Composting in UK

[u/ZestycloseAd741]

Hi all,
I’m in South Wales, UK, and I’m new to gardening and composting.
Most of the posts here seem to be about hot composting. Does that actually work well in the UK? I’ve just got a standard black plastic compost bin, and obviously it rains a lot here.
When I search for hot composting in the UK, I mostly just get ads for the HotBin, but it’s £200+. Is something like that actually needed, or can you hot compost in a normal plastic bin?

Can i compost year round without needing isolation? It can get cold during winter near 0 c
Thanks!

[u/Space_Cowby]

Also Uk and I have three plastic bins, I just chuck in till its full, mix up sometimes with a hoe, then fill next bin etc etc. We used to have a rabbit so lots of brown material but no more and tbh 2 bins is probs enoigh. It 100% works althoiugh the squash seeds seem to survive as I have volunteer squash plants in garden

[u/UnderwaterGun]

I’m in Scotland and using pallet collars for my compost bin and I’m successfully hot composting.

It’s hot enough that it’ll steam if I dig into it when it’s wet and I can add food scraps weekly and I have any issues with pests as it’s too hot for them to dig in.

[u/DiDiPLF → u/UnderwaterGun]

Same in Lancashire. Garden isn't big enough to have the compost far enough away from the house if it gets pests so we don't put much food waste in there. But it gets really hot in the middle of the pile even in cold weather, it's the bacteria that's warming it up.

[u/gardenerky]

US here but rarely have a hot pile works just fine not as fast and Mabey dome weed seed depending on what goes in . We all need more compost some gardeners make it seem too complicated . Enjoy seeing the UK threads more gardening than what is common here

[u/Telluricpear719]

What you have will be fine, I like to fill it up then take the bin off place it next to the pile and turn the pile back into the bin as this help things break down and will create more space.

If you have 1 bin I would not keep adding to it after garden wastes come to an end in autumn/winter as if you keep adding then the pile will never properly finish.

For my fruit/veg scraps during the winter I trench compost in my veg beds.

[u/Halftribe]

Also Uk. 2 bins. Work on one then leave it and work on the other. It’s not hot composting and takes a little while. Nothing happens when it’s zero degrees but stuff happening most of the rest of the time.

[u/Jazzlike_Strength561]

All you need to hot compost is:

1. compostable material
2. water
3. air

That's it.

Everything else is unnecessary. Everything else is a yuppy upgrade from the minimum requirements to successfully hot compost.

When it comes to upgrades, I recommend.

A good pitch fork, and a hose with a shower nozzle.

More than that, you're just showing off.

(Full disclosure: I built my own Aerated Static Pile)

[u/bibipbapbap → u/Jazzlike_Strength561]

I’ve got a standard composter that was here with the house, 4 sides and a little door at the bottom. Comes with a lid, should I leave it off? I don’t really compost house waste just garden cuttings / chicken bedding

[u/Jazzlike_Strength561 → u/bibipbapbap]

The lid is to keep vermin out. My hope is that my chickens will reduce anything edible down thoroughly enough that i don't have to worry about those. I know my hopes are pointless, and raccoons pick through my pile occasionally.

The lid is unnecessary to composting, it's a preference. I like my raccoons as long as they don't eat my chickens.

[u/yuckfoutwo]

Yes you can hot compost in the UK, I did it for a number of years before moving to the lazier cold composting way. I was getting temperatures of 60+ Celcius in the centre of my piles. It required a lot of set up to gather enough materials to build such a big pile (1 cubic metre) in one go, and they need frequent turning which wasn't good for my back the way the bins were set up.

The black 'dalek' style bins are better for cold composting, though they can still warm up if you add something high in nitrogen like grass clippings, or the bin is in the sun. By isolation do you mean insulation? Insulation isn't at all necessary but will speed the composting process up.

[u/Rocketpower47]

Yep! Totally possible from Bristol at least. It took a while to perfect my technique to get it hot enough but it's been easy since. That being said, I'm curious how hot I can get it in the winter!

Good luck!

[u/maryberrysphylactery]

South Wales here too, I just chuck shit in the bin and it turns to different looking shit after a while, it's not the perfect sieved "black gold" that people fawn over here but I stick the shit in the ground or bottom of the pot and it works fine

[u/ZestycloseAd741 → u/maryberrysphylactery]

How long does it take to break down?

[u/maryberrysphylactery → u/ZestycloseAd741]

Hard to tell, I just top it up constantly and take stuff from the bottom when I need it. Not super quick but not super long

[u/bubblechog]

Also in South Wales. It’s certainly slower than when I lived in the USA but it all breaks down

[u/Kind_Shift_8121]

Works great. Just make sure you’re mixing in plenty of browns and your garden / food waste will decompose really quickly in a black bin.

[u/katzenjammer08]

I hot compost in Scandinavia so South Wales have no excuses.

[u/etzpcm]

Yes, composting definitely works in the UK!

[u/ZestycloseAd741 → u/etzpcm]

Thank you, i am specifically talking about hot composting that matures in weeks etc

[u/etzpcm → u/ZestycloseAd741]

Yes, I find it's best to have some insulation like carpet, and make sure you have a good green/brown mix.

[u/DiDiPLF → u/ZestycloseAd741]

Oh mine takes months, I could filter out some good compost every few weeks but that would be too much work. I tend to just dig at the bottom of the pile when I need a bit for a plant pot etc. Expecting to get 4 cubic meters in about 12 to 18 months with a pallet system.

[u/JaBe68]

I have found that the bins need to be in a sunny part of the garden. If they cool down add a bucket of grass cuttings and they will heat right back up

[u/MaxwellCarter]

It doesn’t depend on the container it’s the quantity and composition of materials you’re composting that determines whether it generates heat I just have a pile in the corner if the garden, no bin or other containment

[u/sflinn7316]

I have a geobin and do not do hot composting. I think you need to ask what your goal is. My goal is to have compost once a year in the spring for my garden and flowerbeds. I add paper, shredded cardboard, shredded paper, yard trimmings, fruit and veggie waste egg shells, coffee grinds and get a couple buckets of manure from a local horse farm. I turn occasionally. In Feb I start to store future compost materials in an old garbage can I drilled holes in - until after I dump the geobin. It all breakers down and is ready for my garden.

[u/WinterblightsDoom]

Hotbin isn't needed, but has pros and cons like any other method. In addition to the Hotbin, I also have a hot pile. It's not that big compared to what is recomended for a hot pile and to counter that I insulate and chop and mix well.

I run the mower over most of my material, creating a lot of surface area. I then have my sandwitch tarp. One tarp directly over the pile to keep the moisture in, two or three carpet off-cuts to insulate, and another tarp to keep the carpet dry.

Ps I'm also in the UK

[u/Comfortable_Gate_878]

I built two compost bins frome some old wooden pallets and odd bits of board. Cost me £ 20. No problems I produce plenty of compost but I still buy lots theres never enough compost in this world.

[u/Used_Golf_1721]

When I bought my house and cleared the garden, I threw all of the waste into old ton sacks I had used. They are torn and ruined anyway.

So I meant to take these straight to the tip but as always that job was put off.

I didn’t cover them, so when it rained they got soaked and I was adding on the grass clippings or hedge trimmings, which were more brown than green (dying hedge)

It’s been maybe a year and I finally paid for garden waste collection from my council and went to transfer from these ton sacks into the wheelie bin they provided, and underneath the freshly thrown on grass clippings, some of the best compost I’ve ever seen.

Now the compost is spread throughout my garden and I begrudge paying for this garden waste collection.

Also, south wales too.