself? Or did they just find their way into the hotbin?

[@LearnPermaculture]

No, they just find their way in - I suspect as eggs in the bark chippings.

[@AnnBlinman]

Do you add the worms yourself initially?

[@LearnPermaculture]

No. They just turn up - presumably as eggs on some of what we put in - probably the bark chippings. They obviously like it enough to thrive inside. :)

[@voidisyinyangvoidisyinyang885]

$890.00 for the 100 gallon one! Wow.

[@LearnPermaculture]

Yes, but that's for dealing with 20kg of kitchen waste a week - that's commercial scale. And exporting a British product is always going to add on quite a bit extra to the price.

[@voidisyinyangvoidisyinyang885]

@@LearnPermaculture I picked up a free Sceptic Garden Gourmet compost bin 82 gallons - made in Canada (priced at $120) but no longer produced (so vintage). Only problem is I got pulled over by a cop who told me a "composter" is not worth it. Luckily he just gave me a warning citation. hahahaha. So the next day I received a $975 composting toilet from "Toilets For People" - designed by an environmental engineer who does volunteer work installing that composting toilet in developing countries. Vermont is working to pass a composting toilet law enabling citizens to compost their humanure legally - currently you're supposed to "bury it" which is not quite the same as composting - also the subsurface permit people really don't understand composting. hahahaha. thanks

[@LearnPermaculture]

@@voidisyinyangvoidisyinyang885 Sometimes British laws are frustrating, but at least we're allowed to have a composting toilet.

[@voidisyinyangvoidisyinyang885]

@@LearnPermaculture nice to hear! The tricky bit here is "year-round composting toilet" - as normally it's just for a seasonal residence. There's one county in my state that has "year-round composting toilet" in their septic ordinance. I see there's even a composting toilet-cabin kit sold in the UK!! "WooWooLoo GT Compact is a high-capacity, low-maintenance, toilet cabin" - yes that is what my county allows - as a privy permit. So that design is perfect. thanks

[@LearnPermaculture]

@@voidisyinyangvoidisyinyang885 Yes, I'm aware of the WooWooLoo and a few other kits that are available here. We had a lot of fun designing and making our own dual chamber system inside (and under) a standard shed.

[@MrSubielove]

any concern on having cockroach?

[@LearnPermaculture]

We don't have any problems with cockroaches here, but I couldn't say for other places. It's a pretty well sealed box that keeps rats out so I would surprised. It also gets pretty hot inside which I guess they wouldn't like.

[@Maspets]

Roaches are beauty!

[@TAMSTERMAN]

It’s pricey and full of plastic. Love the idea but not what the masses need. Thank you for sharing

[@LearnPermaculture]

They are certainly expensive. There's also an energy cost to councils collecting kitchen waste because water is heavy, so some kind of rodent-proof home composting system would make a big impact though.

[@FireflyOnTheMoon]

Using an old dustbin with a lid is fine too. Hotbins are available second hand

[@slothisasin8240]

I'm thinking about building something similar myself and insulating it with wool. But I assume that I would need some form of net to keep rhodents out.