Can we talk about compost bins that are too pretty to work?

At the community garden on 5th Street, someone donated a fancy cedar bin with a spinning drum. Everyone raves about it, but after 8 months, the stuff inside is still just dry leaves and sad apple cores. I've had better results from a black plastic pile in my backyard that gets zero compliments. My theory is the drum keeps things too aerated and never gets hot enough, and the pretty ones make people forget to add water or greens. Has anyone else ditched an overpriced setup for a scrappy pile that actually cooks?

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wendyw712mo ago

Eight months and it's STILL dry leaves and sad apple cores? That's not a compost bin, that's a decorative coffin for your food scraps. Spinning drums are great for turning things, but if nobody's ever cracked that thing open to add greens or a splash of water, it's just a fancy salad spinner with no dressing. My neighbor has one of those glass front tumblers and she treats it like a museum piece, never touches it. Meanwhile my busted old bin with a cracked lid is steaming like a sauna in July. Give me ugly and working any day over something that looks nice but just sits there judging everyone.

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