Due to the extreme winters here it looks like my compost is going to take 2 years to rot down to a useable substance.
I have lots of bubble wrap left over from moving house and thought it could be good idea to fix it to the insides of the pile. I have a home made container made of wood so it would be easy to staple the plastic on the inside.
It would obviously be excellent insulation but I wasn't sure how much air a heap needs. Should I make some holes in the bubble wrap?
Any advice greatly appreciated.
Regards
Simon
Hi! The HDRA book covers compost and bins in detail and shows all sorts of homemade ones where there is a box within a box if you know what I mean. They stuff straw or insultation material between the two to increase the heat, and of course put a lid on as well. I use the small plastic 330 litre compost bins obtained for a fiver via the council. These heat up very quickly in summer and stuff starts rotting in no time. I've just got a 660 litre one and I'm going to compare the difference. Also it depends on how big your compost heap is. I went on an organic gardening course and was told that small is beautiful in terms of composting :) It wouldn't hurt to insulate your bin. Most of the bought bins do have small holes in.
My bin is roughly 1m x 1m x 1m so holds quite alot - I know it works because it sinks down from time to time. It's just very slow.
It might help to get some grass clippings or manure mixed in once the weather warms up, something to help activate it. A good mixing up is supposed to help as well.
Moggle - not an expert and happy to be corrected if the above is wrong :)
As soon as it's defrosted in the middle I will give it a mix and turn as suggested Moggle. Will try and get my hands on some manure as well.
Cheers
Yay for hot manure, then I bung a piece of carpet over it to keep it cosy - the only place I use carpet Heritage ;).