This is the question. Unfortunately the answer is similar to the answer given to the question, "How long is a piece of string?" There are many different ways to build a tumbler and you can go larger than life or simply functioning. Better. Faster. Cheaper. A couple important prerequisites come to mind before framing the project and beginning construction.
1) What is the tumblers function? Basically.
2) How elaborate do you want its function? Are you good with a Spartan model or do you require all the bells and whistles?
3) What is your budget? This needs to be quantified not only in terms of dollars and cents, but your time required to research, gather materials, build and test, fill with organic waste and begin. Time is money.
Let's for the purpose of this discussion, say you just need an adequate functioning compost tumbler that is small enough to be reached conveniently by the patio. You're not really expecting to spend more than a Saturday morning finding the parts, building the wonderment and having it ready for use that night. This is kind of the "Joe Sixpack" week-ender challenges if you ask me... who wouldn't want to invest in a 12-pack and build one of these babies and jump aboard the Green People Express? Here's how to do it simply, cheaply and effectively:
Find yourself a 50-60 gallon plastic drum. These are usually pretty easy to come by as they are prevalent in the food business and in other walks. Make sure however, the barrel didn't at one time contain any hazardous materials for obvious reasons. If you're lazy or don't have the time, you could just buy a rain barrel on the internet. These are generally blue in color and are pretty sturdy.
Now you need an axle. Buy a 6' piece of white PVC pipe 2" in diameter. If you want to get fancy, glue the matching caps on the ends of the axle as well. If you have a basement or shed full of junk, (like I do) you could find yourself a 1-2" piece of galvanized pipe at least 6' long and that too would do the trick.
Next, either build or buy a set of saw horses or instead, spin up some little X's brackets from 2x4's to rest the axle ends in. That's all you need for raw materials, now you just need an electric drill and two different size bits. One size will need to match the diameter of your axle, the other one can be a basic half-inch to 1"straight or paddle bit.
Here's where the fun starts. Using the 1" bit, drill a line of holes about 4 inches from the bottom all the way around the barrel. Leave about 2-4 inches in between the holes. When your first line of holes are complete, do the same thing 4' higher on the barrel and continue 4 " higher until you have the whole barrel drilled. This series of holes should leave you with about 8 or 10 rings around the barrel. This is where the compost will breathe and be oxygenated from.
Next stand the barrel on its end and place the lid on securely. Drill a 2" hole in the top and bottom of the barrel in the absolute center of the circle, this is for the axle. Doesn't sound like such an important step until you try and spin the barrel on the axis and you haven't quite got the math or geometry right.
Run the axle through the barrel lengthwise and carefully place the barrel on your sawhorses, or within the intersection of your X brackets. Make sure there is at least 8-12 inches left on either end of the axels for mounting. At this point, you should be able to spin the drum with little effort. I used a bike trailer wheel on the end of it to make it easier to turn. You could also come up with some kind of handle/crank combination if you were out of beer.
This next step calls out to the craftsman in you, or at least requires a good Saws-All with a new blade. You need to fashion yourself a hinging door on the side of the drum to add your food waste. It has to be a pretty firm fit and latch as to not open under the centrifugal force of the loaded barrel. That pretty much covers the construction and fabrication of your barrel, now let's compost.
Try out your new latching door. Open. Close. Repeat. Begin by adding the humble beginnings of the organic waste material into the composting drum. You will need to add equal parts of both new, green yard waste and food scraps of all kinds, and old biodegrading dead leaves and paper products. The leaves contain the micro organisms and bacteria that will kick start the organic decay- they have the carbon breakdown that gets things going. The combination of both green and brown decaying fiber are the perfect mix for composting. The green food and table scraps add enough moisture to keep the process chugging along- compost is very moisture sensitive. It should be moist, but not soggy. The barrel should be filled about three-quarters of the way full when complete.
The only thing it needs, but doesn't have yet is oxygen... that's where you come in. The drum should get a good couple turns a couple times per week. This process adds oxygen to the mix, aerates the compost and moves things along quicker. In a span of about 2 months, you'll have turned your table scraps and lawn waste into a hearty, nutrient-rich compost for your plants and flowers, not to mention your vegetable garden. Cool huh?
Kelley Murphy, owns a successful media production business in the healthcare vertical market, and is a new e-commerce business owner of gottabgreen.com, promoting and selling a responsible lifestyle and eco-friendly green products online. Looking to rid the world of plastic, follow his blogs and shop for green products online at GottaBGreen.com and other earth-smart Green Products Web Sites.
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