How to start composting with chickens?

[Birdinhand]

there are lots of ways of composting. I prefer the deep litter method to start off in the coop and I don't get very scientific about it. the key, IMHO, is keeping the run dry. mine is covered and the chickens do the rest, they constantly turn the dropping into the soil and mix in whatever is left from food scraps I put in periodically. about twice a year or so I clean it out. I used to jut layer what I pull from the coop in large composter bins and let them sit for months till they broke down to good gardening soil. I decided a while ago, when I started raising meat birds that I needed to speed up the process because of the volume I was dealing with. I really like the jora 270 tumbler composter, if you want to make compost fast, this one does the trick and kills the weed seeds too! I've had mine for a couple of years now and it's amazing. https://www.hayneedle.com/product/joraform70gallon270composttumbler.cfm?source=pla&kwid=CompostBins level03&tid=TCW002-1&adtype=pla&kw=&lsft=adtypela&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIg-rfuq2X2QIVzmV-Ch0IHwiZEAQYAyABEgJmm_D_BwE

 

[HoopyFrood]

I've used the bin-made-from-pallets @IamRainey mentioned. Mine is right by my house for convenience sake. But I learned the hard way how much rodents like it. So after a four week battle to evict rats out of my crawlspace I rodent-proofed my bins If you can get free pallets, they are amazing to work with. Just avoid the red and blue ones! Very toxic.

You've got a great amount of info here! Have fun mulling it over and dreaming! Just remember that composting can either eliminate weed seeds and pathogens or be a vector for transmitting them; it all depends on composting time and temperature. But the longer a pile is left to cure, the more N (and a little P and K) will be lost, yet more humus will accumulate. So it's all a balancing act in what works best with your gardening and soil management goals.

I have yet to take the big plunge: humanure composting. But it's pretty amazing and is essential if you want to create a closed-loop nutrient cycle on your land (I'm hoping to implement it for us in 2019 at the latest). It's trippy stuff, but lots of fun to read about. Joseph Jenkins "The Humanure Handbook" is the best book on the topic I've come across; And it also is the best overall compost primer I've read!

 

[IamRainey]

As a matter of fact I have just begun a humanure project. It's out in the utility area of my garden because when I'm working in my garden I don't always have enough time to make it back to the house.

I got a pop-up privacy tent for $30, a "throne" for $11 and a bunch of 5 gallon-, 2 gallon- and 1 gallon tubs from a hardware store for $3.50 and under. I also got blocks of milled compressed coir to layer with the humanure. The 5 gallon tubs are the collection containers. The 2 gallon holds expanded coir. The 1 gallon tub holds a roll of toilet paper and wet wipes for my hands where they can stay clean. Oh, and I had to add a couple cement pavers to hold the lightweight tent down when the breezes blow.

So far it works great. The coir (sawdust is the recommended method but I don't have access to loads and loads of sawdust) blocks odors from developing and spreading through the area. No complaints from my neighbors after 2 weeks of use. I hope that continues to be true when SoCal gets into the triple digits!

My plan is to seal the filled tub with a lid, mark it with the date I capped it and let it sit in a shady corner for 6 months beginning to break down before I add it to the actual compost piles. I'll put a tarp over it/them so that UV light doesn't weaken the plastic in the tubs. What I've heard is it needs a year to break down to be safely used in the garden. Fortunately, my piles are large, get HOT, and usually have at least 2 years before I break them down.

Wish I had some actual results to report but, so far, I think it's working well. It certainly saves me a lot of anxiety when I'm outside and nature calls.

 

[HoopyFrood]

@IamRainey Fantastic! Have you read Jenkins "Humanure Handbook?" You can process human waste in a regular composting operation if you've got a thermophilic reaction going. He offers the guideline: You should have emptied about one 5 gal bucket of cover material as the "toilet" 5 gal bucket reaches full. If you use too little cover material your nose will tell you. But if you use a lot more cover material than necessary the C:N ratio will be too high thus inhibiting thermophilic composting.

I think I got Jenkins' "Handbook" from the library first; but I loved it so much I had to buy a copy. Again just as a reference for composting (with or without humanure) it's fantastic!

You're right, rotted sawdust can be very hard to find. There are still small lumber mills around the country... but I'm guessing probably not in SoCal

 

[lazy gardener]

I have friends who have a composting toilet in their trailer. It is very clean, totally odor free. Other than stepping up to sit on the throne, their bathroom is just like any other.
I did some reading on this option a couple of years ago, and was impressed at the technology. One woman had a toilet that was plumbed out through the wall of her home, The water entered a huge vermiposting bin, the grey water was filtered by plants, and the resulting compost was used to plant fruit trees.

 

[henless]

I compost like LG. Throw it all in the chicken run and let them do the work. I deep litter in the coop, but it never composts down since it is dry in there. When I clean it out in the spring, it goes in the run to finish composting. Makes lovely black gold.