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Hi there,
My small family (Husband, son and me) moved in to our new home a week before Christmas after renting for the past 12 years. I tried to run a cold compost bin in one of our rented properties without much joy.
I was determined to try composting again, especially now that we're finally settled, so after much research I bought a hotbin.
Hungry Horace arrived very quickly and with the help of a friend who runs his own double cold compost bins at home, we set it up on Thursday 3rd May.
We followed the instructions very carefully, and spent an enjoyable afternoon hacking away at my jungle and shredding loads of branches for the bulking agent. My son & I had previously spent some time shredding approximately 60litres of paper and cardboard, and that morning I mowed the lawn, so had a good supply of grass clippings (and kitchen waste) ready.
After completing the set up I resisted the urge to peek and left him alone to do his thing until Saturday, when I had more grass clippings and waste to add. On opening the lid I was greeted with a face full of steam and an internal thermometer reading of 55°C!
I was so excited I called my friend to report our success (he had expressed some doubt that it would work).
Subsequently I have fed Hungry Horace twice on Monday 7th May (a LOT of lawn mowing), again on Thursday 10th (the last of the grass from Monday) and twice again today (grass grows super fast here apparently).
All the feeds have been mostly grass with some kitchen waste and other extras thrown in, all thoroughly mixed with shredded paper/cardboard and chipped branches for bulking agent.
Today when I opened the lid, I didn't get a steam bath and the internal thermometer was hovering at about 35°C. The pile had reduced and I guess there must have been something steamy going on as there was moisture on the inside of the lid.
I have 2 questions;
1) Is it better to feed him at shorter intervals (say every other day) rather than just twice a week?
2) Is it OK to fill him up as much as I have in the photo (there wasn't enough room to put the internal thermometer in, it was that full)?
Thanks
My small family (Husband, son and me) moved in to our new home a week before Christmas after renting for the past 12 years. I tried to run a cold compost bin in one of our rented properties without much joy.
I was determined to try composting again, especially now that we're finally settled, so after much research I bought a hotbin.
Hungry Horace arrived very quickly and with the help of a friend who runs his own double cold compost bins at home, we set it up on Thursday 3rd May.
We followed the instructions very carefully, and spent an enjoyable afternoon hacking away at my jungle and shredding loads of branches for the bulking agent. My son & I had previously spent some time shredding approximately 60litres of paper and cardboard, and that morning I mowed the lawn, so had a good supply of grass clippings (and kitchen waste) ready.
After completing the set up I resisted the urge to peek and left him alone to do his thing until Saturday, when I had more grass clippings and waste to add. On opening the lid I was greeted with a face full of steam and an internal thermometer reading of 55°C!
I was so excited I called my friend to report our success (he had expressed some doubt that it would work).
Subsequently I have fed Hungry Horace twice on Monday 7th May (a LOT of lawn mowing), again on Thursday 10th (the last of the grass from Monday) and twice again today (grass grows super fast here apparently).
All the feeds have been mostly grass with some kitchen waste and other extras thrown in, all thoroughly mixed with shredded paper/cardboard and chipped branches for bulking agent.
Today when I opened the lid, I didn't get a steam bath and the internal thermometer was hovering at about 35°C. The pile had reduced and I guess there must have been something steamy going on as there was moisture on the inside of the lid.
I have 2 questions;
1) Is it better to feed him at shorter intervals (say every other day) rather than just twice a week?
2) Is it OK to fill him up as much as I have in the photo (there wasn't enough room to put the internal thermometer in, it was that full)?
Thanks