Rachel from Urban Farm, demonstrates a DIY Compost Bin project made from old pallets. With a little sawing, drilling and screwing you’ll have your very own pallet compost bin knocked up in no time!
I’m not a gardener and I’ve never composted anything but did pick up some suggestions on this from the comments –
- don’t bother with the netting it’s not needed and wildlife could get caught up in it
- make the bottom part of the door hinged too as this gives you easy access to the compost. So you can get your pitch fork in there either to turn the compost or to move it to put in your garden
- don’t bother with the bottom pallet, if the compost material is on the ground it makes it easier for the worms to get access to it.
Pallet Wood Usage – Safety
Please be careful about the pallet that you use for this project. Pallets are typically either heat-treated (heated to a high temperature to seal the wood) or treated with methyl bromide – a toxic pesticide linked to human health problems and ozone layer depletion.
- Look for pallets that have the IPPC seal and an “HT” stamp,which means it was heat-treated rather than sealed with chemical pesticides.
- Avoid unmarked pallets or those stamped with an “MB” for methyl bromide.
- Also, try and source pallets that were not used to ship food, chemicals or other materials that may have contaminated the wood.
The materials and equipment that you’ll need for your DIY Compost Bin are shown below.
- 5 wooden pallets
- 26″ – 36″ tie wraps (optional)
- 2 hinges for the door (or 4 if you want both the top and bottom sections to open)
- 10 – 14 L brackets (depending on whether you hinge the bottom section at the front) or 4-8 if you decide not to add the pallet at the bottom
- Hook and eye latch
- 2″ long wood screws
- Garden netting
- Hand saw
- Staple gun (optional)
- Protective work gloves
Did You Know?
At least 10% of the 100 million tons of plastic we use every year end up in the oceans. This is equivalent to the weight of 700 billion plastic bottles. Put on top of each other these bottles would reach further than the sun. But they are not going to the sun. They are in our oceans and will stay there.
courtesy of: www.theworldcounts.com
Take a look at some more pallet projects here.