Tell me about your countertop composter

SusieBW · April 2013

What do you use for your compost stuff in the house? Like, before you bring it out to the compost bin in the yard. What do you love/hate about it?

We're new to composting, having just built our bins and started our pile a couple of weeks ago. I need something for the countertop and I'm a little overwhelmed by all of the options that I've seen. Ceramic or plastic? Airtight or carbon filter? Spend $30 or DIY?

Thanks!

trudibell · April 2013

We're relatively new to composting too and we've been using an old coffee can (Folger's style that I took from the department I work at) with an air-tight lid, and we take it out 1-2x daily. I'd be curious to see what others are using too.

MrsBernard · April 2013

We have a stainless steel pail with a lid. The lid has a place for charcoal filters to keep the stink away. We got it as a gift from Bed Bath and Beyond about 6 years ago and have been really happy with it.

SusieBW · April 2013

trudibell:
We're relatively new to composting too and we've been using an old coffee can (Folger's style that I took from the department I work at) with an air-tight lid, and we take it out 1-2x daily. I'd be curious to see what others are using too.

Good for you! I know that DH and I are far more lazy than this, and will probably take it out more like every couple of days. I'm leaning toward a ceramic one with a filter in the lid (I guess it's a charcoal filter, like PP said, not a carbon filter. Duh, my bad.)

NeroDoo · April 2013

I just use a plastic container that those dishwasher soap tablets came in. It has a snap on lid and we store it under the sink.

dosafyre · April 2013

For nearly a decade I've used a stainless steel pan with handles on the side and on the lid (got it at a thrift store for a couple bucks). The lid rests on tightly-enough that I don't need a special seal, I empty it every few days so it never gets too bad...and if it does, I throw it in the dishwasher for a cleaning.

I find it helps to put some newsprint or a paper towel on the bottom for gunk empties easier and doesn't stick.

SusieBW · April 2013

dosafyre:
For nearly a decade I've used a stainless steel pan with handles on the side and on the lid (got it at a thrift store for a couple bucks). The lid rests on tightly-enough that I don't need a special seal, I empty it every few days so it never gets too bad...and if it does, I throw it in the dishwasher for a cleaning.
I find it helps to put some newsprint or a paper towel on the bottom for gunk empties easier and doesn't stick.

Do you just leave it on your counter, or in the fridge? I feel like a pan on veggie scraps on my counter in the 95 degree, humid summer would be icky. But if I kept it in the fridge, something like this might be a good solution. . .

YellowLily2013 · April 2013

MrsBernard:
We have a stainless steel pail with a lid. nbsp;The lid has a place for charcoal filters to keep the stink away. nbsp;We got it as a gift from Bed Bath and Beyond about 6 years ago and have been really happy with it.

This! We were luckily gifted the simple human one and love it! We take it out weekly... Maybe we don't eat as much produce as the rest of you! It doesn't smell, and the smell is minimal when you open it.

My roommate in college did the coffee can thing. And it reeked!! But granted she did not take it out every couple of days. I think an air tight seal makes some of the smell worse personally.

SusieBW · April 2013

YellowLily2013:
This! We were luckily gifted the simple human one and love it! We take it out weekly... Maybe we don't eat as much produce as the rest of you! It doesn't smell, and the smell is minimal when you open it. My roommate in college did the coffee can thing. And it reeked!! But granted she did not take it out every couple of days. I think an air tight seal makes some of the smell worse personally.

This is what I was afraid of.

I think I'll probably end up spending the money on one with a filtered lid.

Thank you everyone for your input!!

dosafyre · April 2013

I leave it on the counter since I'm constantly putting things in. I try to not put milk or meat products in during the summer (they go to the cat or get dumped right away)...that's the only reason smell might be a bother. Fruits/veggies/grains...you can usually do a few days in summer, no problem.

YellowLily2013 · April 2013

dosafyre:
I leave it on the counter since I'm constantly putting things in. I try to not put milk or meat products in during the summer they go to the cat or get dumped right away...that's the only reason smell might be a bother. Fruits/veggies/grains...you can usually do a few days in summer,nbsp;no problem.

I thought dairy and meat products were always a no no for the compost bin. As they attract animals and pest and go rancid.

dosafyre · April 2013

We have city curbside composting that takes all organic matter (diary, fish, meat). But if I have a "clean" pail of just veggie scraps and coffee grounds, I give that to my worm bin or outdoor yard bin (if it's just lettuce leaves or something critters won't want).

Drives my DH bonkers...since he never knows where/how I want the compost scraps taken out :P

trudibell · April 2013

YellowLily2013:
dosafyre:
I leave it on the counter since I'm constantly putting things in. I try to not put milk or meat products in during the summer they go to the cat or get dumped right away...that's the only reason smell might be a bother. Fruits/veggies/grains...you can usually do a few days in summer,nbsp;no problem.
I thought dairy and meat products were always a no no for the compost bin. As they attract animals and pest and go rancid.

I think egg shells are ok, but all other stuff is bad. Or at least that's what I've read!

ABeautifulMind · April 2013

MrsBernard:
We have a stainless steel pail with a lid. The lid has a place for charcoal filters to keep the stink away. We got it as a gift from Bed Bath and Beyond about 6 years ago and have been really happy with it.

This. We've been composting for about 6 years as well. We've had the above container for about 3 of the 6 years. The first 3 years we used a big plastic tupperware. It worked fine, we just happen to stumble across the nice container at goodwill for $6! We replaced the filter and it was just like new. We keep ours under the sink in the kitchen and empty it as needed. No smell.

YellowLily2013 · April 2013

trudibell:
YellowLily2013:
dosafyre:
I leave it on the counter since I'm constantly putting things in. I try to not put milk or meat products in during the summer they go to the cat or get dumped right away...that's the only reason smell might be a bother. Fruits/veggies/grains...you can usually do a few days in summer,nbsp;no problem.

Yeah we put egg shells in ours too.
I thought dairy and meat products were always a no no for the compost bin. As they attract animals and pest and go rancid.
I think egg shells are ok, but all other stuff is bad.  Or at least that's what I've read! 

brownmouse · May 2013

We got ours at World Market, and LOVE it! We only take it out when it gets full which is about every fifth day or so. NO smell at all because it has charcoal filters in the lid. And its metal so it washes out easy. We worm compost, so it's the perfect size to add to our worm bin drawers.

It's this one: https://www.worldmarket.com/product/metal-compost-bucket-with-vintage-canning-label.do?&from=Search

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