Fireplace compost bin

Compost bin made from the front of a fireplace I found in the neighbors trash and a free wooden skid.

Step 1 Tools and supplies

Tools needed: Drill, pilot bit, phillips head bit, hammer, angle grinder with cut-off blade, tape measure, and a circular saw.

Supplies: Screws (I used 3" deck screws i had layin around), wooden skid (free at lots of businesses), front off an old fireplace (free from my neighbors trash), a good location (i had a good spot already at my house with a brick bottom and concrete blocks on three sides from an old building), and wire.

Comments

[A good name]

This causes the compost pile to lose heat. Then again it doesn't even look like you have a top to your compost bin so you probably don't care.

[cbennett811]

How do you figure that? As long as the pile is 3x3x3, the temperature is fine. Mine is a 3x3 square and 4' deep. No top is needed.

[A good name]

A top is needed, and it's ideal for it to be painted black or another dark colour. This helps it absorb the thermal energy. If it's open, the thermal energy isn't trapped, and the heat escapes. The heat is what helps decompose things.

[cbennett811]

A top might speed up the process, but is not necessary. The heat is trapped within the pile itself. It is also created by the micro organisms eating the stuff in your pile. That is why it needs to be at least three feet deep. You can make your own compost without a bin at all with a just pile or heap. Also I save water without having a top on my bin. Where I live it doesn't rain to much or to little. There is no need for me to water my compost because the rain takes care of it for me. There are hundreds of ways to compost. It occurs naturally in nature. This is just one way.

[chrisandamanda]

I think that this is a cool idea. That way you can also see what is going on in your compost.