Dear Eli, thank y9u for another great video. I have had my hotbin for 3 weeks now, it is running along at 50-60 degrees and I am so excited to see what I get a few weeks down the line. Suspect I haven't put in enough paper....we shall see. A quick caution. The manufacturer's comments about asthmatics and mask should not be taken lightly. I find I am very sensitive to whatever beasties and spores are in there and having given myself a relapse (sticking head into the steam on a daily basis not a good idea) I now have to stand behind the kitchen door and send a family member out to feed it and give me a running commentary on temperature, grey fluff, etc. I am lucky to have such a supportive family. ....
I found your channel because I bought a house with a greenhouse and have no idea how to set it up. I have been gardening seriously for about the past 5 years and am so excited to use the greenhouse. So I absolutely enjoy your comments and self-analysis and sharing what works and what doesn’t. I am laughing so hard at times! Love your sense of humor and experimental attitude. One accidental foray into composting has been very successful for me. I had a pile of leaves and garden scraps, and I put a plastic bin over the pile, with the bottom of the pile directly on the dirt below. It was in a corner of my garden, and it has made some if the best compost. I don’t think I realized how many different ways that we can make compost, so I really appreciate your videos. Big thanks from Ohio, USA!
I just found your channel. Great info! I have been doing vermicomposting for a year and only recently started hot composting. Sifting is a great step! Some real gem tips here 👍
Lovely to have you with us Ann 😍 I’ve been battling with the hot bin for a good few years now… it takes a bit of getting used to but I think I’m getting it 😂😂😂😂
Glad it’s useful David. It took me a while to understand enough to stop panicking that I wasn’t having the exact experience the marketing material spoke about 😂
Thank you for this fun and informative video. I ordered my Hotbin on Friday and can’t wait to get started. Already collecting lots of ‘food’ for the bin 😀
Really enjoying your videos. Had my bin for 5 weeks and generally can keep temperature up. Always had to sieve my cold compost from a home made bin so hoping this will be easier. From another comment, I also sieve into a dustbin ( with a lid) for storage. Hoping the outlay for a hot bin has been worth it.
Dear Eli, (sorry for the misspelling yesterday) Thank you so much we both enjoyed this valuable information and love your presentation style. It has really helped us a lot and now we have a far better idea how to use our Hotbin. Have subbed. Many thanks Russ and Fay
Hi Eli, I have the same bin as you! (No tap ☹️). My compost is exactly the same but I transfer it all into an old black plastic dustbin that has a few small holes around the base. This then carries on rotting down and dries out quite a bit more. I’ve got two so just use the oldest compost when I need it. I love my hotbin, thanks for excellent videos 😊
Hi Eli and Kate, Great video as always, I've just started composting this year and I'm looking forward to seeing the end result, It is coming along fine at the moment, Take care and thank you for this and all your other videos.
Always enjoy watching your videos. Think they’re very humorous but at the same time full of good info. Please could you share in more details your succession planting plan? I always find that so tricky to get right. Thanks xx
This is so interesting - we just have a row of normal composters and pop everything in there and leave it for a year or so and it comes out like fine compost ready to go. I've tried putting an accelerator in one composter to see what happens so I'll be interested to see if that makes it go any quicker.
I absolutely think you can't beat the old fashioned pile for great compost. THis set I have have taken a lot of getting used to over the last 8 years or so, definitely not one for beginners I'd say. You need to have a basic level of composting knowledge to be able to work on it and correct things. Although it is great for my needs in terms of a small urban garden with neighbours etc... doesn't stop me lusting after a proper 3 bay system :D
@@eliandkate I lust after way too much gardening stuff after watching your videos, this is why I had two boxes of those modules you recommended arrive recently!
Really interesting to see that you’ve had success with your Hotbin. That looks like some great compost! Can’t wait to link up with you and we’ll have a battle of the hot composters! Oh yeah, and you and I should totally do a one-wheel meet-up video... now that’d be funny!!! We just need a couple of one-wheels!! 😂😅
I find creating compost exciting. Am I strange? Do I have a problem? I have wormeries, bokashi bins and boxes - all happily chugging along whilst I try to get the whole avenue to give me their food waste!
Absolutely with you and nope you aren’t strange. I love it…/ hence why I designed the beastie farmer t-shirts for all of us who love composting and helping soil organisms 😍😍😍
I just did an update video on Sunday - still wet... I've tried everything and nothing makes any difference. Had been really hoping that the new models with the tap were the answer, but maybe not?
Hi from Ireland Eli. Great video. I built my own hotbin based on Niall Garden's model which i saw on your channel when you did the comparison. I started using it around 4 days ago. I half filled it with all the recommended items. At the moment i am just taking a reading of the ambient air above the compost. It has gone from 10 degrees to just under 30 in a few days. So it seems like it is working. I have more stuff to throw in. My question is, should i wait until it starts to cool down before i throw new stuff in? I'm just worried that each time I open the top, i'll be letting too much heat out!!! Maybe i'm being too paranoid!! I live with 3 other people so i can add pretty much every 2 or 3 days if i want to. But i'm note sure should i be doing it once a week or when!! Another question is that seeing as it's my first time, how can i find out if my compost will be too wet? I could be wrong but i think i may have added a little too many greens at the bottom of the bin. But i'm not sure. I don't want to mix it all together again if you suggest it's not the best idea, and the fact that it seems to be going ok at the moment due to the temperature rising. Will i just have to wait until my compost is ready before i know whether it's too wet or not? Or is there a way to nip it in the bud!! Sorry for all these questions. Dave.
Hey Dave Lots of questions 😁 let's see if 8 can help with any. Ok.... Yup, I just add my waste as and when I have it. You might be letting ambient heat out but it's the heat inside the mix that's the good stuff, and... Adding more waste will generate more heat 😁 Wet.... Yup. My experience is that these thing doake wet compost. I'm a few years on and STILL trying to find the right balance. At the minute I'm adding maybe 4 times the amount of brown that the hotbin people recommend. If you are worried that there is a lot wet compost sitting at the bottom, you can take it out, and then add it to the top with more brown. That will let it sort itself and maybe help dry it out. More time 😁 I used to remix everything, but I did it this way recently and it worked much better. Remember you can be nosey and have a peak whenever you want, I do it alot 😁😁😁😁
@@eliandkate Thanks for the ultra speedy reply Eli. Instead of physically taking out the stuff at the bottom, could i use the twirly stick to drag it up to the top and mix in some more shredded cardboard? I think i will premix most things from now on before i throw them in. Although i won't do that with food as that would be ultra messy!! When you say "a quick peak", do you mean the bottom door? One more thing, i attempted to "buy you a coffee" but couldn't. Do I have to sign up first?
Theoretically you could BUT the hotbin folks don't recommend it. It means mixing your whole bin, so the hot bit will have cold added and it'll take the temperature down and you will essentially be starting again. A quick peak... Yup open up the bottom door and have a look 😁 It's usually compacted so won't come out without some persuasion
I forgot to mention Dave, you shouldn't need to sign up to buy us a coffee - I think it was actually the link I added had a rogue space. Should be ok now - but please don't feel obligated :D
@@eliandkate Hey Eli. I'd like to. But I'm lost. I can get onto the appropriate page but I don't see anything there regarding a donation. Could you point me in the right direction?
Hello Eli, I have just bought a Hotbin and have been watching your videos on UA-cam. You’re very personable and friendly so I hope you don’t mind me asking a couple of queries? 1. Should the bin be sat on a plinth? I ask because it looks as if it would be difficult to get the leachate out of the tap which is very low. 2. Do you leave the temperature wand in the mix all the time so when you open the lid you see an accurate reading or just stick it in when you lift the lid. My temperature wand is only short - about 3inches long. I have already got the temp up to 100 and only had it a week! The last lot that went in was mown grass though and I have heard you say grass raises the temp but it will drop again. Thank you
Hey you found the comments 😀 I'm not sure about the tap as I have the original bin which doesn't have a tap. But I would say having it on a plinth if it makes things easier would sound sensible. I guess it's just about how tall the bin then becomes for you being able to use it. I'm short so I already find the bin annoyingly tall. I leave the thermometer in there, but again there is no rule saying you have to, completely up to you. You are right about the grass, greens like grass are quick to break down so help the bin heat up really quickly, you will see temperature fluctuations, that is normal. The heat goes up if the bin has lots of good stuff to compost and down when it doesn't. Again this is completely normal.
If you live in Ireland and want a hotbin, it might be worth looking at the Quickcrop website. They sell these from their Irish store for less than it costs to get one delivered from the UK mainland.
If you can keep the temperature up it does a great job at killing all the weeds. If you can’t keep the temperature up high then it’s not the end of the world, it’s just like your other garden compost.
Thanks great video. Maybe I am just lazy but I have never sieved my compost from my hotbin composter. Yes there are pretty large chunks and the odd twig, but still seems to work. What's your opinion on this, will it impact my plants.
not lazy at all. You only sieve it if you need to. I only sieve it if I am using it for pots (so that tends to be seedlings) If it's for the beds I just dig it in raw :)
really interesting vid. thinking of getting a hotbin so will definitely being going back to watch the other vids! also, where did you get your normal compost mixer?
Dear Eli, thank y9u for another great video. I have had my hotbin for 3 weeks now, it is running along at 50-60 degrees and I am so excited to see what I get a few weeks down the line. Suspect I haven't put in enough paper....we shall see.
A quick caution. The manufacturer's comments about asthmatics and mask should not be taken lightly. I find I am very sensitive to whatever beasties and spores are in there and having given myself a relapse (sticking head into the steam on a daily basis not a good idea) I now have to stand behind the kitchen door and send a family member out to feed it and give me a running commentary on temperature, grey fluff, etc. I am lucky to have such a supportive family. ....
You are indeed very lucky to have such awesome family members. :)
The steam facial is one of those shocks we've all had as new hot compost fans :)
I found your channel because I bought a house with a greenhouse and have no idea how to set it up. I have been gardening seriously for about the past 5 years and am so excited to use the greenhouse. So I absolutely enjoy your comments and self-analysis and sharing what works and what doesn’t.
I am laughing so hard at times! Love your sense of humor and experimental attitude.
One accidental foray into composting has been very successful for me. I had a pile of leaves and garden scraps, and I put a plastic bin over the pile, with the bottom of the pile directly on the dirt below. It was in a corner of my garden, and it has made some if the best compost. I don’t think I realized how many different ways that we can make compost, so I really appreciate your videos.
Big thanks from Ohio, USA!
Oh that's sounds awesome. No stress composting 😀😀😀😀😀
I love those socks!
I just found your channel. Great info! I have been doing vermicomposting for a year and only recently started hot composting. Sifting is a great step! Some real gem tips here 👍
Lovely to have you with us Ann 😍
I’ve been battling with the hot bin for a good few years now… it takes a bit of getting used to but I think I’m getting it 😂😂😂😂
Hi from West Dorset. I have just bought a hot bin with a tap, and found your great video.
Aww glad my playlist of videos is useful. I’m still very much in the journey of learning with it… almost there but not quite yet 😀
I’m on the hot bin journey too and this is the best advice yet😀
Glad it’s useful David. It took me a while to understand enough to stop panicking that I wasn’t having the exact experience the marketing material spoke about 😂
So useful
Thank you for this fun and informative video. I ordered my Hotbin on Friday and can’t wait to get started. Already collecting lots of ‘food’ for the bin 😀
Glad it was helpful! You will now be its slave...
Really enjoying your videos. Had my bin for 5 weeks and generally can keep temperature up. Always had to sieve my cold compost from a home made bin so hoping this will be easier. From another comment, I also sieve into a dustbin ( with a lid) for storage. Hoping the outlay for a hot bin has been worth it.
Dear Eli, (sorry for the misspelling yesterday)
Thank you so much we both enjoyed this valuable information and love your presentation style.
It has really helped us a lot and now we have a far better idea how to use our Hotbin.
Have subbed.
Many thanks Russ and Fay
Our pleasure and don't worry about spelling :)
So far, loving our Hotbin, although only had it a month so haven't seen the results off it yet..
Looks neat in the garden to
It does doesn't it.... I like neat.... As you may have noticed....
Composting is a science! I haven't got used to it yet!
that is so true!!
Hi Eli, I have the same bin as you! (No tap ☹️). My compost is exactly the same but I transfer it all into an old black plastic dustbin that has a few small holes around the base. This then carries on rotting down and dries out quite a bit more. I’ve got two so just use the oldest compost when I need it. I love my hotbin, thanks for excellent videos 😊
Oh thanks Moira, that's really good to know that it does dry out a bit, even in a bag.... going to try that cause I've got a full bin again :D
Maybe puncture holes in the bag? That would let air get in as well as allowing excess water to drain out 👍🏻
ah I misread your original and thought you said bag... Doh!
Hi Eli and Kate, Great video as always, I've just started composting this year and I'm looking forward to seeing the end result, It is coming along fine at the moment, Take care and thank you for this and all your other videos.
oh, hopefully making your own compost should save you a few pennies :)
Always enjoy watching your videos. Think they’re very humorous but at the same time full of good info. Please could you share in more details your succession planting plan? I always find that so tricky to get right. Thanks xx
Already there for you, a whole video 😀
This is so interesting - we just have a row of normal composters and pop everything in there and leave it for a year or so and it comes out like fine compost ready to go. I've tried putting an accelerator in one composter to see what happens so I'll be interested to see if that makes it go any quicker.
I absolutely think you can't beat the old fashioned pile for great compost. THis set I have have taken a lot of getting used to over the last 8 years or so, definitely not one for beginners I'd say. You need to have a basic level of composting knowledge to be able to work on it and correct things. Although it is great for my needs in terms of a small urban garden with neighbours etc... doesn't stop me lusting after a proper 3 bay system :D
@@eliandkate I lust after way too much gardening stuff after watching your videos, this is why I had two boxes of those modules you recommended arrive recently!
😂😂😂😂 that’s you mean the hard black seed sowing modules… I’ve never recommended them so you can’t blame me 😂😂😂
Really interesting to see that you’ve had success with your Hotbin. That looks like some great compost! Can’t wait to link up with you and we’ll have a battle of the hot composters! Oh yeah, and you and I should totally do a one-wheel meet-up video... now that’d be funny!!! We just need a couple of one-wheels!! 😂😅
Ha ha ha I'd rock on a one wheel!
I find creating compost exciting. Am I strange? Do I have a problem? I have wormeries, bokashi bins and boxes - all happily chugging along whilst I try to get the whole avenue to give me their food waste!
Absolutely with you and nope you aren’t strange.
I love it…/ hence why I designed the beastie farmer t-shirts for all of us who love composting and helping soil organisms 😍😍😍
Hi Eli I’ve started to leave the tap open at the bottom in the hopes it’s not so wet when I pluck up the courage to have a look at my compost🥴🤞
I just did an update video on Sunday - still wet... I've tried everything and nothing makes any difference. Had been really hoping that the new models with the tap were the answer, but maybe not?
When I first opened my bin last year to say I was disappointed is a understatement I’m hoping for better the next time🤞🤞
I would love to run a side by side comparison with the old bin and new bin to see if the leachate drain makes any difference :(
New to this, is it the carbons that create the heat, took a dumpy of 10 day old chipped willlow from my neighbour and steaming hot a foot down.
It tends to be the greens that create the heat but it won’t last long with out the brows as you need the balance to counteract things like moisture
Hi from Ireland Eli. Great video. I built my own hotbin based on Niall Garden's model which i saw on your channel when you did the comparison. I started using it around 4 days ago. I half filled it with all the recommended items. At the moment i am just taking a reading of the ambient air above the compost. It has gone from 10 degrees to just under 30 in a few days. So it seems like it is working. I have more stuff to throw in. My question is, should i wait until it starts to cool down before i throw new stuff in? I'm just worried that each time I open the top, i'll be letting too much heat out!!! Maybe i'm being too paranoid!! I live with 3 other people so i can add pretty much every 2 or 3 days if i want to. But i'm note sure should i be doing it once a week or when!! Another question is that seeing as it's my first time, how can i find out if my compost will be too wet? I could be wrong but i think i may have added a little too many greens at the bottom of the bin. But i'm not sure. I don't want to mix it all together again if you suggest it's not the best idea, and the fact that it seems to be going ok at the moment due to the temperature rising. Will i just have to wait until my compost is ready before i know whether it's too wet or not? Or is there a way to nip it in the bud!! Sorry for all these questions. Dave.
Hey Dave
Lots of questions 😁 let's see if 8 can help with any. Ok....
Yup, I just add my waste as and when I have it. You might be letting ambient heat out but it's the heat inside the mix that's the good stuff, and... Adding more waste will generate more heat 😁
Wet.... Yup. My experience is that these thing doake wet compost. I'm a few years on and STILL trying to find the right balance. At the minute I'm adding maybe 4 times the amount of brown that the hotbin people recommend.
If you are worried that there is a lot wet compost sitting at the bottom, you can take it out, and then add it to the top with more brown. That will let it sort itself and maybe help dry it out. More time 😁
I used to remix everything, but I did it this way recently and it worked much better.
Remember you can be nosey and have a peak whenever you want, I do it alot 😁😁😁😁
@@eliandkate
Thanks for the ultra speedy reply Eli.
Instead of physically taking out the stuff at the bottom, could i use the twirly stick to drag it up to the top and mix in some more shredded cardboard?
I think i will premix most things from now on before i throw them in. Although i won't do that with food as that would be ultra messy!!
When you say "a quick peak", do you mean the bottom door?
One more thing, i attempted to "buy you a coffee" but couldn't. Do I have to sign up first?
Theoretically you could BUT the hotbin folks don't recommend it. It means mixing your whole bin, so the hot bit will have cold added and it'll take the temperature down and you will essentially be starting again.
A quick peak... Yup open up the bottom door and have a look 😁
It's usually compacted so won't come out without some persuasion
I forgot to mention Dave, you shouldn't need to sign up to buy us a coffee - I think it was actually the link I added had a rogue space. Should be ok now - but please don't feel obligated :D
@@eliandkate Hey Eli. I'd like to. But I'm lost. I can get onto the appropriate page but I don't see anything there regarding a donation. Could you point me in the right direction?
Hello Eli, I have just bought a Hotbin and have been watching your videos on UA-cam. You’re very personable and friendly so I hope you don’t mind me asking a couple of queries? 1. Should the bin be sat on a plinth? I ask because it looks as if it would be difficult to get the leachate out of the tap which is very low. 2. Do you leave the temperature wand in the mix all the time so when you open the lid you see an accurate reading or just stick it in when you lift the lid. My temperature wand is only short - about 3inches long. I have already got the temp up to 100 and only had it a week! The last lot that went in was mown grass though and I have heard you say grass raises the temp but it will drop again. Thank you
Hey you found the comments 😀
I'm not sure about the tap as I have the original bin which doesn't have a tap. But I would say having it on a plinth if it makes things easier would sound sensible. I guess it's just about how tall the bin then becomes for you being able to use it. I'm short so I already find the bin annoyingly tall.
I leave the thermometer in there, but again there is no rule saying you have to, completely up to you.
You are right about the grass, greens like grass are quick to break down so help the bin heat up really quickly, you will see temperature fluctuations, that is normal. The heat goes up if the bin has lots of good stuff to compost and down when it doesn't. Again this is completely normal.
hi, I read on the instructions that came with my hot bin that if you just put grass in then it has to be equal amounts of paper not the usual half.
If you live in Ireland and want a hotbin, it might be worth looking at the Quickcrop website. They sell these from their Irish store for less than it costs to get one delivered from the UK mainland.
That's a good tip for the Irish folk on this channel Gordon, thanks I'll pass it on.
Quickcrop is where I got mine earlier this year
Could you use the hot bit compost sieved for seeds ? Does it kill all weed,and eg tomato seeds please
If you can keep the temperature up it does a great job at killing all the weeds.
If you can’t keep the temperature up high then it’s not the end of the world, it’s just like your other garden compost.
My hotbin was absolutely sodden after 10 days of solid rain 🌧 found that putting a plastic bucket on top of the hotbin keeps the rain out
I need those socks...well not thos exact ones :-)
Ha Ha ha I love them
I’ve got a set with greenhouses on too
Thanks great video. Maybe I am just lazy but I have never sieved my compost from my hotbin composter. Yes there are pretty large chunks and the odd twig, but still seems to work. What's your opinion on this, will it impact my plants.
not lazy at all. You only sieve it if you need to.
I only sieve it if I am using it for pots (so that tends to be seedlings)
If it's for the beds I just dig it in raw :)
really interesting vid. thinking of getting a hotbin so will definitely being going back to watch the other vids! also, where did you get your normal compost mixer?
I think it was just some random thing on amazon, compost turner or something :D
@@eliandkateah thanks, i'll have a look there :)
Just out of interest do you drain the bin?
Yup
If you don’t it ends up overflowing 😂😂😂
I wonder whether you ought to have a little more material in there that aids drainage?
I don’t think you ever made that video did you?
What video?
I should add 100 Fahrenheit lol
AERHOLES IN THE BOTTOM WIL STOP WET & SODDEN & STINKY