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| I just got a compost thermometer today so I checked my piles. My new pile is at 120 degrees, while my old pile is at 60. My new pile is less than two weeks old and I put it together all at once, while my old pile has been there growing slowly for about three months.
How do I proceed? I have just turned the old pile and added fresh coffee grounds to it with lots of water (cos it was dry inside). What else can I do to it to heat it up? When should I turn the new pile that appears to be at a good temperature? TIA |
Follow-Up Postings:
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| The hotter the core (center) temp. the sooner it will need air and water and turning. I used to turn my piles at 160F, but that seems to be hot enough to kill some of the bacteria, so now I turn them at 140 or 145F. If I had added problematic ingredients like smelly fish parts in the core at 130F or higher; I would not turn the pile for at least a week. A 'perfect' pile (right mix, small particle size, right moisture, right size) will read 160F in the core after two to three days. I found the $15 spent on a compost thermometer an excellent purchase. Much better value than the $65 spent on a plastic bin, or the $350 spent on a tumbler. |
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| It's not easy to get a 'continuous feed' pile to heat up. I don't normally try. If I were to try, I'd build a new 'batch' pile with correct proportions of materials, heat it up and then add the continuous pile to it. Alternatively, add a bunch of N materials but this may lead to an out of proportion pile and some odour issues I'd rather not deal with. Was your "new" pile hot for all those two weeks? If so, I'd turn it now to see if I can spike the temperature again. Lloyd |
Here is a link that might be useful: Good temperature of compost review.
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