I raided the GeekDad archives from two years ago for a quick weekend project with my boys. Sure, I could have done a mail-order compost bin. However, opening a cardboard box and plunking something down in the yard would have been much less fun. It would have also been more expensive. With less than $5, we made a compost bin for our family.
Relying on The Compost Bin post from May 2007, the boys and I a couple weekends ago made our own.
We used the following materials:
- A Rubbermaid tub
- A power drill
- Some rocks
- Some shredded newspaper
- Compost starter
Photo: Russ Neumeier
The Rubbermaid storage tub came from Wal-Mart. We spent $2 on it because it had been bent and was discolored on the corner. No biggie, this was going in the yard and would be hidden out of the way. The compost starter cost another few dollars.
The boys took turns drilling the holes in the top and bottom of the bin. We added rocks, shredded newspaper and our compost starter.
Easy, fun, power tools were involved, and much less stuff gets blended in the garbage disposal. We’re a bit late this year for our gardening needs, but the way it looks we’ll be all set next Spring.
