How to Compost in a Tumbler

Step-by-Step Guide

1. 1

   Step 1: Choose a tumbler.

   You can buy tumblers on the internet or at a garden supply store.
   
   You can also build your own.
   
   Pick a tumbler based on your needs.
   
   Remember that larger tumblers will take more strength to turn, but you will be able to compost more material at one time.One advantage to tumblers is that they are more aesthetically pleasing (and less smelly) than compost piles.
   
   You can put your tumbler anywhere in your yard that is convenient.
2. 2

   Step 2: Put organic materials into the tumbler.

   Composting takes advantage of organic scraps to make a nutrient rich soil.
   
   These scraps can be anything from egg shells and left over salad to grass clippings or dried leaves.
   
   Just open up the lid on your tumbler and throw in any scraps that you have from the yard or kitchen.Smaller sized pieces are better.
   
   Try grinding or shredding any large materials before adding them to the tumbler. , You want your end product to be a nutrient rich soil that can be used around your garden or home to grow things.
   
   Plants need a balance of carbon based and nitrogen based nutrients.
   
   You want your finished compost to have a carbon-nitrogen ratio of roughly 10-1.
   
   Adding a mixture of about 75% grass clippings and 25% kitchen scraps will typically put you in the right ball park.The best way to gauge your carbon to nitrogen ratio is to keep track of the things you put in your tumbler.
   
   You can find guides that give you the relative carbon and nitrogen content of different compost materials online., The microbes in the compost will break down some contaminants, but not all of them.
   
   If you want to avoid having pesticides and other contaminants in the plants you are growing, make sure that you don’t add them to your tumbler.
   
   You can use all organic ingredients to avoid getting pesticides in your compost., From start to finish, the compost can take anywhere from a couple of weeks to a couple of months.
   
   The important thing to remember is that this time frame is from the last scrap you put in, not the first.
   
   As the the compost forms, it will become more compact and make more room in the tumbler.
   
   This might tempt you to add more scraps, but be aware that doing so will restart the amount of time your compost will be in the tumbler.Instead of continuing to add to the tumbler, you could have a compost bucket (or a second tumbler) that holds scraps until the current batch is finished.
   
   Then, you can move the second batch into the tumbler.
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   Step 3: Balance your carbon and nitrogen.

4. 4

   Step 4: Be aware of pesticides and contaminants.

5. 5

   Step 5: Load the tumbler in batches.

Detailed Guide

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