People that hot compost do watch the temperature and will turn that pile when temperatures reach 135 to 150 degrees.

If you have the energy and strength and system (like a side comes off your bin and you can fork it directly into the next bin; wish we had done that, but we built it in three segments that don't connect easily), it's great to turn and hot compost, I would say. I don't, but that's because there's far too much gardening for me here with the plants, never mind the dirt! One can only do so much.

But hot compost is sterile, has no weed seeds, and that's really great. ANY kind of compost that's black and looks delicious is great and extremely useful, but I have to get the sterile topping compost from our local landfill, where they hot compost with bulldozers.

Boy, I'll bet you'll have some great stuff there. As for the quantity --- don't worry, by November you'll have half what you do now. It is impossible to have too much compost, in my experience --- simply because it collapses so fast. Every summer I say, where am I going to put the rest?? We need an auxilliary bin! Then it rains and the level sinks way down and there's room again. So I think that will happen to you. [:-)

Thanks for the replies! I just spent 3 hours shredding another pile and its in the oven. (so to speak) I did go ahead and turn the other pile that was 195 degrees, I actually made a couple more bins out of some plastic chicken wire (I will call it) and split the pile into those 2. So it seems that some turn the pile when it gets above 150 and other just let it ride???? I have been reading all kinds of different opinions and studies etc. I dont mind the work of turning it, I just want to make sure im getting the most out of my efforts when it comes to the quality of the finished compost. Its pretty amazing what a shredder can do to a HUGE pile of material!Thanks again! Mike

How bout just laying some of it out where you want a new bed and do some sheet composting? Just keep adding layers and watering? Maybe cover with cardboard if you're worried about weeds? NT

Sheet composting! Passive composting! I love all these new words I'm learning here, nancyjane. That is certainly what I do when overwhelmed -- make the raised bed on top of a lot of pulled weeds, and it works great. Potatoes grow huge in light medium like that.

Glad to help! LOL

Sterile compost would be compost with no bacteria in it and that is just what causes compost to heat up, bacteria. While the heat generated by the bacteria will kill some potential disease pathogens there is a large body of research that indicates "weed" seeds are killed not because of the heat but because the seeds germinate and finding no sun die.
All of the good researchg I have seen about when to turn a compost pile says that should be when the pile reaches the 135 to 150 degree range. I have not seen any reserch that supports waiting for that 195 dergree, or hotter, temperature.