How to Build a Tumbling Composter

Composting is a great way to take leftover organic material from your household and use it in your yard and garden. To keep the composting process moving, it is important to keep the decomposing materials turned over. It’s a relatively simple matter to build a tumbling composter to make that job easier.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Plastic barrel (your choice of size)
• Four foot long piece of two-inch pipe
• Four 2x4s, each at least four feet long
• Nails
• Saw
• Hammer
• Drill and drill bits
• Measuring tape
• Two hinges
• Hasp closure
• Two foot length of rebar

1. Gather your supplies. Choose a barrel with the lid and bottom intact.

2. Drill a two-inch hole in the center of the top and bottom of the barrel. Also drill a hole large enough to pass the piece of rebar through in one end of the pipe. Pass the piece of pipe through the barrel.

3. Mark a rectangle on the outside of the barrel large enough to make an opening for the composting material. Cut out the rectangle being careful not to disturb any of the plastic on either side of the mark.

4. Add two hinges to one side of the door opening of the tumbling composter. Put a hasp closure on the other side.
   
   

5. Cross two 2x4s to make an X. Nail the crossed pieces securely. Make a second, identical X.

6. Measure two lengths of 2x4. The length should be longer than the height of the barrel plus a couple inches. Nail these two pieces of wood from one foot of the X to the other to form a brace. Brace the other foot with the other piece of 2x4.

7. Set the barrel and pipe into the top part of the wooden frame you just built. Slip the piece of rebar through the hole that you drilled earlier. Use the rebar as a handle to turn the tumbling composter.

Resources

• Click here for information about how to load your tumbling compos