Compost Bin - Recommendations?

[Cadder]

Hi all,

I'm looking for recommendations for a compost bin. Our garden is a typical new build estate size so something fairly compact would be best. Ideally something that doesn't attract rats.

We're leaning towards a compost tumbler as they're off the ground and sealed. They also seem fairly easy to use. We're not doing loads, just putting in kitchen scraps and plant trimmings, also maybe the grass when it is cut.

Any recommendations, advice or cautions about garden composting and avoiding attracting unwanted pests?

 

[ChrisD.]

Don't your local council provide you with one?

 

[Cadder]

Don't your local council provide you with one?

Nope. They charge for something like 6 months of taking garden waste if you buy a brown wheelie bin but that's it really.

I'm not sure I'd want to take the first thing offered to me anyway if there are more appropriate solutions for our garden.

 

[Mercenary Keyboard Warrior]

So there are a few things to consider
basic composting is far more efficient if your mixing 50/50 between green and brown. Green being something that was recently alive (grass, kitchen scraps etc) and brown being something long dead (cardboard, tissues, tea bags, waste paper etc)
Too high aratio in either direction either ends up in a compost process thats too wet or dry.

Rats aren't really that attracted to compost bins unless the recently added food items are appealing.

Tumbler bins speed up the process for sure (as long as you actually tumble them!) the same can be achieved by turning a compost heap, but obviously its more agro.

Really depends what scale your after. Adding more new stuff to semi composted means in affect your starting again, so do you have a usage planned for this.

A hell of a lot of stuff doesnt need composting in reality, if its for general plant food then just dig it in.

Maybe consider a wormery if your going to have a constant supply of low volume from the kitchen
https://www.gardenersworld.com/product-guides/nature/best-wormeries/