Make A Hands-on Compost Bin, step by step

Whether you are looking forward to creating your own nutrient-rich soil amendment or simply looking to send less trash to the landfill, composting is an straightforward practice any household can adopt. And it does not even have to cost anything to get began!

stirring homemade compost bin with shovel

We made this plain homemade compost bin in one hour with supplies we mostly already had on hand. There are certainly far more complex and pricey options for composting (including this pallet compost bin we later made at our next house). But to get our compositing feet wet, we followed this straightforward walkthrough to making our own backyard bin. The steps are especially plain!

Steps For Making Your Hands-on Compost Bin

Find a plastic storage bin
Drill holes in the bin
Create a dry base
Add dirt
Toss in food scraps
Mix & moisten!

Step 1: Select Your Bin

Find or buy a plastic bin with a tight-fitting lid about 24 inches tall or taller (it needs a lid to keep the soil moist and to keep critters out). We picked up a 30-gallon plastic storage bin. We chose a neutral color to assist it blend in with our backyard, but a dark option may work better for you.

straightforward hands-on homemade compost bin made from plastic tupperware

Step 2: Drill Holes In Your Bin

Use a handheld drill to make 8 – 10 small holes in the bottom of the container. This creates airflow since your organic waste needs oxygen for the composting process to take place. A 3/16″ drill bit or similar works strong.

drilling holes in bottom of hands-on compost bin

Repeat this on the lid, making another 8 – 10 small holes with the same drill. Do not seal the lid quite yet, though! Once you’ve wrapped up filling your bin, you will want to affix it tightly to the top.

completed hands-on compost bin in plastic container with holes in top

Step 3: Create Your Brown Base

Think of composting as layers of “browns” (dead leaves, twigs, etc) and “greens” (food waste, grass clippings, etc.). To start of your brown base, place some dry leaves on the bottom of your compost bin, filling it about 1/8 – 1/4 full.

dried leaves in bottom of homemade compost bin

Step 4: Add Dirt

Place dirt on top of the leaves or newspaper until the container is 1/2 full. Again, we have PLENTY of that around, but you could also buy a bag of basic topsoil if needed. It is not necessary to have worms in your dirt.

layer of dirt brought in to homemade compost bin

Step 5: Toss In Your Food Scraps!

Now to add your “greens!” Place any food scraps or paper products that you’d like to compost! Some strong compostable materials are

Fruit and vegetable scraps
Coffee grounds, coffee filters, or tea bags
Eggshells and nutshells
Paper or cardboard
Yard or grass clippings

The EPA has a strong guide with more items you can compost (as well as things you should certainly avoid – like dairy products or pet waste). Surprisingly, things like lint are compostable so we tossed some in with a couple of banana peels and a small ball of lint. That is all we had at the moment, but perhaps this will encourage us to eat more fruits and veggies? Or do more laundry?

Step 6: Stir Your Compost

Give your compost a little stir (quite little, in our case) with a shovel or stick, making sure to cover your food scraps with dirt. Canine supervision is optional.

Step 7: Moisten!

Spray with lukewarm water until moist, but not soaking wet. (Note: too much water can be the culprit if your compost starts to smell).

Step 8: Find A Convenient Spot For Your Compost Bin

Place the bin in a shady area away from the house (if you live in an apartment or have no backyard you can place your bin on the patio). Be sure that it is not in full sun or your compost will dry out. We found the ideal spot near our garage where our bin can hide behind some shrubs – inconspicuous and convenient (since we take the garbage and recycling out this way already). Can you spot it? HINT: check the bottom right.

Step 9: Collect Your Compostable Materials Inside

You will also want to think through how you will collect or separate your compostable waste inside as well (that way you are not constantly digging through the trash for eggshells or coffee grounds). We wrote about this airtight container we picked up to wrangle our food scraps under the sink. It is tight seal keeps it from smelling between trips to dump it into our bin.

airtight container for collecting compost scraps

When Is Your Compost Ready To Use?

The amount of time depends on the size of your bin and how lately you’ve brought in new organic material. It may be ready in a couple of months or take up to a year. Some key signs that it is ready for use in your lawn or garden are:

All of your compostable materials have broken down (no food visible in its original form)
It has a “earthy” or dirt-like smell (not acidic or sour smelling)
It is no longer producing heat (it should feel about the same temperature as the air)
It is dark and crumbly, not wet or clumpy

Once it is ready, your wrapped up compost can be used as mulch or potting soil and can also be sprinkled over grass as a lawn conditioner. Remember to save at least 1/3 of it to keep the composting process going. You may also want to create a second bin that you can add your food scraps to while your first bin is going through the decomposition stages to wrapped up compost.

Seems fairly straightforward, right? And so far the whole thing has cost us less than $10.

Update: We installed a larger compost pile in our new house using old shipping palettes. Click here to check out this alternate composting project.