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Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Moving and Improving - Part 20 - Reduce, Re-use, Recycle

First, we grouted, then we locked ourselves out of the mudroom again and ticked more items off the "while drying" list.

At the top of the list was putting together the compost bins we've been thinking about for some time. We wanted to do a dual bin system so that we could add to one and then stop and let it decompose properly for (hopefully) next year some time, fingers twisted for spring, but more likely fall or even next spring. Since we're a two person household and we won't be adding the normal household green matter (grass clippings) it will be a stretch to have a fully mature compost quickly.What I like best about it, is that it enables us to reduce our garbage pick-up. I signed us up for once a month. We get once a month garbage and bi-weekly recycling and it thrills me (almost as much as toilets).
What Joe likes best about it is that all the materials we've poured into this project were re-used (with the exception of some of the hardware-screws, and the base of the bins, which falls in the kinda sorta category of having been leftover from the picnic table). The majority of the wood was broken down from hop pallets that Joe saved from the landfill and fencing material.

We have two more pallets yet to break down to create lids (which we're going to put hinges on for ease of use) and the front will go up as slats as we fill the bins and stir them. YEAH!While Joe assembled the bins, I made progress on clearing the mess in the compost area.

Before:
After:

It's a nice little gated area that can be closed if we wanted. We relocated the wood pile there for now. The window resting next to the pallets is another acquisition from the re-building center and will become the top lid for a cloche for early spring seedlings. Still have to build it, but I think it will do well in this sunny spot and right next to the compost.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Nice reuse. I pick them up around the corner and use them in the fireplace. It's satisfying to bash them apart to make them into scrap sizes.

Nice to see y'all the other night. Your house is looking good!

Anonymous said...

It's all really coming along nicely.

Keep the updates coming!

Chris said...

You don't know true joy until you've inaugurated a new sewer pipe...