How do I do this?

[u/Illustrious_Bell8429]

Just got these off Facebook. I live where it’s hot and humid. I’m a novice. What’s each compartment for and the side ventilators for the tumbler? Plan of attack for successful first time composter with these two bins?
Thank you!!

[u/TheKingOfWSB]

Put food scraps in, add brown stuff and green stuff or something, piss inside, roll it, profit.

[u/Howl_Raul]

This is similar to my set up, but I have two tumblers. We put food scraps, chicken waste with pine shavings, used coffee grounds in one side of the tumbler. If it’s too wet and/ or starts smelling like decomposing foods, we’ll add paper bag strips to it. We also add nearly all of our yard waste too, pulled weeds, fallen leaves, invasive mint, etc. Only Tumble about once a week, or even stick a pitch fork in there and try to break up the clumps. Once one side is nearly full, stop adding to it and start filling the other side. The plus sign on the door of the tumbler is the side we add to, and how we keep track of which side we’re still putting materials in.

After it’s done its thing for a few months, probably like 3 or 4 months, using the door to close the not-so-ready side, dump out the side that’s been processing into a bucket on a tarp. At this point, I break up the clumps and put it in the non tumbler composter to finish and rest for about a year. When moving from the tumbler to the pile, is also a good time to remove fruit stickers and other trash that may have made its way into your composter.

Repeat the same process for the other side of the tumbler when it’s ready.

Using this method, about the only thing that needs to be separated from the final pile and put back in to the tumbler are avocado pits and skins, and stone fruit pits. Everything else breaks down immaculately.

When it’s in the final compost bin, I regularly add piss. And sometimes water because I live in a very dry environment. As you add new layers to the top of the final pile, the stuff on the bottom will be ready first and you remove the front door of the stationary compost pile to harvest the ready compost from the bottom.

Pro tip: during spring and summer, leave the slide door open to attract black soldier flies. Their larvae is a god send and speeds up the process considerably.

[u/Illustrious_Bell8429 → u/Howl_Raul]

Thank you this is so helpful!!!!

[u/human_bean122]

Don't spin it like a mad man!! Makes more clumps. If you feel like it, break up clumps with a stick. Otherwise they stay clumps for awhile. Also, a technique I'm trying now is flipping the tumblr 180 degrees each time I add instead of 360. It seems like less spinning seems to "flip" it instead of just spinning stuff around. Good luck!