How to make a compost bin at home, perfect for small spaces
I am a big advocate for home composting, in fact I think it is the easiest and most accessible thing that normal, everyday people can do to be an environmentalist. Home composting may seem like a small and insignificant thing to do but it contributes to solving many of the most severe issues facing the planet.
Composting is good for the environment in more ways than one. It reduces food waste being sent to landfill, it helps to build healthy soil and it reduces our reliance on pre-mixed, plastic packaged compost, just to name a few.
While composting can be successfully done in just a big heap out the back, most people opt for compost bins. Compost bins can be purchased from any garden centre or big box hardware store, however they can be quite expensive. For example, just to buy a 150L Gedye Compost Bin from Bunnings it costs $54.55. This is essentially a large, black, plastic bin that you place on bare ground and fill. This is perfect for those with a yard but it is not suitable for those living in apartments or those like me who only have small, completely paved courtyards. While this compost bin is not too badly priced, it is nothing compared to most compost tumblers.
Compost tumblers are aimed at those like me without any land. The cheapest tumble composter you can buy from Bunnings is the Saxon 160L compost bin, which comes in at a hefty $119. A quick read over the reviews and you will see a few common complaints, that it is a pain to put together (it comes as a flat pack), that it gets too heavy to spin, and the openings are way too small. While most people seem to recommend it overall, it’s clear to see that it’s probably not worth $119. There are better tumblers to choose from, however these are even more costly, like this Maze 180L 2 Compartment Geared Compost Tumbler which costs $169.
Automatically most of these options are out of reach and put people off bef0re they even get started. Luckily creating a compost bin can cost you almost nothing.
The type of compost bin I made for myself cost me about $20. I saw the price of all of the above options, especially the tumblers and I couldn’t justify the price. To make mine, I purchased a 60L outdoor dome bin with a lid, similar to this one sold at The Reject Shop, however you may be able to do it for even less, if not for free.
These bins can often be found for free from tip shops, on the side of the road and in curbside rubbish collection piles. You may even know some friends and family who purchased them but no longer need them anymore. The 60L bin I purchased is much smaller than the examples I gave above sold at Bunnings, however it is perfectly sized for smaller spaces. This option really suits someone with a tiny balcony, or someone who doesn’t need a lot of compost.
To get started you will need a few tools, they are:
a drill
a drill piece
two bricks
a small container
Steps:
1. Drill holes in the base of the bin using your drill and drill piece. The hole size doesn’t matter too much but it’s best to choose a drill piece that is at least 10mm.
2. Prop the bin up on to bricks so it is not sitting directly on concrete.
3. Slide container under the bin and between bricks to catch any liquids.
4. Start filling compost bin with a mixture of different organic materials, both greens and browns.
5. Continue to add materials and turn regularly to aerate until it is ready to use.
I also filmed myself creating this compost bin, you can check it out here:
I really hope you consider making your own compost bin before you go out and spend over $100 on one. As you can see, they can be created on a much smaller budget and still produce a really high quality homemade compost.
