Anyone actually using Green Cone?

Lemo

I'm tempted by the Green Cone (www.greencone.ie), which seems to be a compost bin for lazy people :-)

To make it practical, we'll need to keep it near the back door (it's a small graden anyway) so the first question my girlfriend asked was whether it smells. They say it doesn't but they would, wouldn't they? Anyone actually using one?

Lex Luthor

I just got one of the standard CoCo ones...grass/uncooked veg/etc. No meat.

I have just found a rat snooping around the garden since its gone in. Not sure if they're related but there is definitely disturbance around the base of it and one or 2 bits of rotten veg have been dragged out.

I heard the ones that take meat & fish attract more vermin...last thing you want is a rat at your back door.

Lemo

Presumably the problem with standard compost bins is that they are accessible through the door at the bottom and the fact that they are just sitting on the ground. The green cone is dug down about a foot into the ground so the only opening above ground is the lid.

Lex Luthor

Lemo wrote:

Presumably the problem with standard compost bins is that they are accessible through the door at the bottom and the fact that they are just sitting on the ground. The green cone is dug down about a foot into the ground so the only opening above ground is the lid.

True....the standard one is very easily accessible....mine new "tenant" has dug in from the side & back....this one needs to be under ground and well shielded from vermin is essential.

Would like to hear more about them cos the wife wants rid of the current one due to the rat issue.

AJL

My impression was that uncooked veg and such do not attract vermin but cooked veg and meat does. Not aware that standard compost bin attracts vermin?

eamon234

Green cones are not composters - there's no end product other than water which seeps into the ground if it's installed properly - best not to confuse the two - I can see people throwing the dinner into compost bins already!

Macy

I'm awaiting delivery of the greencone at the moment. Being able to put in all our food waste will be worth it, if it works. Recycle most of our waste now, but that means cooked food sitting in the non green bin for weeks and the associated rotten smell, flies etc... Will post back how it works.

Eamon - thought there was waste though - iirc you have to empty the basket every year or so, when whats left after decomposition is above ground level.

prospect

I have been using a standard composter for a few years now, and never had and vermin issues, and my house backs on to agricultural land.

Recently I got a 'Big Pig' composter which takes all food waste, cooked & uncooked, meat, veg etc. It has not attracted any vermin either. We did have a small issue with flies at the beginning, but the troubleshooting instructions suggested we add sawdust/wood pellets to dry up the mixture, and it worked.

We are currently trying to compost bio-degradable nappies in it, but are not overly confident about how well it is going. We are putting five a day into it, but may reduce that to 4 a day and put one a day into the 'regular' composter.

P.