Compost Bin by GEOBIN - 246 Gallon, Expandable, Easy Assembly

 Compost Bin by GEOBIN - 246 Gallon, Expandable, Easy Assembly

• Large capacity—expandable to 4 feet (246 gallon)

How to compost at home? 5 steps to transform your organic waste into compost

Not everything is really rubbish! Learn to compost and reduce waste in your home.

In these days when we spend so much time at home, you may have noticed the amount of garbage that humans produce. Well, the good news we have for you is that not everything is really rubbish! What happens is that many times we do not know how to separate it or how to take advantage of it so as not to send so much waste to landfills.

One of those strategies, which at the same time is quite magical, is to make homemade compost so that the peels of fruits and vegetables , garden waste and paper do not go to the garbage but return to the earth to become compost for the plants. Interesting, right?

The fact: Composting you can reduce 60% of your waste (if you recycle you will reduce it by 90%). Together they are garbage but separately they can be used.

What is composting about?
Composting is the decomposition of organic matter that occurs thanks to the presence of oxygen and the work of bacteria, fungi, other microorganisms and small insects. There are many ways to do it, –even with the presence of worms and large insects–, but the advantage is that to carry it out at home we only need a few extra minutes of time and a space with good ventilation and shade to locate the container. the rest is made by nature!

The data: With 100 kg of organic waste, between 30-40 kg of compost is obtained, a little less than half of the starting material. The rest evaporates as water vapor and CO2.

What can be composted?
The materials that can be composted at home are divided into two groups:

a) Fresh waste:

• Fruit and vegetable waste
• Garden debris (leaves, flowers, etc.)
• Coffee grounds and tea bags *
• Eggshells

* If you put them to dry you can use them as dry waste.

→ Compost moderately : Remnants of cooked food such as rice, pasta, bread, vegetables.
→ Do not compost! : Meat, dairy, fats and oils, plastics, metals, feces.

 

b) Dry waste:

• Dry leaves, branches, sawdust and grass
• land
• Paper, newspaper and cardboard without glossy, adhesive or plastic coatings
• Grease-free napkins
• Egg boxes

Step-by-step home composting:

1. Choose a container to be your compost bin

 It can be a bucket, fruit box, flowerpot, or plastic organizer box. The important thing is that you choose a material that will not be damaged by the humidity that will be generated inside the compost bin, that has a lid to prevent mosquitoes and that allows oxygenation of the content .

One idea that has worked for us is to put a cloth on the container as a lid and secure it with a rubber.

2. Collect your fresh and dry waste and chop it very small

Reducing the size of the two types of waste helps microorganisms break them down faster.

Here are some tips for this stage:

• Locate a jar with a lid in the kitchen so that, every time they peel or chop something at home, they deposit the shells there and, as soon as it is full, they process them to include them in the compost bin. It's a good idea to keep it in the fridge so it doesn't attract mosquitoes.
• The avocado seeds and mango take longer to break due to its size and hardness. What you can do is scratch the avocado seed and let the mango seed dry to scratch it as well.
• If your home blender allows it, you can blend some items with a little water.
• Use scissors to chop up the dried residue. It usually happens that these wastes are the most difficult to generate at home at the same volume as organic ones, so you can get sawdust for this purpose.

3. Put your waste in the compost bin taking care that the proportion of wet and dry material is the same.

The first time you do the process you must build a good layer of dry material, then add the wet material and finish with another layer of dry material, as if it were a lasagna.

* A tip: When the material that is inside a compost bin is well balanced and has adequate humidity, it does not present a bad smell. The coffee grounds is an element that also allows the material not to smell bad.

4. Cover your compost bin and place it in a shady place where it receives a good draft.

The microorganisms that will be working in the compost bin need oxygen and a humid environment to stay alive, so it is very important not to get the sun.

5. Add your waste again according to the rhythms of your house (it can be daily or once a week).

From the second time you add residuals, keep in mind that:

• The ratio of dry and wet material must be the same.
• Once you add your organic waste, you must stir all the material (use a glove or a shovel for this) so that it becomes oxygenated. Always finish with a layer of dry material.
• When you are stirring, take the opportunity to check the humidity of the material: take a handful and squeeze it to check that just a couple of drops are generated. If it is very wet, stir dry material before the last coat.
• If you feel that it is hot when stirring the material , it is a good sign! As part of the process carried out by the microorganisms, the temperature of the compost bin tends to rise.
• Even if it doesn't smell bad, the compost bin will be generating gases so you can wear a mask to avoid breathing them.
• When you fill a container you can pass this material to the maturation stage before using it as compost, it is necessary to stir it at least once a week and add a little water if it looks dry.