poop bin

[mendozer]

i want to age my chicken poop by itself, not just throw it into the compost pile. I'm assuming it would be faster this way. I'm using a garbage can as a reservoir and thought about drilling holes all over for oxygen to get in. How long should I let it sit before it's safe to use?

I've read a year, 3 weeks, 6 months, etc. I empty the poop from the coop once a month so ideally a faster process would be ideal

 

[Den in Penn]

Might be slower than turning it in the compost pile. Depends alot in how you manage your pile, is the alot of material other than your chicken waste, do you turn the pile regularly. There are critters in the compost that love the neutrients in the chicken waste. Safe for what? I can think of a couple of things in the garden that can just about use it straight if worked in the soil.
If you use the seprate bin you still might want to work it, poop can form quite a dense wad piled by its self, and it would seal itself from the oxygen. I've seen manure piles and they don't compost well even being worked. That said, if you have the right amount of your bedding in the mix it might work.

 

[mendozer]

i'm using it for veggie gardening. I have a compost pile I was adding the poop to with clippings, leaves, kitchen scraps, etc. However, I was going to experiment with this garbage can technique. With only bedding and poop (not much bedding since I used a slatted floor) I'd roll the can daily to get oxygen in. Hopefully this would speed up the process. I'm assuming it'd be done when it doesn't smell like poop anymore. I still add some to the compost pile because I won't have the resources to do it all in this can. It's just something I'd do every other load of poop.

 

[vclark321]

ok, here is my 2 cents... you might consider 2 bins so one bin can be "active" for six months while you are collecting doo doo in the other. You can let one heat up and decompose while actively collecting in the other. The heat from the chicken doo in the bin cooking should break down fast since it is considered a hot manure. If you have a high carbon to nitrogen ratio it may cook faster. Say for instance chicken doo with grass clippings and maybe some coffee grounds or perhaps chicken doo with leaves with human urine mixed in. (yes, it does sound gross, but it heats up the leaves nicely)

Anyway, just some thoughts. Good luck.

 

[tweetysvoice]

I have a garbage can composter, and we put in a steel rod through the middle and propped it on X shaped wood up so we can "spin" it every time we add to it. This helps mix up the compost. The only thing is that you can't have it too full or it will not mix. Like the PP mentioned, you can also transfer between two cans to mix it up. The more you mix the faster it will compost. There is also this stuff sold in a bag (can't think of what it's called) that you can add to it to speed up the process. I bought my stuff at Home Depot.