Countertop Food Composter
- Thread starter ackatch
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These have been good.
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I can't recommend specific product because my wife bought ours, but eventually it is better in many ways than throwing all food scraps in trash or garbage disposal. The compost stinks when you open it but your sink disposal and garbage can won't smell anymore.
You just have to always put lid on it immediately (for bugs) and take it out like once a week even if it's not full (or mold will grow fast). This is easier than taking it out every day which is what you'd need to do without one of these. I wash mine once a week when I empty it, usually on garbage night.
Most of them have a little black square carbon filter that prevents any odor. I've ordered replacements twice, one time the replacements were too soft and they kind of fell down into the canister sometimes and that's the only time I had issue with bugs. The next time I got replacements they were really firm/stiff and they last over a year.
You just have to always put lid on it immediately (for bugs) and take it out like once a week even if it's not full (or mold will grow fast). This is easier than taking it out every day which is what you'd need to do without one of these. I wash mine once a week when I empty it, usually on garbage night.
Most of them have a little black square carbon filter that prevents any odor. I've ordered replacements twice, one time the replacements were too soft and they kind of fell down into the canister sometimes and that's the only time I had issue with bugs. The next time I got replacements they were really firm/stiff and they last over a year.
I may be wrong because I had never even heard of them until this thread but it looks like they’re more of a dehydrator/grinder. Not your typical outdoor type where it’s getting broken down by living organisms.
Are you looking for an active composter that digests/creates compost on its own or a countertop bin to collect food waste and you empty it every couple of days into a city collection compost bin? If it's the former, do you have a budget?
At my last place my composter was right outside my back kitchen door. At the place I've been the past 6 years it would be a major PITA to constantly be taking food scraps out there and walking through a living room.
Now that I'm used to it probably easier even if it was still right outside my kitchen. It's a minor chore once a week vs a tiny hassle 4-5 times a day.
Assuming the OP just wants a clean contact to hold scraps before dumping in an outdoor compost bin, something like this would work pretty well:
We just gave my mom a version of this for Christmas. They have a big garden and eat lots of fresh vegetables and fruit in the winter too, so they compost a lot.
As HFCS said, the key is to take it out frequently even if it’s not quite full. And keep the lid on it to keep the bugs down.
My wife and I have a plastic container that hangs on the inside of our under sink cupboard that works well. We try to keep it a little cleaner by using compostable bags but we still wash it too. The compostable bags are supposed to be commercially compostable but if there’s still chunks in our bin I just throw them back in when I dig out the finished compost.
We just gave my mom a version of this for Christmas. They have a big garden and eat lots of fresh vegetables and fruit in the winter too, so they compost a lot.
As HFCS said, the key is to take it out frequently even if it’s not quite full. And keep the lid on it to keep the bugs down.
My wife and I have a plastic container that hangs on the inside of our under sink cupboard that works well. We try to keep it a little cleaner by using compostable bags but we still wash it too. The compostable bags are supposed to be commercially compostable but if there’s still chunks in our bin I just throw them back in when I dig out the finished compost.
I dont like them, I just put a bowl on the counter and empty it out every day or so, change out the container a few times a week, I save a ton and just dump it on the garden directly.
Active indoor countertop composter. I have a compost bin by my garden that just doesn't seem to ever actually...compost anything. I've got no idea what I'm doing wrong.
I have a Reencle. https://reencle.co/
It’s a bit large for a countertop though. I’m not sure an active countertop composter is feasible though. There needs to be some room for a mixing paddle and a lid to open and for the ‘bug’ environment to exist. It’s great though - no issues with bugs and it legit transforms food into compost. It’s not industrial level so it’s not going to digest bones and fruit pits, etc. , but it quietly does its thing cuts down on throwing away a lot of organic stuff.
I’m all in on composting, I think it’s legit (recycling plastic is a pipe dream) and the great part is the output is actually useful. I don’t have a garden so when the composter is full, I just dump it into the city compost that they collect every week. Sure, I could just dump all my organic stuff directly into the city bin, but there’s 2 big advantages to having a composter in your kitchen. 1) convenience - you don’t have to go outside repeatedly to put it into the bin while you making food 2) minimizing bugs and rodents - if most of what you’re putting into your garbage or city compost bin is already composted then the pests are less likely to be attracted to your bins.
Get a compost barrel. Or build a small compost box with scrap wood in your back yard. Unless you don't have a yard.
Can’t make a recommendation as I’d never even heard of this class of device until now, but I have a former colleague that coincidentally started working here recently:
www.mill.com
Mill food recycler
Effortless to use. Intelligent tech. The food recycler designed for your life.
www.mill.com
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I have the Mill. It is a floor model, but has a larger bin and larger carbon filter (haven't changed it yet and it has been 8 months).
Downside is the cost.
www.mill.com
Downside is the cost.
Mill: The odorless, effortless food recycler
Mill is the smartest device in your kitchen. Mill turns would-be food waste into resources for the Earth. Keep filling it for weeks.
www.mill.com
