Your material is "shrinking" because the bacteria are digesting it and converting it into compost, that happens. I fill my bins with material to the 4 foot level and when I come back to it I will have 2 feet of finished compost. Many of us have two or three bins that we fill, at various times, so we have compost all the time, when we need it. But that "shrinkage" is supposed to happen.

I like to think of it as magic. :) (I have dual degrees in biosciences but magic is more fun) I fill my bin to the top, so full I can barely close the lid then 2 days later when I make my next run out to the composter there is 6 inches left on the top to add more. It has been that way for months now. I only have the one composter and I know I need to empty the bottom part (I rarely stir) but 2 toads live there. It's nice and humid in there and we are in a drought, I don't have the heart to evict the toads. So I hope I can magically keep adding to the top until the weather is more toad-friendly.

If you want to fill yours quick I recommend grass cuttings and shredded paper. I have to compost the grass c;ippings periodically since my dog is allergic to grass and that fills the bin to overflowing fast!

kimmsr - how hard do you have to work, though, to get your bins full to the 4 foot level?

I admit, I'm not asking other people for compost-bin donations and I guess shredded paper as a carbon source takes up less volume than OPBL. Right now, I'm composting veggie scraps from two adults and two kids, plus paperboard, waste paper, and cardboard. Also, a minor amount of UCG from work and a few weeds here and there.

With quantities that small, it doesn't seem like I'll ever "fill the bin." And if I'll never fill something that big, why not scale down? I'm short, so having a bin that is half as tall as I am when I'm really only using part of it.... And if part of the theory behind "bin" v. random pile is that the enclosed material will reach higher temps easier, that seems like another reason.

Another way to look at the situation:
Am I better off adding to the constantly shrinking pile _or_ getting something closer to the size of the material on hand so that it can sit/age/cook/compost/etc.? First option will work eventually and I'll be able to harvest eventually and I'll have to separate the finshed compost from the still composting bits then. Second option seems like it would yield a more uniformly finished crop, due to the "set it and forget it" stage. Then, by the time that first batch has finished off, I'll have filled a second container that can sit for a while, etc.

I guess my angst is being stirred up by the photos thread -- bill's stuff looked so compost-y and everyone's piles were big and pretty -- mine is short, dumpy, and very papery. And there is such a large surface area on top that stirring/turning leaves undigested material exposed, which means adding more paper.

I also have a hard time believing that bacteria are doing there thing when there are so many sow bugs/pill bugs.

Many of us have easy access to far more compost materials then you heave apparently - thus the big full piles.

Right now, I'm composting veggie scraps from two adults and two kids, plus paperboard, waste paper, and cardboard. Also, a minor amount of UCG from work and a few weeds here and there.

Isn't going to cut it, sorry. ;) It is time to start looking for other sources - and there are many. Check with the produce clerk at your store for throw-aways, ask neighbors for their coffee grounds or any other contributions they wish to make, tell them you will also take their bags of leaves this fall and any bags of grass clippings they may have. Save the dryer lint, vacuum cleaner bags, cardboard from store trash bins, etc.

Minimum size pile for activity is 3'x3'x3' - you don't need bigger for now if you don't want to. And yes, the bacteria are working or it wouldn't be shrinking and if you let it dry out a bit the pill bugs will leave but they aren't hurting anything.

If you seriously want to compost, then it is time think outside the box and to get out and about. ;)

Dave

If you really don't want to go outside your own kitchen for materials, you might enjoy vermicomposting. That like the system you describe, with worms doing the work. :)

But I say, hang in there. I never dreamed scavenging would be SO MUCH FUN in the fall, especially around Halloween. The air is cool, and the bags of leaves and old pumpkins are set out regularly. My neighbor friend brought me old bales of straw and old cornstalks after Thanksgiving.

The compost bonanza season is just around the corner!

It's also really easy to dip just inside the door of Starbucks and check the UCG can. I drive around the two blocks of my house in summer and can get 4-5 bags of grass clippings in 5 minutes.

So YES! Your bin will be full! Overflowing! Hot and steaming!

Patsy - I guess I'll have to work on patience. Also, in another thread, I mentioned that the local SB stopped the Grounds for Gardening program because of the local health inspector.

I think the most frustrating thing is that I can't go out and work on my pile in the middle of the night, after the kids are in bed. Right now, I have a big contribution waiting to be made when I get a chance to get out there -- every afternoon we've had a thunderstorm here lately.

Now I need to figure out how to dry out the pile. It looks like I'm going to have to find a way to cover it for at least this month to keep it from being so waterlogged. I'm all for roly-polies, but when they build a high rise hotel and start having conventions, somethings gotta change!

I am not sure I understand why you can't work on the pile during the day -- there is not much work -- bring material, dump, go enjoy your kids. Why not to do it with kids helping or watching you? I understand if you had a manure to handle, then I would not let them get close to it, but the rest of the stuff is just dirty. We also had a lot of rain lately, so I used old tarp to cover #1 to prevent too much water.
I am a believer -- it's working and therefore it is shrinking!! I recently got one compost pile 3 ft high and decided to let it "finish" without adding anything else to it, so I started second one. #2 is about 2 ft tall now (two weeks later), but #1 is shrinking, so I am debating whether to add #2 to #1, and start another #2.
Never thought about it until I started to look for the sources -- they were just in front of me. I can get a daily load of horse manure (fresh or old), bags of leaves from the neighbor, cardboard boxes and pounds of kitchen scrap -- from the office supplies and office kitchen that cooks Mon-Fri breakfast and lunch.
Try to enlist your neighbors. I see few neighbors toss their grass clippings into the front ditch. IF I needed more, I would definitely ask them to give it to me. But I got plenty. Ask neighbors for their kitchen scrap, it would help if you provided them the storage container (small plastic one with lid). Go around the businesses. The courier delivery service in our building were thrilled when I told them I would take their empty boxes -- "please, please , thank you, shall we pay you for taking them away?"

Look everywhere and don't be shy to ask. Then pile pile , turn turn, water, and enjoy the shrinkage!

during the day, I'm at work. Like now, when I'm checking in over my break -- truly getting obsessed with the compost.

daughter helps me some -- it's keeping the 20 month old from being in the way. I know that I need to have them help, but that makes gardening/composting unenjoyable for me -- it's my escape from being a mom.

It somewhat goes back to the lack of patience. could I train my son to NOT pull on the leaves of my plants? Yeah, but that's work. It's a chore. It's no fun.

dear wonderpets:
i had a chronically under-performing bin till this year. Now i get plenty of used coffee grounds from a coffee shop, which adds bulk and heat. it is also a magnet for worms. i also shred and add volumes of junk mail.i recently added a second bin, giving the first bin a rest to mature.
good luck, paul

Say no more, working mom of two small children. As I recall, I struggled to find time for a shower at that stage. :) I also suspect you have LOTS of patience--it just gets used up in the rest of your busy life.

I think you're doing very well if you can keep it at a foot deep. The compost IS happening, slow but sure. And just imagine the possibilities when that 20 month old starts to potty train! :))

Patsy, I hadn't thought about the potty training. Yippee!

And yes, my patience just gets used up. I tried having my son out there with me for a bit tonight -- he thought throwing handfuls of shredded paper into the air, and yard, was great fun!

I made a few changes tonight. I rebuilt the main bin at a slightly smaller diameter. I know that surface area is great on the individual contents inside the pile, but I think part of my problem was the vast surface area of the pile itself. As I rebuilt it, I layered in the UCG that my husband unexpectedly brought back from GA today.

I did have compost at the bottom of the pile, along with the gazillions of rollypolies. The bottom several inches was mostly unrecognizable except for paper strips (those things are EVERYWHERE), a few corn cobs, and some egg shells. I might be able to make out more in the daylight -- I was out there tonight from about 8:30 till 10 pm.

I also took the cardboard box that I'd been storing my paper scraps in and took out the bottom. The top of my old pile went in there, followed by UCG, then wet bits from the old pile, cardboard leaves, etc. until I was almost to the top. Then yesterday's large bowl of stuff, including leftover apple juice from sippy cups, went in the center. A bit more of the old pile, then topped the box off with 3 inches of shredded paper. Folded the top back over -- didn't seal it, obviously -- and vowed not to do anything to it until it shrinks by half.

I'm asking around on Freecycle and such for old strip shredders -- the diamonds and crosscut bits seem to mat together so easily. Also, I don't think I'll water the pile -- between the moisture in my kitchen scraps, the leftover juices, and the occasional urine contribution, I don't think it'll need the water. Not in SE TN humidity in summer.

So, where I'm at now: 1 2x2x2 box full of fluffed stuff that's been working awhile, plus UCG, a new contribution and a bunch of paper to top it off. One hardware cloth bin (that I'll need to get a lid for before the next gullywasher) that is one foot deep of fluffed stuff.

I really like the thought of flipping the contents over completely -- maybe I'll make a homemade rubbermaid tumbler to put batches in....half new stuff, half stuff from the bin...

Anyway, I mostly wanted to evict some of the rollies -- I've found a new respect for bugs, except mosquitoes, but the quantity I had was unbelievable.

You are on your way!! I started my compost pilke back in April, and thought the same as you...if it isn't full, will it compost? My favorite saying however, is....
patience is a virtue of which I have none!! I was told to relax, compost happens. Everyone was right-it does, it did and it is still going!!

You could start another bin, no problem. Or keep filling the one you have. I only have one bin. I will be using my compost for soil amending and as mulch for the fall.

You have enough stuff to pile in. Look at your house and your office. People drink coffee-bring home the grounds and filters. Shredded paper? Bring it on! Toilet paper rolls, paper towel rolls, junk mail..add it all!! Leftover food off your son's dinner plate..old ratty fruit he didn't eat? Throw it all in there!! Take a look at the faq's and if you are still looking for things to compost, google. There is TONS of stuff I never thought to add! I add vacuum cleaner contents, dog hair and dryer lint all the time. You will be amazed!!

I will tell you what everyone told me, especially digdirt: relax, and don't stress. It will all compost down eventually!!