Used Coffee grounds

[smokensqueal]

I don't see this mentioned to much on this forum. I know most people know the bennifits of them in your compost. Even though I don't know exactly what they do I do know they are a good sorce of N and can really get your compost pile cooking.

I recently learned that Starbuck offered them. There is one of those just a few buildings away from where I work. So I went in and ask and again and again and every time they were already picked up or they didn't have any. After about 10 times I got frustrated. All this and I came to realize they are just right under my nose with out walking to a starbucks. My office drinks coffee just like almost everyone elses. So I took and ice cream bucket and put a little note on it stating what these were going to be used for. WHAM! I got me lots of used coffee grounds. I now have two buckets one on each floor of my building and take home a good hall every day. I've never had such a cook'n compost before.

I just wanted to point out that people are very helpful are most are willing to help the enviorment if given the opportunity and ease. In doing this I also found out that my new company has a "green team" and I was invited to be a part of the team.

[TheLorax]

[applestar]

At Starbucks, when they tell you somebody already picked up the coffee grounds, try saying you'll take whatever they have. The nice young man, very apologetically told me "we only have what's under the counter" and "it's not very much", then gave ME 1/3 of a tall white kitchen bagful. It was so heavy I could hardly carry it to my car -- I was so afraid the bag would drag on the pavement. And it was a good thing they double-bagged it or the bag might have ripped wide open from the strain.

[petalfuzz]

Lucky people! I don't drink coffee, and when I went to Starbucks for grounds, the teenager behind the counter was ignorant of anything--and said they just throw the grounds in with their regular trash, not a special container.
_________________
Carolyn
Zone 5b

[cynthia_h]

I tried to copy/paste the relevant language into this thread, but wasn't able to.

Please see, at www.starbucks.com their 2007 Corporate Social Responsibility Annual Report. It states AS POLICY that 5-lb bags WILL be made available to customers on request.

Maybe you can print it out?

Cynthia H.
USDA Zone 9, Sunset Zone 17
_________________
“If I am not for myself, who will be for me? If I am not for others, what am I? And if not now, when?” Hillel the Elder (1st c. BCE)

[Big_moorlygho1]

It is Starbucks policy for free grounds. However if it is a franchise and not a corporate shop they are not required to give out grounds. Most do though because they pay for trash pickup on a per pound basis. Regards Scott.

[smokensqueal]

Keep in mind that Starbucks are not the only coffee shop out there. I've heard that other coffee shops will also package and give away their UCG for the same reason that moorlygho1 stated, cost of trash pick up. But you may have to provided a container for them. That goes for the same as neigbors and family. Give them and ice cream bucket and ask them to deposit their UCG into that. It's not like they smell bad. I actually like the smell.

On another note about my ice cream buckets for UCG at work. I was asked yesterday if I would take bannana peals and other fruit and veggies scraps. I said sure with a supprised look on my face I'm sure. I'm not sure how it is in other offices but I'm VERY supprised at the amount of people that want to help. That brings me to a CNN clip that I just saw this morning. LA is now doing a trial to start having people add their food scraps to their yard waste. More compost!

http://www.cnn.com/video/?/video/us/2008/08/21/lawrence.table.scraps.cnn

[TheLorax]

[SixShooter]

my friend works for the Coffee Beanery and hooks me up with big bags or used grounds. she don't love me enoughto seperate the filters. so my questionis ARE FILTERS OKAY TO GO IN THE PILE? thanks in advance

[cynthia_h]

Don't worry; the coffee filters and tea bags will decompose just fine. In fact, they decompose in my compost much more quickly than the shredded newspaper does!

I just turned the compost two weeks ago and didn't see ANY coffee filters, either from our house or from Starbucks or the independent coffee shop near here where I'm occasionally lucky enough to score a really terrific amount of grounds!

And the tea bags were invisible, too.

Cynthia H.
USDA Zone 9, Sunset Zone 17
_________________
“If I am not for myself, who will be for me? If I am not for others, what am I? And if not now, when?” Hillel the Elder (1st c. BCE)

[smokensqueal]

I was also unsure about the filters when starting but after a few days when I took my hand rake and mixed things up a bit some of the first filters just fell to pieces already. I guess it helps that they are already soaked when you put them in. So add away!

[SixShooter]

thanks thats good news to me

[Big_moorlygho1]

Filters are fine just consider them a Brown (Carbon). Wheras grounds are considered a Green (Nitrogen).For more info as to what is a Green vs a Brown and composting the Cornell coop ext has info on it. Regards Scott aka Bmg

[David Taylor]

I found out that at one time, There were 10 Starbucks in my little city of El Cajon, California. There were two shops kitty-corner to each other for awhile. They're down to 6 now, but I've worked out a daily route, coming home from work, where I hit three Starbucks, as well as knock off one at lunchtime and average four big bags of coffee grounds a day. I started out with a five gallon bucket, but ended up with and 18-gallon container. You don't want the liquid leaking all over the car, especially your upholstery, so make sure you do have a water-proof vessel.

I did do one thing, though, to grease the skids. The kids at the Starbucks near work seemed a little reticent. Its a busy shop, I hit them at 9:00 in the morning, so I do feel I'm imposing, but I went ahead and brought in some of my homegrown eggs, handed them off to the person who was bagging up the grounds, and said, "Just want to express my appreciation." Now when I call, they know me. I figure the grounds are worth a couple eggs a week.

God Bless Starbucks

[rot]

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Some Starbucks are generous and others look at you funny. If there's nothing in the bucket, ask. Just be prepared for something like 60 pounds in a sack. If you stop by in the evenings and let them know that you'll just take the trash bag and they don't need to re-bag, most will be very happy to oblige. That's when a starbucks in a shopping center with shopping carts lying about are real handy.

Mix coffee ground well in the pile or bin. They tend to smother things.

Coffee grounds can go on the ground directly. To mitigate the crusty effect cover with grass clippings. I cover my brother with grass clippings but he's still crusty.

Starbucks vs the office: those big containers of folgers from the bulk club make for stinky coffee grounds. The starbucks stuff seems to smell good until the oder goes away. I once spread a couple hundred pounds of coffee grounds in the beds out front and for almost two weeks it was wake up and smell the coffee each morning as I left for work.

Dry climate here and I've never had an issue with moldy grounds on the ground or in the bin. Moldy coffee grounds work just fine for me.

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