BL Workshop
Make a compost tumbler
Here’s how to tumble your way to rich compost for your garden and plants.
WHAT YOU’LL NEED
- Sturdy plastic 55-gallon (or so) food barrel
- Drill
- Saw
- Hammer
- Adjustable wrench
- 8 3⁄8-by-3 1⁄2-inch carriage bolts
- 8 3⁄8-inch nuts
- 8 3⁄8-inch washers
- 16d galvanized nails
- 2 bungee cords (If barrel has a locking lid, you won’t need the bungees.)
- 5 2-by-6-inch boards (Lengths will be determined by the size of the container.)
- 3⁄4-inch galvanized pipe, threaded both ends (You can get a standard-size pre-cut threaded pipe. The length will be determined by diameter of the barrel.)
- 2 3⁄4-inch galvanized pipe caps
WHAT YOU’LL DO
Prepare the Barrel
1. Wash out the barrel and drill two 7⁄8-inch holes halfway between the top and bottom. These holes are for the 3⁄4-inch galvanized pipe.
2. Drill 1⁄2-inch holes evenly spaced around the barrel.
Build a Sturdy Frame
3. Cut the 2-by-6-inch boards and assemble the frame as shown, using the hardware listed. The feet should be almost as long as the legs are high.
4. Drill 7⁄8-inch holes at the top of the legs and pass the 3⁄4-inch steel pipe through the hole in one leg, into the barrel and out through the leg on the other side. Screw on the pipe caps.
5. If the lid needs to be held in place, drill small holes around the lid to hook bungee cords.
COMPOSTING BASICS
Layer yard waste into the tumbler. Alternate green materials like grass clippings with brown ones like hay or fallen leaves. Put in some garden soil and kitchen waste such as veggie scraps, fruit peels, cereal, bread, crushed egg shells, tea bags, and coffee grounds and filters. Never use meat, poultry, fish, dairy or pet waste. That stuff can attract unwanted critters.
Bacteria breaks down the materials in your tumbler and turns it into rich organic compost. The decomposing material will become hot as the bacteria does its work. The material in your tumbler should be about as moist as a damp sponge. Spin your tumbler one or two times a week to mix the contents and keep it aerated.
HOW TO FIND A BARREL
Food barrels are used for things like juice or pickles. Try checking with large restaurants or food distributors. Also, there are companies that sell used food barrels.
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Dec. 10, 2008 at 10:33 am
That’s pretty cool!
Dec. 10, 2008 at 4:23 pm
cool
Dec. 10, 2008 at 10:37 pm
Awsome!!!!!!!!!
Dec. 13, 2008 at 7:28 pm
it is awsome
Dec. 14, 2008 at 7:39 am
neat-O
Dec. 15, 2008 at 6:32 pm
my mom whants to try it so that way she could put with her plants.
Dec. 16, 2008 at 1:55 pm
I think I’ll try it.
;D
Dec. 16, 2008 at 6:36 pm
wow, i need to build one right now.
Dec. 16, 2008 at 6:37 pm
mabey me and my brother could build one
Dec. 18, 2008 at 6:53 pm
hi it is cool
Dec. 21, 2008 at 12:55 am
I like it.
Dec. 22, 2008 at 8:03 pm
why not just use worms
Dec. 23, 2008 at 10:47 am
I think it is really cool that you could help your garden and be green at the same time if you make the compost tumbler.
Dec. 23, 2008 at 3:51 pm
It is realy Cool!!!
Dec. 24, 2008 at 6:59 am
why not just throw the waste from the kitchen in your garden
Dec. 26, 2008 at 8:51 pm
cool
Dec. 29, 2008 at 9:15 am
cool
Dec. 31, 2008 at 3:26 pm
it was so cool it was sweet i would like to make one
Jan. 1, 2009 at 10:36 pm
awesome
Jan. 2, 2009 at 11:18 am
I think it’s to complex.
Jan. 4, 2009 at 7:35 pm
i need to try dat!
Jan. 6, 2009 at 3:59 pm
that sounds cool
Jan. 8, 2009 at 5:22 pm
I’m going to have my Bear and Wolf Den do this. Thanks for getting this posted!
Jan. 10, 2009 at 3:15 pm
it is very green
Jan. 10, 2009 at 8:02 pm
thanks for this i am going to use this for part of my eagle project
Jan. 10, 2009 at 8:18 pm
2 thumbs up………..
Jan. 16, 2009 at 4:17 pm
I’l try try it!!!
Jan. 28, 2009 at 5:53 pm
I used on a bean plant and it sprouted in four hours
Jan. 29, 2009 at 3:15 pm
man this is really cool
Jan. 30, 2009 at 6:42 am
cool
Feb. 12, 2009 at 5:25 pm
this looks like a really good project for my den to try! thanks so much.
Feb. 15, 2009 at 7:40 pm
this is a really cool project and i hope 2 see more like this one. I hope u guys keep thinking of ways to help the Earth!!!!
Feb. 20, 2009 at 4:03 pm
LOVE IT
Mar. 5, 2009 at 6:49 pm
Cool i plan to do it for my mom.
Mar. 17, 2009 at 6:42 pm
Hi this is very cool!But if you don’t have a barrel
you can us a Garbage Can
Mar. 29, 2009 at 1:38 pm
it was cool
Apr. 9, 2009 at 5:46 pm
Sounds really cool,but can you use horse manure with it?
Apr. 18, 2009 at 5:30 am
This is a great idea! But its one disadvantage is that the barrel is not resting on the ground, so you don’t get all those worms coming in and holding a party!
Apr. 18, 2009 at 12:24 pm
Good Stuff! Clean neat and tidy, but coffee grounds and broken egg shells come right out the half inch vent holes making a big mess, cut the hole size down, and put more of them to get rid of moisture!
Apr. 18, 2009 at 2:28 pm
Manure from horses, cattle or chickens will work great. Seriously. You need to use three times as much brown leaves since it’s so concentrated…
Don’t use dog or cat poo though, they can have human diseases.
Apr. 18, 2009 at 3:51 pm
Nice drawings David, but where are the pictures of a real one. Didn’t you build one!!!!
Apr. 20, 2009 at 1:55 pm
Lazy, you can introduce worms to it yourself, though.
Stevey, you can throw some things onto your garden, but only those things which break down very quickly on their own and will not attract vermin. For instance, coffee grounds can be sprinkled around acid-loving plants like roses and the plants love it. The main reason for composting first is, the bacteria break everything down into a better form for the garden. The compost warms up in the pile or container, and that sets off a chain reaction resulting in the materials being broken into finer parts more easily introduced to the soil.
Apr. 22, 2009 at 10:43 pm
anyone else have some more tips? So you spin it, and the compost comes out of the holes? love to build it
Apr. 28, 2009 at 7:30 am
Wow–very simple design. I bought a barrel and have been stumped on how to build a cheap but strong frame with stuff I have already. This is a good design–easy, strong, looks good, and I have all the stuff! Thanks Boys Life!
May. 5, 2009 at 3:09 pm
cool, i like it
May. 15, 2009 at 12:42 pm
I am moving to a new place, and I really wanted to start my own compost, but I didn’t want to buy a $200+ compost tumbler. I quick Google search, and my third hit was for Boys’ Life. Being a Scout myself, I had to click it. Needless to say, I am WICKED excited to build this. It’s been far too long since I’ve built anything with my hands (I’m a bit embarrassed to say that the last time might have been my Eagle Project in ‘04). Thanks a bunch for these instructions Boys’ Life!
And to all those Scouts climbing the Path to Eagle, keep it up! It will be something that you treasure your whole life, something no one can take away.
May. 23, 2009 at 7:29 pm
well simple project i think i will try it
May. 26, 2009 at 6:32 pm
it looks like a cannon!
Jun. 8, 2009 at 10:23 am
Works really well
Kinda smelly once the compost starts breaking down.
I used a large trash can instead of the food barrel and reinforced the side braces with more wood.
Great weekend project, it took me about 3 hrs.
Jun. 17, 2009 at 7:30 pm
Believe it or not these arre easy to make I could probably make this without instructions