Vote For the Best Compost Bin

When it comes to finding the best compost bin, you've got a tonne of options. Will it be plastic or wood? Will you buy it or will you make it? Will it be one bin or two?

How do you choose?

As we mentioned on our compost bins page, we believe the ideal compost bin is the one that you will consistently use. It sounds kind of funny, but it's incredibly true. We'd bet you there are more unused compost bins in North American's backyards than there are bankrupt lottery winners (we all know how many of those there are).

If you're ready to start making some of mother nature's best garden fertilizer, let's go...

Please note - The following information does not pertain to compost tumblers. If you would like to see our pick for the best compost tumbler, please visit our tumbler page.

Interested to see what others are calling the best compost bin around? Want to cast your VOTE? If so, visit our on-going poll at the bottom of this page.

The Best Compost Bin IS...

• able to contain at least 27 cubic feet (3' X 3' X 3') of material (or 1 cubic yard). This is the minimum volume of a freshly built compost pile, that will generate sufficient heat.
• rodent-resistant (enclosed top or lid).
• affordable (whether you buy it or not).
• aesthetically-pleasing.
• easy to add compost ingredients too.
• one that makes turning, or flipping, compost quick and easy (has large openings).
• made of recyclable, or renewable, materials. Remember to AVOID using pressure-treated lumber. This type of wood has a green tint, and contains toxic chemicals including arsenic, chromium, and copper. These chemicals can leach into your compost, and destroy your microbes.
• expandable. Most people start with one bin, but quickly realize the benefits of composting, and want to add another one.
• one that promotes air circulation.
• one that calls you to use it.

The Best Compost Bin IS NOT...

• hard to build or assemble.
• very expensive.
• so ugly that you have to hide it in the back corner of your yard.
• going to blow over in a wind storm. In other words, it's durable and well-built.

Our Vote for the Best Compost Bin is the...

Three-Bin Composter

If you're not familiar with this style of bin, it works in the following manner:

When first starting out, you'll fill the bin on the far left (or right, whichever tickles your fancy). As the compost ingredients in this bin breakdown, you'll flip them (using a compost fork) into the bin in the middle. Now you can start adding new materials to the first bin again. Once the ingredients in the middle bin are close to being finished, you'll flip them into the last bin. The compost will cure in this bin, and then you can use it for fertilizer. Now that the middle bin is open, you can flip the contents of the first bin into it, and start building a new pile in the first bin.

The wooden panels on the front of the bins are removable (they fit into grooves that have been cut into the upright posts). This feature makes loading and unloading materials quite easy.

Interested in building this bin?

Here are some great instructions on how to build a compost bin very similar to the one shown above.