Making Our Own Rotating Barrel Composter

Example barrel composter at class

** NOTE ** In an effort to get this posted quickly, I may not have all the dimensions, products or resources listed as I would like to. I’ll come back and update. I promise!

In trying to be more “green” at home, I finally finished putting our compost barrel together. Of all the recycling-earth friendly things we’ve started to do here, I’m most excited about this, but it probably shouldn’t have taken as long as it did. I started it in March at our local park district. (Embarrassed, yes.) Since I wasn’t able to stay for the whole class (1-1/2 hours), I jsut made sure I had all the pieces that were needed to finish and brought everything home. Of course, there was every intention to get it done on the first nice weekend, but that weekend went by, as did several others… and here we are today.

There have been a few inquiries about how to put it together. I was able to take a few pictures at class, which will hopefully be helpful with the instructions.

Materials needed

Legs

• (2) Plastic sawhorse brackets (hardware included)
• 4 pieces of 2×4 at 31″ to 32″ lengths each for legs
• 2 pieces of 2×4 at 12″ each for pipe surface

Composter

• (1) Food grade plastic barrel
• (2) hinges
• (2) barrel bolts
• (2) pull handles
• (1) 1-1/2″ diameter PVC pipe – 60″ length
• (4) 1-1/4″ EMT/pipe brackets
• several wire nuts to cap off screws

Equipment

• Jigsaw
• Hammer
• Tape measure/ruler
• Hole drill bit
• Power drill (cordless is easier, but not necessary)
• Drill bits
• Permanent marker

Making the stands

This was essentially like making legs for a sawhorse except I didn’t place a long 2×4 across the legs. Instead I used two small pieces of 2×4. (See the pictures above and below of the finished barrel.)

Find the center of the 12″-2×4 and drill a hole to fit the bracket bolt. Center the sawhorse bracket on hole and hammer it down in place. Take the piece and place it on the sawhorse bracket. Take your assembly and put it on the ground upside down (ready to receive the legs). Insert leg pieces into the bracket/holders, hammer to secure, then place center support piece in the middle and tighten bolt. It may help to have someone steady the legs.

Preparing the barrel

On barrel ends, mark the centers. Drill a hole on both ends large enough for the 60″ PVC pipe.

Cutting the door

The door will be approximately 11″ x 11″. Your barrel may have seams (ribs or lines) that will be helpful for marking. From rib to rib on my barrel, I have 11 inches. I marked a square accordingly.

Before cutting the door, install the hinges and barrel bolts so that the door piece wouldn’t fall in after you cut it. To have the door open up like a trash chute, the barrel bolts are on top and the hinges are on the bottom. Place the pieces in position (no real measurements here) and traces locations and holes. Predrill all your holes with a small bit (5/16″ worked well) – it makes life so much easier!

At this point, take the jigsaw and cut ONLY at the hinge and bolt locations (4 cuts). Make sure your cuts go slightly past the hardware so you have somewhere for the jigsaw to start easily when you cut the rest of the square. Then install the hinges and bolts by hand making sure not to strip the screws (that’s actually me in the picture).

Cut out the rest of the square. After it’s finished, open the door to check if everything is cut correctly.

Install the two pull handles the same way, marking its location and predrilling holes. Basically, the pulls go on opposite sides of the barrel, above and below the door.

Using wire nuts, I cover all the screws on the inside.

Lastly, drill a number of random holes all around the barrel… but not through the door (plenty of air space around there).

Mounting the composter on the stands

Place your PVC pipe through the barrel. That’s the easy part.

It helps to have friends around for placing the barrel, but I was able to have my two kids hold the legs/stands upright and in place, while I maneuvered the barrel holding on to the pull handle.  Once you get the PVC pipe on the legs, take a couple of pipe brackets and secure to the 2×4. I had to angle the screws in a bit. They were slightly long, and would have gone through the 2×4 had I drilled straight down. As it is, you want to angle the screws in, to make sure the brackets are tight against the pipe when you secure it to the wood.

What to Compost

• Coffee grounds
• Tea leaves/bags
• Eggshells
• Fruit and vegetable scraps (I’ve been told that banana peels, orange peels and peaches have high levels of pesticides, so don’t compost them if you’re going to use your “black gold” to grow food.)
• Shredded newspaper (for carbon)
• Leaves, straw, hay, grass clippings

Do Not Compost

• Deadly weeds
• Diseased plants
• Human or pet waste
• Meat/fish scraps or bones
• Oily/fatty food products
• Dairy products
• Chemically treated wood products

Tags: backyard, compost, composting barrel, garden, home, recycled, tutorial

Personal DNA

Another one of those weeks where I’m catching up on chores, writing, reading, crafting, mothering… I wanted to take a break and thought to share this personality quiz. I used to take a bunch of these in high school and college. Now that I think about it, why did I keep taking these quizzes? Is that was girls do? My daughter has two quiz books from American Girl… we start so young, don’t we? I’m not sure what I was looking for then. Maybe it was some insight into the person I was versus the person I wanted to be. Maybe, back then, it was to confirm that I was the right girl for my crush-of-the-month.

Well, this quiz assessed me (now) as a Dynamic Inventor. Figures, hehe.

My personalDNA Report

Tags: fun, games, wasting time, websites

Communion Reception: Menu and Recipe

What time do most people eat dinner? Do most people call it “dinner” or “supper”? I suppose there’s a difference, and maybe a subtle one. I never bothered to look up a definition until now. So, what would you do for a reception if a religious service was at 1:30 pm and lasted for 1-1/2 hours? It’s not really a late lunch, but it’s not totally time for dinner either. Essentially, it was supper and it was good.

Here’s what we figured for 25 adults and 11 children (some of whom are light eaters – count 2 kids as 1 adult)

• To munch on: Banana-chocolate chip bread, Cran-apple-orange bread, Orange-rosemary mini cornbread muffins (breads baked at home), salami and cheese, smoked salmon and crackers, roasted garlic hummus and olive crostinis (store bought).
• 48 piece tray – Italian subs and Club subs  (approx. 4″, bought at local Italian deli) One tray had 24 pieces, and that wouldn’t have been enough.
• Tortilla chips and roasted corn-black bean salsa (brought over by family)
• Shrimp salad (store bought)
• Cake – split yellow and chocolate cake with custard and strawberries
• Coffee, tea, assorted soda, and juice boxes for the kids

Notes:

1. Quick breads can easily be done a few days before and frozen if you want.
2. The cornbread muffin recipe is from Martha Stewart which was recently reprinted in the Living magazine with the addition of orange peel. True to the recipe, it keeps for 2 days in an airtight container. TWO days. I made it one day too soon. They dried out.
3. It’s nice to have a good bakery so close to home!

Here’s a favorite recipe for black bean salsa that I’ve made over the years adapted from The Lady & Sons Savannah Country Cookbook by Paula Deen. I visited her restaurant before she was a Food Network celebrity and bought my cookbook there. This salsa is similar to the one we had last Saturday; the difference being roasted corn. It does add a lovely smokiness. Just by frozen roasted corn for ease! Enjoy!

Julie’s Black Bean Salsa

• 2 (15 oz.) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 (17 oz.) pkg. frozen whole kernel corn, thawed
• 2 lg. tomatoes, seeded and chopped
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1/4 cup. chopped fresh cilantro
• 4 tbsp. lime juice
• 1 tbsp. red wine vinegar
• 1 lg. avocado, peeled and chopped (optional)
• 1/8 tsp. cumin (optional)
• 1/8 tsp. garlic powder (optional)
• salt and pepper to taste

In large bowl, mix all ingredients well. Cover and chill overnight. Before serving, add salt and pepper to taste if necessary. Great with tortilla chips or just as a side to your meal.

Tags: Communion, cooking, food, Friends and Family, menu planning

Busy February

Picture by G. Feiereisel

Wow, it’s been a while… let’s update.

Holiday/birthday season is over for me (husband’s, father’s, daughter’s and numerous friends), and tomorrow our party-hosting blackout month starts. We may be taking a hosting hiatus, but that doesn’t mean we’re not thinking about it. Amidst the celebrating, we started looking for Holy Communion dresses for Abby and planning a lunch reception. We have a little less than two months, which really translates to, I have a little less than two months to reorganize and pull my house back together again.

In the next month, I’ll begin reporting for Craft Critique where I will rediscover and review some of my own crafting supplies and equipment, and be introduced to new and exciting products in the crafting world. I can’t wait! You might imagine I have quite the array of products, but my craft shed is fairly minimal. You’ll see. To jump start my creative juices and “research” current products, I’ve been visiting the local Archiver’s over the last few weekends to see the “make-and-take” projects and see product demos.

Another love of mine is Chicago history and architecture, so to celebrate that my husband and I attended “Chicago in History and Mystery” at our local library. Fabulous guest speakers, wine and hors d’ouevres, too. (Can I tell you how weird it was eating and walking around the library with a glass of chardonnay? God forbid I spill anything!) Back to the speakers: Authors JA Konrath, Gillian Flynn and Henry Perez; Rick Kogan and Charles Osgood from the Chicago Tribune and WTTW personality, Geoffrey Baer.

I’ve never been to an author panel discussion before; it was eye-opening and fun! These authors write mysteries, and being able to hear them speak about their inspirations, how they got started, how they approach their character development was so fascinating. We came home with Afraid by Konrath, who also writes under Jack Kilborn, but I’m definitely looking forward to reading the others. Have to get through my stack of books by my bed first.

It’s amazing enough to watch Geoffrey Baer’s tours of Chicago on tv, read Rick Kogan’s articles and see Charles’s photography, but listening to them when they’re a few feet away from you… incredibly captivating and entertaining personal stories. Sorry to say I didn’t bring my camera, but then again, not many people did. I might be able to link to the library website if they update their event photos. I wanted to tuck every anecdote away in my head to share with friends, but by the time we left (about 4 hours) I was so overwhelmed with factoids and fun stories. I’ll end with a few Chicago tidbits that stuck.

• Louis “Studs” Terkel (Chicagoan author, broadcaster, historian) was one of the oldest people to undergo open-heart surgery at the age of 93. In his own words through Rick Kogan, “I’m a medical miracle!”
• Caldwell Avenue is named for “Billy” Caldwell whose American Indian name was Sauganash which is also the name of the neighborhood that the avenue runs through. I had no idea…
• Park Ridge is not the highest point in Cook County which many Park Ridgians believe. High point is somewhere around Barrington.
• Park Ridge was home to many artisans and craftspeople, and included a workshop called Kalo Arts Crafts Community House where many silversmiths and jewelers started their trade.

Such a rich history in the arts… is it a wonder I feel at home here? We’ll see what happens in the next month since I also applied for a seat on the newly formed “Historic Preservation Commission” in town.

Tags: chicago, craft critique, date night, Friends and Family, library, life

What I’ve Learned Having Houseguests

Now that the holidays are over and I’ve recovered somewhat, I tend to review our hosting strategies, successes and misses. Every year we have at least 1-3 guests stay with us for any given length of time. It could be an overnight stay or a couple of weeks. Don’t know about other people, but I get worked up. I just want to make sure that our guests feel welcome and comfortable, that they enjoy their stay and would want to come back.

We have a slight challenge of not having a dedicated guest room, but here’s how we get around that: the basement. It becomes a semi-private suite. In the case of my awesome brother-in-law, he’ll room in my kid’s room, or with my kids. No problem. However, I can’t necessarily assume that everyone will be as accommodating.

My must haves: No matter what the state my house is in, I will prep good pillows, a good air mattress (we have two), towels, sheets, clock, storage cubes doubled as nightstand, hangers, and coat rack. Don’t have yet but would like: luggage rack.

Entertaining: Here, I luck out again with pretty easy going relatives. My in-laws did most of the shuttling around last Fall with our guests. But, it’s helpful to have schedules and sight-tour brochures handy. Seriously, I even picked up at our library a few copies of “family-friendly” publications that have local things-to-do and set that on the bedside table for our guests.

Meal times: I’ll ask about favorite snacks and more importantly, kids favorites, if I’m not exactly sure what my guests are into. Putting together a dinner/meal schedule was also a super timesaver. It was more like a guideline, if anything, but sure helped with grocery lists. We had plenty of drinks on hand too.

Here’s my favorite way of setting up my towels on the bed for a cute “welcome”. One of my best friends taught me this a long time ago when I stayed at her home for a few days. Sorry, you might only get this the first time you come over, after that, you’re like family and I don’t sweat it out so much.

Abby took video footage of me putting it together (our first video tutorial), but the file was too big to upload! This will have to do.

**Update** I figured out how to add video:

1) Take the bath towel and fold into thirds along the long direction.

2) Fold into thirds the other way (short direction).

3) Take the hand towel and fold into thirds along the long direction.

4) Now wrap the hand towel around the bath towel.

5) Take the wash cloth, fold into thirds, then wrap around the hand towel to hide the ends and create a “bow” appearance.

Voila! Hotel-ish towels for your guests… enjoy!

Tags: basement, family, food, Friends and Family, holiday, home, houseguests, tutorial, vacation, visitors

Cleaning out the Closet and a Drawer

We have a giant front closet in our foyer, and I’ll admit, it’s long overdue for a little better organization. I think I cleaned it out over one year ago. Before I knew it, the coats had somehow magically multiplied with hand-me-downs and seasonal additions. I was sad that there was hardly any room for guest coats.

So, a little trip to IKEA (we love it there), a few purchases and time to sort…

…and voila! There were so many coats and sweatshirts that weren’t being worn because 1) they’re too small, 2) they’re too big or 3) they don’t belong to us. A few things have since found new homes and other things are being packed away for future use. We’re planning on converting a lot of our clothes hangers to wooden ones, just a little at a time.

Think our dry cleaner will be happy with my little hanger donation? The plastic ones will find a home in the laundry room in the meantime.

Onward to the kitchen where you’d think we might keep our plates in the top cabinets… nope, not us. For accessibility sake, we have our plates in the drawers below where pots and pans are sometimes stored.

I had bought four of these plate holders three years ago, but was short two. I just kept forgetting to buy them over the last few years.

Kiddie plates just stack with everything. I love, love, love these holders. Minimal or no assembly, plates don’t rattle, they all have their places. It’s awesome.

(FYI: I have not been paid, given product by, or asked by IKEA to advertise or “plug” their products. This is simply a post about products we like.)

Tags: favorite things, home, IKEA, life, organizing, shopping