New Composters for CAMP

Submitted by admin on Fri, 07/06/2007 - 9:09pm.

We're working on building new compost bins, ideally in the context of a workshop.

Here are some collected notes:

The general desire is to build a rotating barrel composter for food waste, and a regular compost bin for yard waste. Both can probably be built out of available scrap wood. The barrel composter could rotate around a spindle mounted to a simple wooden or metal frame. Suggest using a bike crank and pedal as the handle. A important detail is that the barrel can not have any toxic residue (e.g. motor oil) since this would contaminate the yard.

Where to find ~55gal barrels:

  • Just sitting around somewhere. (Maybe, but not dependable source)
  • As per link above, car washes have large plastic barrels for windshield fluid. However, the one at Forest Park & Vandeventer wouldn't give me the ones sitting by their dumpster because "people are always coming by asking for them." ????
  • These guys have lots of surplus barrels once filled with chocolate!!

    Ice Cream Specialties, Inc.
    8419 Hanley Industrial Court
    Brentwood, MO 63144<
    314-962-2550

  • From Wesley: Pepsi bottling plant off I-70 at Union. They sell them for $5 but they were used for soda syrup so they smell like Pepsi and Mountain Dew.

Dann's suggestion about a vertically-mounted barrel:
That looks like a nice design, but I also have a zine that shows how to make
one with a 6" diameter pipe inserted into center of the barrel to provide
airflow (the pipe has holes poked into it). This apparently increases (sic) the
composting time quite a bit. Either/both ways we need 55 gal drums

Relevant folks in St. Louis City Gummint:
http://stlouis.missouri.org/citygov/recycle/
4100 S. 1st Street
St. Louis, MO 63118
Phone (314) 353-7176
composting stl: http://stlouis.missouri.org/citygov/recycle/compost.html

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