Compost
By Judyfan
United States 
I have a compost bin I purchased years ago, it is suppose to be fast, just throw in leaves, fresh vegetables etc and it will do the work. It seems to take forever. It has slats on the sides for air and I put water in every so often, the instructions really didn't say to turn it like most compost piles, you really can't because it's not big enough. It's about 2 1/2 ft square and about 4 feet tall. It's black so it absorbs the heat. Any ideas?
5 May, 2013
Answers
Trying adding lime (ground limestone not slaked lime) and get yourself some tiger worms or brandlings. And then keep it moist.
Worms are better in cool climates for small quantities. For 'hot composting' you need a big volume and constant aeration (turning) to get the bacteria working. Worms also like brown cardboard and shredded paper so mix this with the green material.
6 May, 2013
If the bin is open at the bottom and on soil the worms will find it. I get enough in mine to start a small business! But the compost does take ages to rot, especially when the weather's been cold. Don't make it too wet or it will go smelly. A jug of urine is better than plain water if it does need moistening!
6 May, 2013
Throw some urine in there. Every bit as good as garrota and doesn't appear to attract vermin-I've never noticed any anyway!
6 May, 2013
Snap Spottedray!
6 May, 2013
Wow thanks everyone for all the suggestions, I will be trying them. My bin is open at the bottom, but the worms haven't found it yet! I live in the central valley of Californa where it is hot at least 6-8 months of the year and somewhat mild winters, so my compost should be hot, I guess it needs a litte boost. Thanks for all your input!
6 May, 2013
I use a product called Garotta which is a powder containing bacteria to speed up decomposition.You shake it in as you add the waste. I expect you can buy it or something similar in USA. I don't think those bins are ever as good as an open type of compost heap,because you can't fork it over occasionly to let air in & also it never seems to come out the bottom. Things don't rot down that quickly( or not in England anyway). For me, about 2yrs & that's with the Garotta!
6 May, 2013