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Building Block Composting System

I came across this cool video while I was doing some searching for my new ‘Compost Bin Plans‘ site (and have included this video there as well). It is more the concept itself, rather than the technical building details of the system built in the video, that I find really interesting. You certainly wouldn’t need to buy expensive decorative blocks in order to create something just as functional. Basic concrete construction blocks would certainly do the trick. If you are going to use blocks like this it is probably not a bad idea to do it PROPERLY as outlined in the video (with a sand foundation etc), especially if you live in a cold region where winter ground heaving might occur.

That being said, I’m sure you could get away with simple stacking the blocks – you could always go back and make adjustments if ends up a little off-kilter. One thing about the regular building blocks to keep in mind – they obviously won’t look nearly as nice as those used in the video, so you may not want to simply build it in the middle of your lawn.
😉

Speaking of which, if you happen to have any hills on your property, building a system like this right into the side of a hill would be a great way to create more of an ‘all-season’ composter, since the earth will be great for insulation. If you took it a step further, simply using straw bales instead of concrete blocks would help to provide even more insulation value. The only downside of this approach is that the bales will need to be replaced every couple of years, or perhaps even more frequently if you live in a fairly warm, wet location.

I know I am biased here, but adding composting worms to a system like this would also be really cool. Just make sure you wait until temperatures in the system are low enough (assuming you add a bunch of materials at once when setting it up).
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[tags]compost, composter, compost bin, compost bed, composting, worm composting, vermicomposting, compost worms, red worms, diy[/tags]

Written by Compost Guy on November 12th, 2009 with comments disabled.
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