This is a great video showing how stupid the very core concept of electric composters is: https://youtu.be/bXZG-kzlhPY
Currently, I hang a grocery bag from a lower cabinet pull and fill it up and dump the contents out as-needed in my pile outside. Often times my routine backfires on me by stinking up half my house so I’ve been keeping an eye out for solutions.
Does anyone have any recommendations on a bin that won’t stink or leak, or have any other solutions they use?
I use a lock & lock brand container. They sell them on Amazon, Macy’s and QVC with QVC probably being the least expensive. Get a really big square/rectangular (avoid circular) lid. It clamps down to make a waterproof seal so you don’t stink up the house for a couple of days. If it gets too full you know it’s time to take it out. I usually take off the lid outside for the final dump as it starts to get ripe.
Get old. Your sense of smell declines dramatically. Better than getting covid …
Seriously, I think my daughter was pleased with her vermiculture composting.
I just use an old ice cream bucket . The wife is pretty vigilant about me taking it out!
An overgrown tomato cage out of 2x4 wire fence keeps the big critters from spreading the pile out.
In the spring I move the cage over, put the top in the bottom and reap the black gold underneath.
I use a 1.5 gallon Rubbermaid type trash can with no lid. Has worked fine for 12 years. Empty every couple of days. Rinse it if needed. Scrub it out every once in awhile. Never really had a smell problem and we use it a lot. I’ll cover it with a cloth during fruit fly season. Don’t need to overthink this.
We have been using this container for about a year now… found it at our local Walmart.
It seals air tight… no smell in the kitchen.
The lid has a little handle… that you fold up to unseal and take the top off… then add compost material… lid back on and fold the handle back down to seal air tight.
It holds about a gallon… works great for us.
An open container would be a NO GO for my wife. If it was just me that might work… but got to keep your wife happy… and mine has a very sensitive nose… and just will not have any even minor compost material smells floating around in the kitchen.
I think those pitchers look like a good inexpensive solution. What I’m using I didn’t buy but got from someone who was giving it away on our local buy nothing FB group. But, even though I’m cheap, I would definitely buy one if I ever needed to replace it now that I’ve been using it. For me it is about perfect.
It sits by the sink until full and then I just carry the base out to the compost pile and dump it. The stainless cleans up very easily, it looks nice on the counter, doesn’t leak, etc. And the top is ventilated to keep anything from getting super stinky by going anaerobic, but there is also a black piece of material, similar to one of those green scrubbing pads, that fits in the top and keeps out fruit flies, etc. The filter pad probably had activated charcoal to absorb oders, but I’m sure that is well-passed functioning. That said, I’ve gone 4 or 5 days without emptying it and never noticed any real smell. Of course, it probably depends on what you’re putting in it.
It says Utopia Kitchen on the top, which I searched for and see it currently goes for around $25. Not cheap, but for me the fact that it is easy to use, doesn’t look bad or smell, means that I’m using it and have probably saved a lot more material for the compost just because it is easy and right there. The top is super light with an easy to grab knob - so very easy to open and drop something into.
By the way, I once had a ceramic crock similar to this someone gave me, but that was heavy, the top chipped and it just wasn’t as easy to use for some reason. I guess I’m just lazy, but if it isn’t super easy to keep handy and use, I might find myself tossing that banana peel in the trash instead.
That looks pretty air tight, yet quick to access. I find myself tying and untying my bag at least 5 times a day and, while not a big deal, over a long period of time it just seems ludicrous when there are better options like that.
This is what I use. It’s great.
@jeremybyington … yes very easy to operate… seal and unseal.
With one hand you can unseal and lift the top off… and with the other hand stuff in your compost material.
We leave it on the counter most of the time which makes it very convenient… but when company visits… my wife stashes it away under the sink/cabinet.
They have different sizes… below is a link to a 4 pack… we bought just the one.
i use a cheap 5 gal. pail with lid. $3 at TSC.
We use a small stainless trash can that was designed for a bathroom. Flip up lid and removable liner. We take scraps to the chickens each morning. Very convenient.
I used that kind of setup until my wife started complaining about the smell and would just throw scraps in the garbage. Happy wife, happy garden.
We empty ours every evening.
Happy wife happy life…
My wife likes garlic in food soups etc…
But she cant stand to smell it… like you would with scraps in a open container.
I could do that… but not happening here… gotta keep my wife happy !!!
It’s too cold and muddy to get down to our heap each night the way we’re currently situated. I may consider changing that to accommodate a more regular dumping, possibly putting the barrel in the driveway beside the garbage cans. If you hadn’t said this I wouldn’t have even thought to do that… Thanks!
thats what i do. its so cold here the compost barrel contents are frozen solid so no smells. i keep it in the unheated garage. once it starts to thaw in late april, i throw it on my trailer and go dump it on the pile. not fighting thru 4ft. of snow to get to the pile at -20!
I just use a Ziploc gallon freezer bag in the sink and empty it outside when full. Never really stinks if you’re filling it and unloading it regularly. Rinse & repeat
